Table of Contents

How Do You Know If You Are Ready for Redevelopment?

by Jim Caprell

Reversing Unwelcoming Welcome Habits

by Peter W. Marty

Renewing a Mainline Congregation Requires More Than Praise Music and Small Groups

by R. Robert Cueni

How to Address the Stress Points in Turnaround Churches

by William M. Easum

Revitalizing the Rural (or Anywhere!) Church

by James A. Shelly

So Tell Me...Interviews with Faithful, Effective, and Innovative Leaders:  Featuring Ron Martoia

by Norman Jameson

Turnaround Congregations Moving from Decline to Health, Growth, Renewed Mission

by Marta Poling-Goldenne

Building the Human Resources Team

by Thomas G. Bandy

The Church That's Continually Opening New Doors

by Dale E. Galloway

Coaching Corner

by Jim Caprell

            Driving back to the church, I suddenly noticed that the maximum speed limit had changed on the interstate highway that runs through our town. What caught my attention wasn’t the numbers that indicated a reduction in speed but the sign itself. The new, bright-white sign made a startling impression compared to the dull white of the older sign just below it. I chuckled at this example, albeit a poor one, of the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which says that everything in the universe is running down. Everything—you, me, and the signs on the interstate. The church—the beloved institution of which we think, “It will never change”—in fact, changes and is changing. And without proper care and attention, it runs down.

            No one will disagree that when the church begins to run down, we need to give it a shot of ecclesiastical iron supplement. The problem is, like the sign on the road, we may not realize the church’s condition until it’s too late. When the glitzy worship center goes up two blocks down the street and is filled to capacity (with a few of our members even!) on the first Sunday it’s open . . . then we notice our own congregational life: the age spots and wrinkles, the dead spaces and boring places. And then we see the need for a makeover.

            More often than not, in a state of panic and with a collective intake of breath, we move into a reactionary mode that has come to be universally known as “redevelopment.” We begin to ask questions. “What can we fix that will draw people to church?” “What new program is working down the street that we could borrow for our own church?” Then there’s the ever-present, “How can we get more kids in the church?”

            Congregations that find themselves in a declining mode or plateau may be candidates for a redevelopment program. However, churches do not need to be in a crisis to be  redevelopment churches. The work of redevelopment is a redirecting of a congregation’s ministry because of changes in needs of its members and of the community, whether that congregation is healthy or large or not.

            A word of caution is necessary, however. Congregational redevelopment isn’t a stopgap measure for membership loss or just another “program” that will lead to a temporary membership gain. It is not another program at all. It is a shift in the way that ministry is done in the local congregation. Redevelopment has been defined as unnatural. In other words, it is not a part of the natural cycle of congregational life. It is an intentional intervention into a congregation in order to stimulate and strengthen its foundations so it can reclaim and reorient its biblical ministry.

            My own denomination, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has been studying the need for redevelopment in many of her churches around the country. The smaller membership congregation that I pastor has also been engaged in a redevelopment project of its own, modeled after the national study and aided by our presbytery’s local efforts. The national study has concluded, and my own observations of smaller membership churches agree, that five dynamics should be included in any redevelopment ministry plan for that plan to succeed: (1) creating spiritual energy; (2) coming to terms with the past, present and future; (3) building a ministry team; (4) reentering the community; and (5) building a financial base.

Five Redevelopment Dynamics

            From time to time, when meeting with fellow pastors, I ask them if anyone (or a group) in their congregation regularly prays for them and the church. A lack of regular prayer by its members for that congregation and for its pastor(s) may indicate low corporate spiritual energy.

            I’ve asked the leaders in other congregations about their missions programs, particularly the “hands-on” programs. A negative response is, again, an indicator of that congregation’s spiritual energy. Remember, church doors open out!

            A church in decline that no longer owns a vision for ministry (a vision received in prayer) will soon find fewer and fewer pews occupied during Sunday morning worship. Typically in those situations, the wagons have already been circled and a survival mentality exposes itself, often at the expense of a pastor or other staff member.

            The key to having spiritual energy is a corporate one. No single individual can carry the weight of congregational change. But many pastors, this one included, feel or have felt that weight and deemed it theirs alone. But it’s not all on our shoulders! We must have the grace and the guts to build a spiritual awareness among our congregations, many of whom suffer from amnesia (they can’t remember what being led by the Spirit was like) or from delusions (the thinking that if we only do it the old way, we’ll be all right again). Focused Bible study, hands-on mission projects, and intentional prayer groups can cause a renewed spiritual awareness in a congregation.

            The second major theme in redevelopment is knowing who you are as a congregation. Many congregations get locked into an understanding of the world that doesn’t exist anymore. Much has been written on this, so no need to elaborate here. But beyond the social, postmodern understanding of present-day society, the congregation must also come to terms with its own individual past. Provide opportunities for members to reflect on how things were and also how things are. In many cases they will need a time for corporately grieving the loss of “the good old days.” Unless the congregation understands where it has come from, it will not see where it’s going and that the present can also be good.

            A third theme in redevelopment is leadership. Remember that the ministry of a redeveloping congregation is redirected into new areas. The pastor and membership work together as a team in that endeavor. Spiritual gifts within the members need to be identified and utilized in new ministry opportunities. The talents of longtime members can pair up with the excitement of newer members to create a complete ministry team. Leadership in the redeveloping church is bottom up, not top down, so that the pastor doesn’t (even unintentionally) get in the way. Her or his role is to train and retrain the members in ministry.

            That training leads to the fourth theme: reentering the community. Churches in redevelopment situations may have withdrawn from any community involvement. The congregation’s members often reside outside the immediate context of the church and therefore have little knowledge of the needs of those folks in the neighborhood surrounding the church. Reentering the community is risky business. However, the “not-like-us” deserve the same gospel as we. Jesus called these folks to be his disciples. They were then and are now worthy of the kingdom. Good evangelism starts with building relationships with those folks just outside our church door.

            A fifth component of redevelopment is that of a solid financial base. This may be the hardest of the five themes but its success insures that the congregation’s ministry will extend beyond the present and into the future. Stewardship must be seen as a way of life for the believer, and good stewardship practices must be modeled by the leaders.

Does This Description Fit Us?

            By now you may be asking, Is our church a candidate for redevelopment? Here’s a quick check-off list to help you decide:

            If the ten-year trends have plateaued or declined for membership, worship attendance, church-school attendance, contributions, or mission giving, you may be a candidate for redevelopment.

            If the Diaspora has occurred, and the “righteous remnant” remain out of loyalty or the need for a place to be buried, and they are tired, depressed, lacking in motivation, creativity, or energy, you may be a candidate for redevelopment.

            If new folks do come, but they don’t stay . . . If the sign announcing your “new church” has fallen down . . . If people driving down the street wonder what goes on in your church, you may be a candidate for redevelopment.

            Redevelopment doesn’t come easily. It takes hard work. But as Gustav Nelson says, “There is opportunity to speak with a new voice, to minister to a new world in a new way, and to respond to God’s call in the 21^st century.”

            In a real sense then, all of us are redevelopment candidates, aren’t we?

Note: See the “Coaching Corner” article in this issue for related discussion questions.

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