By Tim Massengale

Churches that average fewer than sixty in average attendance are viewed by church growth consultants as “single cell” churches. But as a church grows larger a pastor must begin to delegate responsibilities or the church will normally stop growing. Building a ministry team to work with the pastor is a critical element for growth.

But just as a pastor needs help in ministry oversight – i.e. youth leader, Sunday school director, outreach coordinator, etc. – he will also begin to see a need for help in shepherding. Especially as a church passes the one-hundred-in-attendance mark, it becomes easy for church members experience problems and the pastor becomes the last to know. For this reason, growing church will often launch an “All Church Care” ministry to decrease the rate of loss (backsliding) among established members.

All Church Care (ACC) usually involves dividing all the families in the church among a group of faithful care leaders. Each care leader is asked to watch over a certain number of families – 10 are common with 20 being maximum. The duties of a care leader are often as follows: (1) Pray for your families daily. (2) Take roll on each family member each church service. (3) Strive to know each family in your care and what is happening in their lives. (4) If any person misses two services in a row, contact them by phone and express concern. (4) Be aware of important dates: birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, etc. and make sure the church office is aware of these dates as well. (5) Speak with the family head at least weekly and show genuine concern for what is happening in their lives. Ask for prayer requests. (6) If any individual under your care experiences a personal crisis, be it spiritual, emotional, or physical, immediately make the pastor aware. (7) Be on the look-out for any way the church can be a help or blessing to the families under your care and turn in a suggestion slip to the pastor.

By setting up an ACC ministry early on, it lays the foundation for the church to grow ever larger. We often think of new converts as being the only way that a church grows. But lowering the rate of loss among established members is also a key element of growth.

Duties of an All Church Care Leader:

* Work with the pastor to select leaders from within the church (can be both men and women) to serve as care leaders. Best to have ten or fewer family units (those living under one roof) per care leader. But this may go as high as twenty units per care leader.

* Work with the pastor to train these leaders in the performance of their duties. This can normally be done as a group. But may also be done individually.

* Collect the monthly attendance and evaluation report from each care leader and turn these into the pastor.

* Make sure the care leaders have adequate report forms to use each month.

* When new members (new converts or transfers in) come to the church, work with the pastor to get them assigned to a care group.

* Work with the pastor to keep the care leaders encouraged and motivated. Care leaders must be reminded of the importance of their duties on a regular basis.

* Work with the pastor to schedule a meeting at the church with all care leaders about once a quarter. At this meeting you will help reinforce the importance of the care leader’s jobs, discuss any problems and questions, help refine the flow of information, and discuss any important needs or problems.

* Work with the pastor to select new care leaders when a care leader steps down from his or her position.

Duties of Care Leader

* Once you have been assigned your family units, fill out an All Church Care Ministry form for each family (these are to be kept in a 3-ring binder).

* Fill out the top section of the monthly report, leaving the attendance section blank. This will be your “master set” for your ACC ministry. Each month, make a copy of your “master set” and use this copy to write in the attendance information and notes. This copy is to be turned into the office at the end of each month.

* ACC binders will be kept in a secure location in the church office. You will pick your binder up upon arriving at church. Once you have completed your attendance report, it should then be returned to the church office. It is important to not leave these binders anywhere they might be found by the church membership.

* Take attendance on your assigned family members every service, as well as special services. You will quickly learn where people tend to sit to easily find them each service.

* If a church member is absent two services in a row, strive to contact them to insure all is well. Normally this will be a quick phone call. Sample phone conversation: “Sis. Jones? This is Bro. Thomas. Pastor Johnson missed you this past Sunday morning and Sunday night and asked me to call to make sure all is well. No one is sick are they?”

* Strive each week to “touch” in some way each family unit under your care – normally you will speak with them (husband or wife) at church, but you can also call or visit. Get to know them! Jobs, children, hobbies, etc. Ask friendly questions. Show genuine concern and interest.

* Be on the look out for any needs or problems: illness, family crisis, death in the family, loss of job, spiritual needs, hurt feelings, etc. Anything you feel the pastor should be aware of, inform the pastor in person or complete an ACC notification slip in the church office.

* Send cards on special occasions to those in your care group: birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, get well, bereavement, etc. Cards will be available in the front office. If you will fill out the card and envelope and leave on the secretaries desk, she will stamp and mail it off for you.

* If a family has been absent for more than three services and you have not been able to contact anyone, inform the pastor immediately.

* Three or four times a year the pastor will be meeting with all ACC leaders as a group. Please make every effort to attend.

Form

All Church Care Ministry
Monthly Report for the Month of ____________________

Name_____________________________________________Birth date _____________
Spouse ___________________________________________ Birth date ______________
Child ____________________________________________ Birth date ______________
Child ____________________________________________ Birth date ______________
Child ____________________________________________Birth date ______________
Child ____________________________________________ Birth date ______________

Address ________________________________________________________________
Phone Number ______________Cell numbers __________________________________
Anniversary ______________ Hobbies _______________________________________
Occupation(s)____________________________________________________________

Week Sunday Morning Sunday Night Bible Study Prayer Meeting
1 ____________ __________ _________ ___________
2 ____________ __________ _________ ___________
3 ____________ __________ _________ ___________
4 ____________ __________ _________ ___________
5 ____________ __________ _________ ___________

Notes

This article “All Church Care Ministry” was written by Tim Massengale. It may be used for study & research purposes only.