Part 3 of 4 posts (click here for Part 1 and Part 2)
by Dr. Donald E. Ross
Nelson Searcy Coaching Alum
Lead Pastor of Creekside Church (Mountlake Terrace, WA).
Issue #6: Endurance.
Although things must change, it will take time. Researcher Gary McIntosh states that a turn-around church can take from five to twelve years, depending on the setting.
Rural churches and churches in dire circumstances can take longer. If you are following a leader who fell morally or was financially untrustworthy, trust will take longer to build.
Focus on building trust first with your leaders. They are the ones who spend the most time with you and the rest of the church already trusts them (hopefully). If they endorse you it as trustworthy it really helps.
This means some very practical things, like keep your word, don’t be late to a meeting, gain consensus whenever possible, listen well, don’t interrupt and in general be a loving leader.
The average church should begin to see positive signs within 3-5 years. But the more desperate the situation, the longer it will take. Our church was in “dire circumstances” and we took a bit longer, although we had some healthy signs early on, it was nearly 10 years before we saw significant and lasting change.
Obviously the longer the process, the more endurance is needed on the part of the leader, but again, God is faithful. If you are called to lead this turn-around, God will give you grace to endure.
I recall one morning when I was very discouraged. I asked Jesus for another assignment, stating all my qualifications for such a move. He seemed to reply, “Oh, I’m sorry. Did I assign you to the wrong place? Where do you think you should be working? Perhaps I overlooked something.”
Realizing that I was called to lead these people out of the desert I again recommitted myself to the task assigned. As I see what our church has become, I am so grateful I endured, and you will be too.
Issue #7: Money.
Here’s the deal… money will be tight. Period. Who wants to give to a dying cause? It takes a while to see a new vision rise, which draws resources. That’s the downside.
The upside is often declining churches have resources in facilities and property. These can be tapped to pick up the needed capitol to make needed changes and simply stay alive. We tapped our equity several times to make changes and to move us ahead.
The pastor should also be prepared to resource himself during a turn-around recovery. By this I mean, he may have to work a second job or set funds aside to “float” his finances until he gets paid.
God will still provide, and He is trustworthy. Don’t live in fear of not having enough. You will. Never let fear override your faith.
Issue #8: Facilities.
These are important but not first in your thinking and planning. Usually an established congregation is deeply bonded to facilities, having sacrificed to build or maintain them.
Any changes you make should be done carefully and part of an overall plan. Getting key lay leaders on board is critical. You may need to renovate, or even sell facilities for the sake of the church.
Buildings are not the church; they’re a ministry tool. Sometimes you need to replace tools to accomplish a project. We did. As a part of our turn-around we ended up relocating and selling our old campus, and boy was it worth it. People are the treasure, not the buildings.
For information on the Turn Around Church Coaching Network,
see www.TurnAroundChurch.org
P.S. For a package of resources to help you evaluate and improve the Systems of your church, check out The Systems Seminars Package.
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