Keys To Thriving In The Smaller Church

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In just about every instance of leadership in the Bible, the leaders God chose had profound moments of doubt, indecision, and fear. So, if that’s how you have ever felt you’re in good company. You’re in the company of Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Elijah, David, and all 12 disciples. But, there are some practices we in leadership can put into place that will help us thrive in the ministry setting in which God has placed us. Let’s get started --

At about this point you’re thinking, “I hope they’re not paying this guy because this is really obvious.” And, you’re right, but stay with me. Your church is really not the monster you think it is. Okay, sometimes it is, but some understanding of your church might help.

Small churches share one common trait -- there are fewer people in small churches than large ones. But size also changes how small churches function. There is a difference in a micro-church of 10-12, a mini-church of about 40, a mid-size church of 50-150, and a church of 150+. Size matters.
Generations. What is the age of your church, what generation are church leaders from? What ethnic background does your church have.
Where a small church is located -- urban, suburban, small town, rural.
Distinctives -- doctrine, worldview, lifestyle

Wow, this must be Easter Sunday. Talk about style, this couple has it. But so do churches. 1.Worship style is a big one -- pipe organ, grand piano, robed choir, order of worship; praise band, trio, choruses, hands raised, etc
2.Decision-making: board, church, behind the scenes, formal and informal
3.Welcoming: what is your church’s hospitality quotient? Initial conversation then retreat; inclusion; or somewhere in between?
4.Practices: these are the practices everybody knows we do, except maybe the pastor. I was at my church 2 years before anybody told me we did Parent-child dedication on Mother’s Day.
5.Traditions: Like practices, only these are really important. Like decorating the sanctuary for Christmas, or an annual picnic, or some other tradition known to long-timers.

Israel Galindo’s The Hidden Lives of Congregations.

What stories, memories, people, and milestones continue to come up in conversation? Use appreciative inquiry. Mark Branson’s, Hopes, Memories, and Conversations.

What moves your church? What is the emotional center? What is the one thing on which almost all members agree as part of the cultural DNA of your church?

Love your neighbors...just don’t ask what they do for a living. These are all moonshiners. Interestingly, our county holds the record for the largest moonshine bust in history which took place in the late 1970s.

But, by loving your neighbors, I really mean -- get to know folks outside your church.

This is one pastor after his monthly deacons’ meeting. Conflict is a big issue in churches. There was a time when Southern Baptist pastors averaged staying 18-months at a church.

Congregational Leadership in Anxious Times, Peter Steinke

Pulse: know when you’re dander is getting up.
Manage: be a non-anxious presence.
Strategies: 5 ways to deal with conflict.
Separate problems from people.
Redemptive.
Find support.

Small church pastors are like the late Rodney Dangerfield -- They don’t get no respect. Primarily because the description of a small church is based on one criteria -- size. But, when other characteristics are considered, the picture looks much different.

Seth Godin’s Small is the New Big. (Pink is the new black.)
Measure impact = people being the church, not just people coming to church.
You’re not alone: there are hundreds of thousands of us, and only one Rick Warren.
You have what you need: be faithful with what you have.
Face the future: things are changing, new forms of church are coming, small churches will be the shape of the future according to John Zogby in The Way We Will Be.

You need 20-30 people with whom you connect in various ways. Strong networks have 30, weak networks, 10-20; inadequate networks 1-10.

These folks are your network. Expand it.

“Instead speaking the truth in love we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Eph 4:15-16

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Keys To Thriving In The Smaller Church - Presentation Transcript

Keys to Thriving in the Smaller Church
or, what to do until the moving van comes...
1. Understand Your Church
Church Type • Size: How many? • Generations: Who? • Location: Where? • Distinctives: What?
Church Style • Worship • Decision-making • Welcoming • Practices • Traditions
Church Stage from The Hidden Lives Congregations • Establishing • Formation • Adolescent • Prime • Maturity • Aristocracy* • Bureaucracy • Dissolution
Church Heritage • Stories • Memories • People • Milestones • Appreciative Inquiry
Church Heart • Missions • Service • One another • Discipleship • Other
2. Love Your Neighbors
Engage with Others 1. Expand your circle. 2. Make friends. 3. Work together. 4. Be yourself.
3. Transform Your Conﬂict
13 Anxiety Triggers • • Money Staff Conﬂict • • Sexuality Harm to a Child • • Pastor’s Style Old vs New • • Lay leaders Contemp vs Traditional Worship • Growth/Survival • Ideal vs Real • Boundaries • Buildings/Space • Trauma/Transition
Take a dose of Calm Down! Take your pulse. Manage yourself. Employ strategies. Separate problems. Be redemptive. Find support.
5 Ways to Deal With Conﬂict • My Way: I win, you lose • Your Way: You win, I lose • Half-way: We both lose (compromise) • No way: I’m out of here • New Way: A new solution
Leaders Need... • Courage to face reality. • Stomach for conﬂict. • Ears to listen. • Attention of others. • Skill to mobilize for new challenges. • A good thermostat. • Sanctuary. -Ronald Heifetz • Leadership without Easy Answers
Conﬂict resources • Caring Enough To Confront - Augsburger • Getting To Yes - Fisher, Ury, Patton • When Getting Along Seems Impossible - Malony
4. Reframe Your Ministry
Running with the big dogs... 1. Small is the new big. 2. Measure impact. 3.You’re not alone. 4.You have what you need. 5. Face the future.
5. Enlarge Your Network
A little help from your network.. Healthy: 20-30 Weak: 10-20 Poor: 1-10
Who you gonna call... • To play golf? • To babysit? • To talk? • To help with a repair? • To eat out?
6. Focus on Your Family
Start at home. Make time. Quantity time is quality time. Your family is your ﬁrst ministry.
7. Follow Your Leader
Walk with Jesus. Practice patience. Resign your church. Listen to the Spirit. Let Jesus speak through you.
Christ is the Head of the Body • Ephesians 4:15-16 NIV • Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
• Understand your church. • Love your neighbors. • Transform your conﬂict. • Reframe your ministry. • Enlarge your network. • Focus on your family. • Follow your leader.
For more on pastoral ministry... • Confessions of a Small-Church Pastor • www.chuckwarnock.com