Pastoral Ministry
Part of the benefit of having a church family should include help and guidance in the areas of life that uniquely intersect with our faith. At Community of Hope, we have provided easy access to understanding how to receive help, or participate in the following areas:
Baptisms:
Baptism at Community of Hope takes on two approaches lining up with what we understand to be the “God part” and the “Our part” in Christian baptism: Infant or child baptism and adult baptism. Below is information regarding these two areas. Also, to listen to a sermon on baptism by Pastor E. Dale Locke, please click here to visit our "church media" page for the audio.
Infant, or child baptism places emphasis upon the human dynamic within the Covenant of Holy Baptism. We see the Sacrament of Baptism expressed in this way as vital and important in two ways:
1. It is an opportunity for parents to publicly declare their own trust in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, and to invite the help of Christ and his church to assist in their parenting in such a way that the natural culmination of all their work, as well as their connection with and participation in the church results in the full commitment of their child as a “full and responsible member of Christ’s holy church.”
2. It is also an opportunity for parent’s to publicly invite the grace and presence of Jesus Christ to “mark their child for Christian discipleship, and to initiate them into the fellowship of Christ’s holy church.” In other words, we see Infant/Child baptism as more than a baby dedication, and less than salvation. Rather, we view it as a rite of passage Christian parents should take as a way to fully commit their child to the Lord, and invite His help along the way.
Download the Infant Baptism Form below:
Infant Baptism Form (Microsoft Word document)
Infant Baptism Form (Adobe Acrobat PDF)
Adult, or New Believer’s baptism places emphasis upon the Divine dynamic within the Covenant of Holy Baptism. We see the Sacrament of Baptism expressed in this way as vital and important in two ways:
1. Even as a the word “Sacrament” describes an act Jesus participated in, and asks His followers to do, New Believer’s baptism was required of all who placed their trust in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. In this way, it is the “first act” of all who turn to Christ.
2. Secondly, at Community of Hope we see baptism as an important value in the life of the person being baptized in that they publicly declare faith and trust alone in Christ alone for salvation. In this way, we view baptism as a way to “seal” a person’s heart for salvation. In addition, we view the Sacrament of Baptism expressed in this way as an opportunity for the family and friends of the person being baptized to both witness and hear the life changing message of Jesus Christ in a way much like the early converts first witnessed and heard it in the Book of Acts.
Download the Adult Baptism Form below:
Adult Baptism Form (Microsoft Word)
Adult Baptism Form (Adobe Acrobat PDF)
Weddings:
Planning a wedding can be an intimidating task, but at Community of Hope, we’ve designed a process to help couples navigate the responsibilities of planning a wedding that move beyond organizing a day into building a life.
At Community of Hope, our goal in being involved in your wedding is two-fold: We’re committed to helping you not only plan a glorious wedding day, but build a successful and fulfilling life together as a married couple. We do this through a careful review and planning of your wedding ceremony, as well as place an emphasis upon effective and high-value marriage counseling that will help couples succeed beyond the wedding day.
Download the Wedding Form below:
Wedding Form (Microsoft Word)
Wedding Form (Adobe Acrobat PDF)
Download the Wedding Checklist below:
Wedding Checklist (Microsoft Word)
Wedding Checklist (Adobe Acrobat PDF)
Funerals:
Perhaps one of the clearest moments when we need the ministry of the church, is at the death of a friend or family member. Jesus made it clear in the first public sermon he ever preached, saying: “God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4 NLT).
At Community of Hope, we are organized to help you in this important and difficult time. In addition to immediate help from our staff, we encourage you to check out our 13-week grief-support group that we offer twice a year called "GriefShare". Each meeting begins with a video geared to help you move through the grieving process and rebuild your life. For more information, please contact the office at (561) 753-8883.
Hospital Visitation:
If you, or a loved one are facing a hospital stay, or even outpatient surgery, Community of Hope has a team of people in the church who consider it their ministry to visit, as well as pray for people in this situation. Should this situation occur in your life, or in the life of someone you love, here’s what you can do:
During Normal Office Hours
During regular office hours, call the church office and report both the date, time of surgery, and the hospital or location for the procedure. The church office will communicate this information to the pastor and hospital visitation team. They will also ask your permission to appropriately share your need with the Pastor’s Prayer Team who will add your situation to their prayer requests.
Emergencies/After Office Hours
If this is an emergency, or after regular office hours, you can reach a pastor any time,by calling the church office and accessing the emergency line. Here’s what to do:
Call the church office at (561) 753-8883, and when you hear the church’s voicemail greeting, hit 998* (998 “star”). The prompts will guide you through how to leave a message which will be relayed to a pastor on call. Once they receive the message, someone will call you right away.
Prayer:
At Community of Hope, we believe in the power of prayer, and as well, that prayer is the great privilege of the Christian. We also know that there are times when immediate and dedicated prayer is offered to surround a particular time when care, guidance, comfort, or wisdom is needed. We offer three primary avenues for our people to receive prayer support.
1. To send a prayer request out to our Email Prayer Team, please click here. You can also write your prayer request on the Connect Card found in your worship folder and turn it in on Sunday, or you may call the church office with a request. (Please know that your request, in its entirety will be sent via email to this team of dedicated prayer partners consisting of both staff and Community of members. Should you want your request to only go to the COH staff, or to a pastor, be sure to express this to the receptionist, or on the request you fill out.)
2. In addition, we offer the opportunity to be prayed for on any Sunday morning by our Prayer Group, which meets from 9:15am to 9:45 at RPB High School in Room 4-109 (follow the signs). You can either call the office ahead, or simply drop in any Sunday.
3. We also welcome anyone to come to the chairs at the front of the auditorium for prayer during and right after our worship services. You can pray on your own or with a member of our Altar Prayer Team about your response to the message or about any personal needs you wish to bring to the Lord.
