Okay summer was relaxing. But if you are like me, this fall has been CRAZY – new visitors, new members, new church programs, special events. And these are all great things. But it is likely that some of those “back burner” things have stayed, well on the “back burner.” It is important, however, to stay on top of your SHAPE ministry profiles, because when you have an opening to fill in Sunday School, on a committee or just for odd jobs or ministries around the church, you need to be able to know and utilize the gifts of your new church members. They are often where the new energy in the church comes from.
Adding these new members can be easy. Go to the People Screen and click on Filter/Search at the top of the toolbar. Select the “Show only the people who meet the requirements you specify below” button. Pick “User-Defined Field” from the first drop down menu, and then “Membership Date” (if you do not have one set up as a User-Defined Field, you may want check out this article to learn how to create User-Defined Fields.) Then select the membership date range of the new members you need to include in your SHAPE Ministry Profile section.
Then print a blank “Ministry Profile Survey Sheet” from the SHAPE Profile Reports button visible when you select the SHAPE Ministry Profile tab on the People Screen. You can send a letter to each of the new members listed on the People Screen along with this survey, and whichever Spiritual Gifts Inventory your church uses. When they return, you can then add their Spiritual gifts, Heart for Ministry, Abilities, Personality, and Experiences to your data base. And your church will better be able to use the “whole body” that God has provided for your congregation to do ministry.
If you have not used the SHAPE Ministry Profile section before, please check out this knowledgebase video and article on how to use the SHAPE Ministry Profile Tab.
New User Guide Available to Print
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ChurchTrac Software now has a printable version of it’s online user guide. The pdf file includes the “Online User Guide” and the “Answers to Common ‘How Do I…’ Questions” sections of the Knowledgebase. To locate the downloadable/printable version, go to the “Knowledgebase” tab on the website or the “Knowledgebase and User Guide” tab on the top toolbar of the Welcome screen in ChurchTrac. Then click on the “Online User Guide” heading and the first option says portions of this user guide are available as a PDF file that you can download and print.”