Why Should your Church Support the Association?

An association is a group of churches doing missions.

Churches can do collectively through the association what no one church can do by itself. An association involves churches in varied mission ministries. Churches can better serve the total geographical area cooperatively through the association. An association is a family of churches involved in special local missions and ministries such as (1) language or ethnic congregations, (2) ministries in inner cities, recreation areas, or institutions.

An association is a group of people doing missions.

An association is involved in meeting local and community needs through mission action projects which involve “hands on” participation. In an association a large percentage of the people can be involved. At the state, national, and international levels, missions is usually done by giving financial support to others who do the ministries.

An association promotes teamwork.

An association gives churches an opportunity to work together on local projects, thus helping each other to accomplish common mission responsibilities. An association teaches and encourages churches to work cooperatively to carry out local mission projects.

An association is an open door to world mission outreach.

The world has come to us. Internationals visit and reside in our association. An association plans strategies and assists churches in proclaiming the gospel to internationals and ministering to them in Christ’s name. An association faces the challenge of stimulating growth in local missions along with state, home, and foreign missions. It is not either/or, it is both/and.

An association trains church leaders.

An association helps train and develops church leaders and other members by involving them in leadership and service responsibilities. Also, an association provides conferences, seminars, and workshops each year which are designed to train church leaders to do a more effective job in their positions of leadership. An association exists to supply information, resources, and training to equip lay leaders in local churches to develop believers, witness to the lost, and minister to the hurting.An association gives churches an opportunity to work together on local projects, thus helping each other to accomplish common mission responsibilities. An association teaches and encourages churches to work cooperatively to carry out local mission projects.

An association gives personal assistance to churches.

An association director of missions and other staff assist churches to more effectively do their work within the church body and to meet the needs of people in the irrespective communities. Other elected association leaders offer assistance to the churches: Sunday school, Discipleship Training, WMU, Men’s Ministry, etc.

An association provides opportunities for fellowship.

An association provides pastors and other local church leaders with opportunities for fellowship. As fellowship is developed and experienced, church leaders realize that they (and their churches) are not alone in seeking to serve the Lord in their local setting. An association is a link between churches and the denomination. An association provides a two-way channel of communication: from the churches to the denomination, and from the denomination to the churches.

Churches are an association’s primary source of financing.

The expansion of association missions and ministries depends on the commitment of the local churches to meet opportunities that are growing in number each year. If churches support an association adequately, the association can do the needed networking of ministry.