Ministry Partnership
We praise God for your desire to take this step of faith and are thrilled for you!
If you are committed to the mission, vision, values and beliefs of Central Community Church, specifically, to follow Jesus and lead others to do the same in the context of community, and now desire to be received as a Ministry Partner, we are excited to connect with you.
Please sign up for our next class below, and fill out the online Ministry Partnership application form.
Upcoming Ministry Partnership Class
Saturday, February 8, 2025 | 9.00am | Chilliwack Campus
MINISTRY PARTNERSHIP APPLICATION FORM
These forms have been prepared to outline for you the steps you need to take to apply and prepare for your ministry partnership. If you need assistance in understanding and filling out this form, please contact us and we would be happy to walk through it with you.
Please note: This form is not required to be submitted until after you have attended the class and are looking to proceed with Ministry Partnership.
Ministry Partnership Application Form
WHAT IS MINISTRY PARTNERSHIP?
Ministry Partnership is our language for membership, for belonging to Central as your local church. We call it Ministry Partnership because we see belonging to a church as being just that: a frequently gathering, committed group of followers of Jesus, together on mission. The individual partners with a body of believers and the body of believers partners with the individual.
WHY BECOME A MINISTRY PARTNER?
For the Good of Others in the Church
By becoming a ministry partner you accept responsibility for a group of fellow believers. By "just attending" you stand at a distance from the kind of commitment that accepts responsibility for a group of fellow believers. Hebrews 10:24-25 puts it this way, Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another.
Part of what Ministry Partnership does is say, "I'm committed to encouraging a particular group of people week in and week out". Opportunity exists to lovingly work through difficulties, disagreement, and hardship when a commitment has been made. Depth is built through that. Lack of commitment makes leaving easy. Just like marriage. Someone who is married is still able to leave but the covenant made leads to a greater attempt to work through differences and see reconciliation take place.
Ministry Partnership, therefore, flies in the face of expressive individualism and our age of authenticity (defined as: above all, I must be true to myself and whatever I desire and feel inside I must do). Ministry Partnership is an antidote to that toxic societal norm. It swims against the current of consumer Christianity that only thinks of self.
Ministry Partnership speaks of sacrificial commitment to others and establishes a commitment where we can be counted on to be reliable and caring for others. It's committing to each other, to be there for each other when life is hard, when suffering comes, and to walk with each other week in and week out to encourage one another in the faith.
Your belonging to a local church is for the good of others in the church.
For Your Own Good
Just as your commitment to the church is for the investment and good of others, that same care and commitment from others towards yourself is a good thing for you.
The people who will care for you best are those who are willing to commit to you. And not only your close-knit (likely very similar to each other) friend group. But a diverse, multi-generational and cultural community of fellow believers committed to your good.
For example, someone older and coming from a different station in life may see your blind spots and support you in a way a close friend can't. Diverse, broad, committed community is important for your faith.
To paraphrase Galatians 6:1-2, as all are committed to restoring one another away from sin and towards Christlikeness with gentleness, you yourself become accountable to mature brothers and sisters in Christ. That culture creates spiritual growth and the New Testament places a major emphasis on the need for Christians to be accountable to each other for it.
Belonging to a local church is for your good.
For the Good of Your Leaders
In short, church leaders (Elders) are instructed to shepherd the flock that is among them (Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 5:2). The New Testament's use of the term flock always refers to a local church. The early church always understood who the flock was. Typically, the Christians in each city made up each local church. Now, two thousand years later, our cities are bigger and our church options are diverse. At least in our context.
So, practically speaking, who is it that Central's leaders are to shepherd? Any Christian in the eastern Fraser Valley? Those who have attended Central once? Those who have introduced themselves to a pastor? Our practical method for knowing who the flock of God among us is that we are to shepherd are those who become Ministry Partners, and thereby declaring, "I'm in. This is my church family. I want to be a part of Central".
Your Ministry Partnership helps your leaders be more faithful shepherds.
For the Good of Those Outside of the Church
Making a commitment makes a powerful statement in a low-commitment culture. Most sports beer leagues and cell phone providers, not to mention Costco, require more of their members than our churches do. That should not be. In the midst of a consumer culture that is tailored to meet our felt needs and preferences, becoming a committed ministry partner in a local church makes a counter-cultural statement.
A committed community of people who love and invest in one another and a common mission of making disciples, pooling our resources, vibrantly flourishing in our varied gifts, is a powerful witness (Ephesians 3:8-10; 1 Peter 2:9-12; John 13:35). That contrast, if we commit to living as a contrasting community, shines a bright light to the watching world.
Your belonging to a local church is for the good of others outside of the church.
WHAT IS THE PROCESS TO BECOME A MINISTRY PARTNER?
We strive to streamline the Ministry Partnership process at Central in such a way that we do not get in the way of what the Holy Spirit is doing in your life in giving you a desire to take these foundational steps of faith. At the same time it is our responsibility to do our due diligence to ensure that those that we embrace into Ministry Partnership at Central understand and believe the gospel and what these steps signify.
Therefore, the steps towards Ministry Partnership are as follows (not always in this order):
- Take the Baptism / Ministry Partnership Class (register online)
- Fill out a Ministry Partnership Form (online)
- Meet with a Pastor/Elder
- Provide a high-resolution digital photo of yourself (to use in a Sunday service)
- Become a Ministry Partner at the next celebration gathering
Got questions? We'd love to answer them!
Please contact office@centralcommunity.ca