If You Are a Family Member, You Will Do It. No Exceptions.

From the Pastor’s Desk (299)

Every once in a while, I hear about some frustrating things that certain members of New Life do, and I feel the need to address them clearly and directly. If I don’t, the DNA of New Life could be altered—and I am not about to let that happen.

There are certain things here at New Life that every member does—without exception. Why? Because the church is the family of God, which means New Life is God’s family. And in any family, there are things that every family member does without exception. If you have a family where only a few members work hard while the rest do very little, you have a weak and dysfunctional family.

Therefore, if we want to build a healthy and strong family, everyone must take care of their chores and responsibilities—not just enjoy the blessings and privileges of being part of a healthy family. If you are unwilling to contribute by faithfully fulfilling your responsibilities, then you should leave this family and find another one where you’re allowed to do whatever you want and remain selfish and lazy. New Life doesn’t operate that way because that is not the picture of a biblical church. That may be the picture of the American church, but not the church that Jesus—the Creator and Owner of the church—had in mind.

So, what are some things that are expected of every member to do?

First, the Sunday Refreshment Providing Ministry. Every member is expected to serve in this ministry, which lasts for one month and comes around once every two years for now. Everyone shops, everyone comes to church early, everyone prepares food, everyone serves, and everyone cleans up after the meal. If you are a family member, you don’t just eat—you also serve and wait at the table.

Second, the 3G Sunday Ministry. 3G stands for Grass, Gardening, and Garbage. From the inception of our church, we always hired someone to cut the grass. However, many years ago, we used to take care of our own flower beds, pick up trash, and clean up our campus. Now, we focus on picking up trash on both our KSC campus and our own. Each village takes turns doing this on the last Sunday after worship. Everyone participates in picking up trash and taking care of our campus together. When everyone participates and contributes, it becomes easy.

Third, the NLK Sunday Childcare Ministry. If you are a member and have a child, you serve in NLK (New Life Kids) for one month every four months. This amounts to just three months out of the year. We do this because we believe that parents are the primary faith trainers of their children. Therefore, they must attend adult worship either before or after serving in NLK so they can be spiritually filled to pour out and minister to our children, as well as set a godly example for their children regarding the importance of Sunday worship.

Member parents who choose not to attend adult worship while serving in NLK will not be eligible to serve in NLK. Since we are one family serving our children together, we ask parents who are unwilling to attend adult worship while serving to refrain from participating in NLK and from sending their children to NLK. Instead, please worship together with your children in the adult sanctuary until you are ready to commit to the requirements of serving in NLK. Children benefit far more from their parents’ example and discipleship at home than from simply being sent to NLK.

These are the three most essential things I expect every registered member of New Life to do. Please pay close attention to them and follow this direction faithfully.

Your pastor,

Eric