86 CENTENNIAL HISTORY
You do now cordially unite yourselves With this Church of Christ, adopting as your own the solemn covenant by which it exists ; you thus engage to pray and labor for its edification and fruitfulness to help in sustaining its worship, its activities and charities, and to live with us in Christian fellowship. Do you so promise ?
(The members of the Church here rise, and the minister shall say :)
We, then, the members of this Church do affectionately welcome you into this household of faith. We pledge to you our sympathy, our help. and our prayers, that you may evermore increase in the knowledge and love of God. We trust that by His grace, we may walk worthy of the calling wherewith we were called, with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, striving to keep the unity of the spirit in the bonds of peace. God grant that loving and being loved, serving and being served, blessing and being blessed, we may be prepared while we dwell together on earth, for the perfect fellowship of the saints above.
(The members will be seated.)
Here the minister in behalf of the Church may extend the hand of fellowship, with appropriate words of welcome and instruction.
Then shall follow the benediction.
The Lord bless you and keep you ; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you : the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. AMEN.
STANDING RULES OF THE CHURCH.
ANNUAL MEETING. The Annual meeting of the church shall be held on the first Sunday in January, in connection with