Years of membership?

25 years.

It is the Church where I grew up and was chosen by my parents when I was really young.

No.

Joseph Botwinick

 

5 years

Led by the Holy Spirit to join

yes

 

My young bride and I visited only one other church before attending the one where we serve now.

I became officially a Baptist when we joined about a year later; although doctrinally I think I was one much earlier.

We liked the family atmosphere and love shown by the congregation.

We've been there 25 years now. One of the roughest times was during a change-over of senior pastors; we still have echo's of troubles more than 5 years later.

Rob

 

29 years

The Bus Director wouldn't stop bugging me until I visited!

Yes, same Pastor.

 

14 years this October...goodness, it seems like yesterday.

It is where I had attended my entire life, and where I felt convicted by the Lord to join.

The pastor then, who baptized me, has gone on Home. The one after that has now been excluded from the church for joining another order. The following one almost tore the church in two. The current one is a great preacher, a good friend, and a generally nice guy.

In 30 yrs. of existence, our church has had 6 pastors. Personally, I think that is too many in that short of time.

We've had to exclude 2 pastors, 1 died, 1 left in a "huff", 1 was physically unable to continue, and 1, our current one, is a knuckle-head. (We joke around a lot...I always tell him he wouldn't know what to do without me. He then says that he'd like to find out. )

Seriously though, if you've never had to exclude a pastor, believe me, it is not a good feeling.

 

4 yrs

Called as Bi-vocational music leader

No. We've had 4 interims in 3 years.

 

basically, excommunication.

But we tend to shy away from those Romanesque terms.

For the pastor it is the same as with any other member, except when a minister is excluded, his credentials are stripped with his rights of membership.

It is not a pretty thing to do or see.

If you've never done it, I hope you never have to.

 

Correct, we are disfellowshipping him.

To strip his credentials would be to take away his ordination papers, or in the event he won't return them, to render them null and void. When this is done he is no longer allowed to preach or pastor for a church of our faith and order.

I don't think I'd say that people want to get rid of him, but rather that we have to based on biblical principles for a member and an Elder.

You're right, it could cause splits, and indeed has. Thanks be to God though that neither of ours have had that effect. One really could have because the pastor was caught in adultery and half of the church was his family. Thankfully, most of the time when someone is excluded, a family member of theirs will usually make the charge against them to the church, so no one can say that we were "picking on their family".

I thank God that He has given us good members who love the Lord and His church enough to cast off even their own family members if need be.

It is indeed hard to do, but the church becomes stronger together by sticking together in such tough times.

 

I would also like to add that we only exclude someone as a last resort; and we make surethey know that.

We labored with our other pastor, then one who left, for several years before finally deciding to exclude him, and even this was done only after he told us he had taken communion with and was supporting a church of a different order.

It is not a decison we come to lightly, but in order to maintain discipline and stength within the church, it is something that must be done sometimes.

I just didn't wat it to sound like we exclude people every Sunday and for any little reason.

When we excluded our former pastor last year, it was only the 2nd time we had excluded anyone in 20 years, the previous being my aunt in '99 for adultery.

I just wanted to make that clear, although I doubt many would have come to the conclusion that we do nothing but exclude people.

We do sometimes find time to worship God as well.

 

5 years
DH called there as pastor
yes - all at the same time!

 

2 months..was in nondenom church for 10 years, though Baptist in beliefs, in a Baptict church before that, which WRONGFULLY did what Bro. James Reed describes above. (That church eventually dissolved, since it lost its "salt", its truly-Christian leaders & members.)

My pastor took over my church last year, but I've known him since he was a boy.

 

How long have you been a member of your present church?

32 years come June

Why did you join this church?

The usher remembered me when i came back after having
visited two weeks earlier. (fortunately i have a
short name: "ed" )

Was your current pastor there when you joined?

no. This pastor has only been here about 11 years

 

I have been a member of only one church, my present one. Since age 7, when the Lord saved me and I was baptized. That would be 47 years.

Why? Because it was home. Why would I go anywhere else?

The pastor who dedicated me as a baby has passed away. The one after him has retired. The one after him has passed away. And the two after him are retired. Our current pastor has been with us a year.

 

19 years this June.

The Lord led me after separating from the Air Force.

Same pastor. He founded the church 31 years ago.