Our Latest Perspectives
When is the Right Time to Close Our Doors?
We live in anxious times, and one of the things that makes small congregations especially anxious is the fear that they might need to close. As members watch their Sunday morning worship attendance dwindle, someone usually starts “running the numbers,” trying to determine how long they can continue before the money runs out and they’re forced to close.
The Mystique of Confidentiality
Confidentiality is a term of art in ministry. It evokes the seal of the confessional: most people expect, when they talk to clergy, that what they say will go no further. This is perhaps the most widespread expectation people have of clergy, and one most of us try hard to honor. Unfortunately, keeping confidences is not as simple than it sounds.
Surviving Congregational Conflict
High-intensity congregational conflict is brutal on congregational leaders. Even though conflict generally emerges from deeper congregational and societal dynamics, members are likely to assume that leaders’ incompetence must be at least partly responsible.
Planning Ahead … Way Ahead
In the church, we tend to think of strategic planning as involving a time frame of three to five years. That is a reasonable time frame for most plans. However, the church also needs an entirely different form of strategic planning that looks ahead 10, 20 or more years.
Sunday May Be Sacred, But Church Is Not
“I only have my son every other weekend and he doesn’t like church, so I don’t come those Sundays.”
This is the voice of a church member attending a committee planning session I recently led. She was clearly an active member, committed enough to the life of her congregation to spend 4½ hours talking on a gorgeous late summer Sunday when she could have been outside playing. But, as you can see, she only attends church every other Sunday at best. For her and many others, Sunday morning church attendance no longer is a primary identifier of active membership. It is now just one way among many of being active, and for some it may even not be important at all.
The Joy (and Challenge) of Community
It’s very easy in our American culture to leave a church. No matter how hard pastors and lay leaders work to keep folks focused on mission instead of individual preferences, church attendance is often a consumer-driven phenomenon. If there is any kind of conflict brewing in a congregation the temptations to flee grow exponentially. It’s not unusual to hear someone say, “That church was no longer meeting my needs.”
Have We Failed?
We are living in an era where many things we have done in the name of Church are no longer sustainable. Does this mean we have failed?On some level, every organization must be sustainable. If we cannot afford to cover our overhead expenses over time, we will cease to exist and won’t be able to support any ministry. However, under the umbrella of a sustainable organization, we should be free to experiment with programs that may or may not be individually sustainable.