BR-KC Membership

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What does it cost to be a member of the Association?

It costs time, effort and resources.

Time, in that we want you to attend the Executive Board Meetings held quarterly and the Annual Meeting held each October.

Effort in that we would hope that you, or some of your leaders, would feel led to participate in our volunteer Ministry Teams. These teams oversee the planning and execution of our ministries and are open-membership, meaning that you can participate as your schedule allows. You don’t have to commit to being at every meeting of the team.

Resources in that all of our churches are encouraged to contribute to the work of the Association a portion of their undesignated offerings each month. The amount your church will contribute is determined by a vote of your church members. The Association does not have dues or fees. You give as God has blessed you so that you can be a blessing to others.

2. What control does the Association have over the member churches?

None! Each of our churches are individual autonomous Baptist churches. You give up none of your autonomy by joining the Association.

3. What does my church gain by becoming a member?

You become a part of VISION 2020, our Master Ministry Plan for the coming decade (see #6 below). You join with others to extend the Kingdom, partake of opportunities and resources for growth and make your unique contribution.You gain the fellowship of a network of like-minded churches.

You will be connected to thousands of Baptists across the areas where our churches are located. You gain the opportunity to be a blessing to sister churches, and to be blessed by other churches.

You will see the ministry impact of your church multiplied as the dollars and manpower you provide are channeled to address the needs of our area and abroad.

4. Does my church have to join the Missouri Baptist Convention or the Southern Baptist Convention to be a member of BR-KC?

Just as your church is autonomous, the Association is also autonomous. You do not have to belong to any other Baptist group to be a member of BR-KC, but we would hope that you would explore the possiblities and advantages of belonging to the state and national conventions. Much of our work is funded by the North American Mission Board of the SBC, and we actively promote and participate in the ministries of the Missouri Baptist Convention. Membership in these two conventions connects you to 2,000 churches in Missouri and over 44,000 churches nationwide. Together we fund the work of over 10,000 missionaries in North America and around the world.

5. Just what does the Association do?

We carry out the goals of our Master Ministry Plan through the work of our five Ministry Teams. In addition to those specific goals, we are on-call to our churches to train leaders in Sunday School, Discipleship, Music and Youth Ministry, Deacons, Media Library, Family Ministry, Singles Ministry, Women’s Missionary Union, Vacation Bible School, and any other area of leadership where a request is made. We plant new churches, loan video studies and A-V equipment to churches, coordinate volunteers and provide ministry opportunities, provide ministry resources such as the party wagon and bar-b-que smoker, connect ministry needs with people who can meet those needs, coordinate evangelism efforts, and work to make our communities better places to live. We assist search committees, help churches with food pantries and clothes closets, counsel pastors and staff, support language missions, support deaf ministries, help with pulpit supply, work with the other two Kansas City Baptist associations on area wide projects, and more.

In short, the Association exists to support and enhance the ministries of the churches.

6. How does the Association choose ministry and mission projects?

In 2009, the Association spent almost a full year working through a strategic planning process called VISION 2020. The purpose of that process was to determine the direction for Associational ministries for the coming decade. Through a study of our communities and our churches, and interviews with pastors, staff and laity, we arrived at five objective areas. Those areas are:

The goals and action plans developed around those objectives constitute our Master Ministry Plan. A copy of the MMP is included in the materials you received along with this guide.

7. What does my church need to do in order to become a member of the Association?

The details of our membership process are covered in the next section, “Becoming a Member Church.”