It is Cold UP IN HERE!
The Northwest is in a full blown Arctic Freezer--It's a Frozen Frenzy for Certain!!!
Today we were compiling data for the 2006 ministry report for the church! 2006 will be the year when we looked at the church with some fresh eyes and redesigned how we Connect People to Life. That's our mission and at the end of 2005 it was complicated and difficult for people to accomplish the mission. I was utterly shocked by how strategic, fruitful, and revealing 2006 was. Those long nights, reatreats and creative sessions were well worth the time.
Strategically the discovery and development of RC Steps was a critical component to such a great year, but it wasn't just the things we added to the church that made it great. it was also the prayers we prayed to subtract some things. As a result of the subtraction the strategy for 2007 is poised for some of the biggest changes in TRC history! I love it.
The Rock was fruitful in a lot of ways in 2006. We saw hundreds of 1st time guests in every area of our ministry including children's, youth outreaches and on Sunday's. Generosity was up substantially over 2005 and we completed a big portion of Touching Tomorrow Together when we opened GRID2911. The Grid is our giant youth facility with cafe', video games, billiards, skate ramps, hoop court, and it is open on Friday nights for hang time. Not only that, but http://www.providehope.com/ broke every record this year with our school supplies give away, turkey dinner outreach, and Hopetown Christmas. These events were a huge success and they are just a couple of the highlights, there is so much more to get excited about.
Yet, the annual report was revealing also. It revealed some good trends in our church, like attendance which was up some months 22% over 2005. It also revealed trends that need attention, like water baptisms. In 2006, we water baptized 38 people in our Wednesday night services. Now I celebrate every baptism because it reveals and represents a life separated and consecrated to the Lord, but we can do better than 38 in 12 months! There are 10 timees that comitting and recomitting their life to the Lord annually at TRC. We have immediately put in place measures to correct these statistics in 2007!
Annual reports are a ton of work, but when I look at the strategy, fruit, and things revealed I am more than encouraged our church is really accomplishing its mission and becoming who God called us to be. Certainly there are areas to celebrate and areas to improve, but the Lord blesses all of it as we do our best to build the local church!
Thank you to everyone who made 2006 a spectacular year! The report should be available by the end of January.
