The church is the means by which Jesus carries out his mission of love and healing for the world. Become a member today and be part of something bigger than yourself.
Membership classes are typically held twice per year, once in the spring and once in the fall. Each class is followed by a time of joining the church during Sunday worship. If you’d like more information on joining Richfield United Methodist Church, please contact Rev. Nate Melcher.
The primary membership vow people take to faithfully participate in the life and ministries of the congregation are by your…
PRAYER | Praying matters. An everyday prayer life is for everyone. It is the starting point of all that we do.
PRESENCE | Showing up matters. We like it when you’re here, we miss you when you’re gone, we love you all the time.
GIFTS | Generosity matters. We prayerfully give back to God’s abundance to further God’s mission as the church.
SERVICE | Helping matters. Servant volunteers are called to step up to the work in the name of the Holy Spirit.
WITNESS | Sharing matters. The Good News of Jesus is worth sharing, so is our own faith journey.
Here is a 2021 sermon series about these five membership vows:
The Church Is a People
September-October 2021
“By Our Gifts”
September 26, 2021
“By Our Prayers”
September 12, 2021
“By Our Service”
October 3, 2021
“By Our Presence”
September 19, 2021
“By Our Witness”
October 10, 2021
The United Methodist Church has seven membership vows. The first five are the same as the vows taken at baptism and the last two are specifically about joining the church. Note that there are no vows about adhering to a specific theological perspective. Even those that speak to belief are open to prayerful interpretation. Nor are the vows about being boxed-in to a particular method of carrying out ministry. They are about your affirming your role in God’s story. Your desire to respond to the love of God and do something great for Jesus. Your hunger to be part of something bigger than yourself. The vows are:
1. Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of your sin?
2. Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves?
3. Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior, put your whole trust in his grace, and promise to serve him as your Lord, in union with the Church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations, and races?
4. According to the grace given to you, will you remain faithful members of Christ’s holy Church and serve as Christ’s representatives in the world?
5. Do you receive and profess the Christian faith as contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments?
6. As members of Christ’s universal Church, will you be loyal to Christ through The UMC, and do all in your power to strengthen its ministries?
7. As members of this congregation, will you faithfully participate in its ministries by your prayers, your presence, your gifts, your service, and your witness?
You can listen to a recent sermon from Pastor Nate about slowing down to consider the membership vows and how we fulfill them below: