"Joining the church" is an important step in the life of a Christian. A church member at WTBC is one who has trusted Jesus Christ as Savior, has been baptized by immersion as a symbol of his/her commitment to Christ, and desires to join the church family in Christian growth, service, and fellowship.

"Joining the church" takes place when people present themselves to the church for membership, most often at the end of a worship service. A simple membership application card is filled out and the individual is introduced to the rest of the church. Some people will come to the front of the worship center and inform the pastor or staff of their desire to join. Others join after the service at our Membership table and are introduced from where they are seated in the next Sunday's worship service, without coming to the front. There are five ways a person can join:

By Profession of Faith Profession of Faith means that you are publicly "professing" or confessing your faith in Jesus, making him the "Lord" or "boss" of your life. You are making the decision to become a Christian and wish to be baptized as an outward symbol of your faith.

By Baptism To join by baptism means that you have already become a Christian at some time in the past. You may have even been a member of another church, but have not been baptized by immersion after your personal acceptance of Christ as a symbol of your faith in him. You now want to become a member of WTBC by being baptized as a symbol of your previous decision to follow Jesus.

By Letter If you have previously become a Christian, have been baptized by immersion as a symbol of your faith, and have been a member of another Baptist church, you may join by letter. This "letter" is like a letter of recommendation from your previous church. Receiving your letter is a clerical matter and is taken care of by WTBC after you present yourself for membership.

By Statement If you have previously become a Christian, have been baptized by immersion as a symbol of your faith, but for some reason would not be able to join "By Letter" (i.e. you are coming from a church background very similar to Baptist but which does not keep membership records, your previous Baptist church disbanded or somehow lost your membership records, etc.), you may come for membership by statement. WTBC will accept your personal statement that you are a believer, have been baptized, and wish to become a church member.

By Watchcare Watchcare is for those who are not yet ready to become a Baptist. Perhaps your family is joining by one of the methods above, but you still have questions or concerns about becoming a Christian, about baptism, or some other doctrine of the church. You may come by watchcare. You do not become a voting member of the church, but we want to include you in the life and fellowship of our church. Or maybe you are a college student in the Sugar Land area for a temporary time and do not want to move your membership permanently. We want to watch over you and care for you like one of our own for the time that you are attending WTBC.

New Members All new members are encouraged to attend our Discovery Class. This class will help you know the most important things about membership at WTBC, and help you get to know the WTBC family. If you have questions about becoming a member or attending the Discovery Class, email us at wtbc@wtbc.org.