Gateway Family,
We believe the time has come to elect additional elders to help us shepherd this body of believers, and additional deacons to help us serve the needs of the body as well as the organizational needs of the church. That is one of the reasons why we paused our study of the Gospel of Luke on Sunday mornings to look at "What is the church?" In all that we do, we want to let Scripture be the foundation and the guide for us. Our desire is that these six weeks of looking at God’s revelation about His church will help us grow in being the people God wants us to be, as well as shape how we approach our upcoming deacon and elder elections.
THE DEACON & ELDER NOMINATION PROCESS
It is time now for our first step in the election process. Per our bylaws, that first step is for you, the members of Gateway, to nominate men who you believe are gifted, called, and willing to serve this body in these specific roles. Nomination forms are available to pickup on campus, and have been emailed to all members. If you are a member and have not yet received your forms, please contact the church office. Please note that there are separate forms for deacons and elders.
WHAT INITIALLY TO DO WITH THE NOMINATION FORMS
What do we want you to do with these nomination forms? Several things initially….
- Carefully read the information on the nomination forms.
- Read the Scripture passages referenced, and prayerfully reflect on those passages.
- Pray for God to guide you, as well as guide us all, as we nominate and then elect the men who He desires to serve in these vital roles.
- If you missed the sermon about the qualifications for elders and deacons from March 30, please review it before submitting your nominations. Click here to access that message.
In addition, all of the sermons on “What is the church,” as well as sermons from past years about the roles and qualifications for elders and deacons, are available on our web site sermon audio page (scroll through the list there to find those past messages).
WHO TO NOMINATE:
On the nomination form, you will notice that we do not list the names of men at Gateway who meet the minimum by-law requirements. That is by design. We want you to prayerfully nominate men for elders who you personally have observed to have a heart and gifting for shepherding, and men for deacons who you personally have observed to have a heart and gifting for leading in serving. For both, we want you to nominate only men who you believe meet the Biblical qualifications in the Scripture references on those forms and who you have seen with the gifting to serve well.
Those who currently are serving as elders (click here to see who our elders are) and deacons (click here to see who our deacons are) do not need to be nominated again to continue serving in their current roles. However, they can be nominated to serve in a different role.
RETURNING THE FORMS / IMPORTANT DEADLINE
Nomination forms must be returned to the church campus no later than Sunday, April 27. Forms received after that date cannot be considered.
Nomination boxes will be available in 3 locations on campus: The table in the back of the sanctuary, the office lobby (across from the restrooms), and the gym lobby. You also may return them to the church office during office hours.
QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions about the process, please reach out to any of us on the elder team.
Thank you for your prayerful participation in this important process of electing leaders in the life of our church body.
~ Pastor Grady