Deacons
Choose one of our upcoming events by clicking on the icons below.
| Internal / External Benevolence | |
| Internal / External Communication | |
| Finance | |
| Education | |
| Fellowship / Age Specific Ministries | |
| Building and Grounds | |
| Local Missions / Evangelism | |
| Foreign / Domestic Missions | |
| Personal Work / Visitation / New Member Orientation | |
| Worship |
Title: Internal / External Benevolence - Doug Caldwell / Paul Wisdom
Responsibilities:
- Administer financial help to those in need in the Smyrna area providing assistance with food, clothing, utility payments and shelter.
- Coordinate with Personal Work deacon to provide names to all individuals helped within 1 week of assistance.
Title:Internal / External Communication - John Lanza
Mission: To produce/monitor all means of communication to members of the congregation to facilitate programs and activities of the church while introducing the church, encouraging attendance and maintaining a positive image in the community.
Responsibilities:
- Oversee church website constantly seeking ways to stay "ahead of the curve" and seek ways to use it in other areas of the church.
- Create/Implement/Oversee avenues by which audio/video tapes can be produced. Maintaining and improving posting of sermons on the Internet.
- Oversee internal communication systems including sound system, video projection system, and computer network.
- Create/Implement and annual defined/ongoing media advertising program with all North Rutherford County residents annually in conjunction with Local Evangelism Committee
- Seek every opportunity to gain free promotional advertising/articles in papers and other publications.
- Produce/Oversee promotions for all major activities related to the church including but not limited to meetings, VBS, and special seminars.
- Create/Oversee at least 2 community interest seminars a year to reach out to the community and invite to building.
- Oversee all public media aiding in communication between elders, deacons, ministers, and members. Including all deacon/elder/minister meetings.
Title: Finance - Tony Lea
Mission: To maintain accurate financial records for the church and assure that all areas of taxes, payment to employees, suppliers and contractors, and the recording of transactions are in compliance with the rules of a charitable organization.
Responsibilities:
- Assure accurate and timely bank deposits of contributions
- Prepare detail financial reports monthly for Elders and Deacons and summary reports for the congregation
- Prepare annual budget with the aid of the Deacons responsible for an area requiring a budget
- Make budget presentation to congregation during December on the Sunday designated by the Elders
- Prepare proper paperwork for work agreements with appropriate personnel
- File quarterly tax reports for payroll
- Issue 1099s at end of year to appropriate suppliers and service providers
- Maintain files with financial reports and documentation
- Work with Elders to seek avenues to pay off facilities ahead of schedule
- Monitor budget outgo to insure it does not exceed contribution income
- Coordinate selection of men and weekly counting of contribution
- Coordinate with Tax Accountant proper filing of necessary reports to the state and federal offices
- Coordinate weekly bank deposits
- Monthly update to Elders and Deacons on status of budget
Title: Education - Jeff Carden
Mission: To facilitate and expedite an educational program that encourages involvement of every member to develop spiritual growth and maturity with practical applications to life.
Responsibilities:
- Lead committee to locate/hire Education Minister as needed
- Oversee the continued improvement of church library seeking all alternative means to make it the best product possible to aid in teaching the family at Highland Heights.
- Provide teacher training courses annually with a strong emphasis on evangelism through bible school.
- Oversee/Manage the teacher supply room.
- Create/Conduct at least 1 seminar a year in any educational area including such areas as family enrichment.
- Create/Oversee a teacher's improvement workshop annually.
- Oversee the Children's Bible Hour Program.
- Create/Manage educational opportunities for 0-6th grades. In particular, hold specialized summer activities.
- Oversight of Bible Bowl competitions
- Oversee Teacher Too teacher assistance program
Title: Fellowship / Age Specific Ministries - John Cothron / Al Hogan
Mission: Promote and stimulate personal growth and family in sharing of the life and faith we have in Christ.
Responsibilities:
- Manage/Distribute all funds for fellowship and age-specific activities.
- Plan/Announce 4-6 church wide dinners a year.
- Keep supply room appropriately stocked to meet needs of all fellowship activities.
- Create/Implement/Oversee at least 3 special days a year to possibly include Friend Day, Homecoming, Fish Fry, Family Day, or an attendance drive.
- Oversee individuals to insure kitchen remains stocked and ready for use.
- Annually, meet with all age-specific groupings to create a prepared schedule of major activities by Dec. 1 for following year.
- Produce additional activities within the outreach arena to increase potential positions involved.
- Appoint/Encourage/Train leaders to manage all age-specific or male/female groupings to cover every age. These groupings will have a specific set of objectives to meet annually to insure there are sufficient opportunities to meet with those in their group. These groups should include but not be limited to Pre-teen, Teen, CYP, Young Married, Highland Highlighters, and Silver Streaks.
- Approve/Encourage all retreats for age specific groupings.
- Oversee an organized plan of activities for K-6th grades.
Title: Building & Grounds - Steve Davis / Danny Pirtle
Mission: This position is responsible for the maintenance of the current facilities and planning for future needs by working closely with all areas of work.
Responsibilities:
- Oversee 3 teams of maintenance workers including lighting repair/maintenance, HVAC repair/maintenance, and general building repair/maintenance.
- Manage budget for all areas of building maintenance.
- Purchase/maintain all furnishings in conjunction with needs of specific areas including Education for classrooms, Worship for auditorium, and Fellowship for tables/chairs and kitchen.
- Space concerns need to be met by creating a long range building plan based upon attendance.
- Contract/manage a cleaning company to clean building weekly.
- The three maintenance teams will be divided under the following responsibilities.
- Create/Maintain a building maintenance schedule.
- Contract/manage a lawn care company to cut grass.
- Contract/manage all other services needed by the building including but not limited to floor mats, fire protection services, and alarm protection.
Title: Local Missions / Evangelism - Dan Pope / John Lanza
Mission: This position will seek/administer avenues to reach North Rutherford County establishing studies and bringing individuals to Christ.
Responsibilities:
- Manage budget assigned to local missions.
- Progressively increase local evangelism budget to a minimum of 10%. This committee will then oversee use of budget and achieving the greatest results with the funds.
- Produce additional activities within the outreach arena to increase potential positions involved in reaching out. One in three jobs created within the body should be evangelism related.
- Insure tract racks are Stocked/Promoted/Managed in the building.
- Create/Promote/Conduct a door knocking campaign annually then referring all potential contacts to visitation program.
- Work through Communication Committee in creating and monitoring an ongoing media campaign to North Rutherford County.
- Handle responses from all media efforts.
- Diligently seek avenues to create/conduct bible studies with all contacts.
- Contact all newcomers to the area inviting to worship and establishing studies.
- It is encouraged that one member of this committee also be on the Communication Committee
Title: Foreign / Domestic Missions - Dewey Patton / Lee Robinson
Mission: To ensure the congregation at Highland Heights is sufficiently and adequately supporting the spreading of the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the United States and foreign soil.
Responsibilities:
- Annually, contact/arrange to have 4 missionaries speak at Highland Heights.
- Provide a monthly insert in our bulletin detailing mission work activities.
- Make contacts to all mission sites available on web with name, address, phone, and email
- Plan/Manage/Lead one mission trip annually to support our missionaries both foreign and domestic.
- Manage a committee of men to oversee different mission points.
Title: Personal Work / Visitation / New Member Orientation - Tim Egerton / Howard Greenfield
Mission: To build effective teams to assist in ministering to the needs of our members during critical times of their lives.
Responsibilities:
- Visit all members who are in the nursing home monthly reporting any physical needs to the benevolence deacon and all spiritual needs to the elders.
- Oversee a program to insure the Lord's Supper is provided to all shut-ins, nursing home members, and those home sick for extended periods.
- Oversee the monthly worship service at a local nursing home.
- Monitor attendance of members and when a member misses 3 services in a row see that a contact is made to that family within 1 week of 3rd miss reporting all findings to the elders the following Sunday.
- Locate/Train/Manage a team of individuals to locate and acknowledge visitors to each service and activity.
- Train/Encourage/Participate in teams to conduct visits to all visitors' homes inviting to services, discovering any needs they family may have, and seeking the opportunity to conduct a Bible study.
- Create/Oversee classes for the New Convert
- Create/Manage/Encourage committee to oversee food preparation and delivery for funerals and the sick.
- Visit and communicate with all new members completing surveys to discover their desired roles of involvement.
- Create/Distribute packets of information informing new members of activities, classes, and opportunities for service.
- Remain in contact with families as long as needed to bring them comfortably into the family.
- Maintain greeters at the main doors before Sunday classes and worship. Possibly a small table at each main doorway.
- Re-create a more productive visitor/information center to be manned at each service.
- Create/Manage 1-2 workdays a year to make home improvements for members of the congregation who have need
- Develop improved ways to obtain visitor information such as: differentiated attendance cards, sheets at the end of the aisle, greeters or assigned families personally ask for attendance cards.
Title: Worship - Kevin Coulter
Mission: This individual will continually to strive to develop a "worshipful state of mind" in worship by making sure all elements are in place and effective to glorify God, edify the worshipper and encourage visitors to return.
Responsibilities:
- Create/Direct training courses bi-annually to prepare men to lead in worship including speakers, song leaders, prayer leaders, scripture readers, ushers, audio/video/computer operators and greeters.
- Maintain a working nursery keeping it adequately stocked and staffed.
- Maintain songbooks/projection and update as needed.
- Create/Direct special services throughout the year including holidays, singings, and routinely scheduled devotional periods.
- Keep announcements on projection system.
- Create/maintain a reading program during worship
- Make weekly assignments of all worship participants
- Make sure all worship participants are in place to lead.
- Assist with baptisms and make sure baptistery supplies are stocked.
- Use other men on Wednesday evening as a training ground to prepare them to lead worship on Sundays.
- Purchase worship scheduling software.
- Prepare new worship service form for all men to fill out. (perhaps online)
- Set guidelines for all involved in worship service to meet prior to service at a specific location and have dedicated subs also nearby if needed.
- Assign and maintain a new position in worship service to preside over the Lord's Supper. This could also be done by a group of individuals. This person (s) would remind worshippers of the focus, purpose, and reason for the Lord's Supper.
- Begin every Sunday morning and evening service with a song and a brief time to meet and hand out welcome packages to visitors.
- Have one individual each and every week welcome everyone followed by a prayer of special purpose, scripture reading, or comments by an elder to transition into worship.
- Move announcements to the conclusion of the service.
- Assign dedicated, talented individuals to make announcements. This individual could be the same person that welcomes everyone to worship. This will eliminate all announcements during worship time.
- Use other men during Wednesday night devotionals as a training ground to prepare them for service on Sunday.
- Study the feasibility of inverting Sunday morning worship and class to lay the groundwork for a second service.
Highland Heights Church of Christ
785 South Lowry Street
P.O. Box 465
Smyrna, TN 37167
Telephone: 615-459-4071
E-Mail: info@highlandheights.net
Service Schedule
Sunday
| Bible Class | 9AM | |
| Morning Worship | 10AM | |
| Evening Worship | 6PM |
Wednesday
| Bible Study | 7PM |