How do our church libraries lead people to Christ, spiritual growth, discipleship, the mission field, full-time ministry, healthy families, servanthood, and so on.
How do you see your church’s library leading in carrying out the mission, vision, and core values of your church family?
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A church library should have books available on a variety of subjects, both fiction and non-fiction, so individuals can find something of interest to them. Books allow us to explore alone or with a group, in our journey to find answers to questions or to expand our mind.
A library team affords members the opportunity to share their talents through duties such as display or promotion.
Some of us are leaders and others prefer to follow. But a follower can become a leader when given the opportunity by serving in any capacity on a committee. Rome was not built in a day.
Whether you sit on the committee to write your library mission statement or lead a book study, we are sharing the Word from our own personal comfort zone.
My church library saw very few visitors for years. We are in the process of breathing new life into it. So much good dialogue has taken place as walls were painted, carpets were shampooed, bookcases were relocated, and new artwork was hung. We are deep into the weeding process and the acquisition of new books, DVDs and CDs, paying close attention to the culture of our church and its members. What an exciting time to be leading this journey as librarian.
The library plays a important role in growing disciples for Christ. IN my own experience I started as volunteer in our church library on Wednesday nights when we had children's programming, that grew into becoming the church librarian which is now a paid position within the church. Our library board is instrumental in choosing the materials, setting up displays, writing articles for the church newsletters and planning our adult studies. The library is not only a place for wonderful material that can help people learn and grow but it provides another avenue in which others can be an active participant of the their church. Even children and youth are involved in our library.