The Journey Church’s newest location in Boca Raton, FL just celebrated it’s First Birthday. While we have seen tremendous numbers in our first year of New Believers and First Time Guests, one of the most excited elements is how many people have gone through the Membership Class AND are now fully engaged in the church in such a short period of time.

We attribute much of that success to the way we handle our membership classes.

Today I wanted to share one of my “Membership Tricks” with you. In every membership class we take a group photo. We do this for a number of reasons and today I will give you two of them:

1. We are able to email the group photo to those individuals who accepted the membership covenant with their “Welcome To The Family” email on Tuesday.

– This reminds them of the people they met in class.

– This allows them to see themselves as a “part of the group.”

– This increases their buy-in that they “officially” belong.

A picture really is worth a thousand words and helping someone feel connected is truly priceless.

2. Having this picture allows us to celebrate with the entire church on the following Sunday. We place this photo on the screen during service and it shows the rest of the church that God is growing the ministry.

This presentation during service also allows the people in the photo to once again feel connected. (Everyone loves to see themselves on the big screen… even if they won’t admit it)

I could give several more reasons for taking the photo but I would suggest you take some active steps evaluating your own Membership Class. Membership is vital to the health of your congregation. What can you do today to improve your upcoming membership class?

P.S.  For a comprehensive resource that contains everything you need to plan, prepare for, execute and follow up on a Membership Class at your church, check out The Maximizing Membership Package (available for Immediate Download).

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.