8 Keys to Changing your Church in 2017

Tag Archive - stuck

8 Keys to Changing your Church in 2017

Sunday, January 1, 2017

Most church leaders I’ve talked with want things to change for the better, they want this year to be better than last year, but they don’t want to do anything different. People always want to change their circumstances, but they never want to change their lives. But everything gets better when we get better. Families get better when fathers and mothers get better. Students get better when educators get better. Organizations get better when leaders get better. And churches get better when church leaders get better. But change is painful. Don’t let anyone tell you any different. It’s always easier and more comfortable to stay where you are than to change and move forward. But if you want to grow at some point you’ve got to stop doing what’s easy and start doing what’s right. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind as you lead your church through change in 2017.

1. Get the Brutal Facts

The first place to start with change is where you are. You have to define reality and clearly understand what reality is today and why you’re here. Not what you think reality is or why you think you’re here. This takes courage to ask difficult questions and then listen more than talk and it usually comes with a pretty healthy dose of humility. If you don’t start here you’re likely to solve the wrong problems, take the wrong steps, or repeat the past.

2. Take Personal Responsibility

Often times churches don’t change because they mistakenly think that change is something that happens to them instead of something that happens in them. The change that you want to see happen in your life and in your church is no one’s responsibility but your own. You get to choose if you are going to grow and change or not. If you’ve been at your church for more than 3 years then stop blaming the prior administration and start leading.

3. Provide Clarity

If you don’t like where things are at in your church is right now, the good news is it doesn’t have to stay that way. You can change it. But change doesn’t come without clarity and it’s the leaders responsibility to provide clarity on what needs to change and what the preferred future looks like. The greater clarity the church has the faster you can make decisions and the more effectively you can move towards your future.

4. Don’t Overreach

Too much change can be the enemy of change. In fact if you reach further than you have the ability to execute you can actually cripple the church for years to come. You didn’t get where you are in a moment but a series of moments. You’re not going to get to you’re preferred future in a moment either. Instead, plan your work and work your plan.

5. Find a Coach

Leaders aren’t going around looking for someone to mentor or coach; they’re too busy leading. If you want a mentor or coach then you’ve got to chase after someone who has something you want until you catch them. Leaders press into people who press into them. You need to grow as a leader for your church to grow. Maybe it’s time to enlist a coach.

6. Rework your Team

Show me the top 5 decision makers at your church and I’ll show you what your church is going to look like in 5 years. Sometimes reworking your team is the right next step to take. Don’t be afraid to make personnel changes this year. But be careful and do this wisely. We’re not building widgets, we’re making disciples. The staff at your church aren’t cogs in a machine that can easily be replaced, they’re people to be developed and deployed.

7. Stop Hoping for things to Change

A majority of churches make the mistake of sitting around hoping for their “ship to come in,” some pivotal magic moment that’s going to change everything. What’s missed in all of this waiting and hoping is that the secret of growing and changing is doing a little every day. Long-term change is determined by your daily agenda. Hope is not a strategy. Take some advice from legendary basketball coach John Wooden that said, “You make the choice and then the choice makes you.”

8. Get some Fresh Eyes

Sometimes you simply need fresh eyes, someone from the outside to help you see things differently. Sometimes you need an outside voice to say some things that you want to say but can’t. And sometimes you’re just stuck and need help. If that’s your church then maybe the best step you can take to change things at your church is to engage the Unstuck Group. We help churches grow their impact through church consulting and coaching experiences designed to focus vision, strategy and action.

Posted in Leadership

Inviting You to Take the Unstuck Challenge

Tuesday, December 20, 2016

While most pastors are preparing for Christmas Eve services, wise pastors know there’s another big day right around the corner:

January 1, 2017.

The start of a new year in which to make new changes, build new ministries, and ultimately reach new people.

I’d venture to bet there’s a list of changes you’ve wanted to make at your church for a while.

Perhaps you’ve known your worship services need to be updated. Maybe your discipleship “pathway” really feels more like a ministry maze. It could be that you’re looking to add another service — or eliminate one. To engage more leaders — or develop the ones on your team.

If you’re like most pastors, you knew these changes were needed a while back.

Maybe you’ve known this entire year but couldn’t quite get the ball rolling. Thankfully, a new year comes with a new opportunity…

2017 could be the year when everything…starting with the ***right thing*…changes.**

The difference will be in how you start.

This January, we’re inviting pastors from around the world to join us for The Unstuck Change Challenge.

It’s a 15-day journey to kickstart the ministry year you’ve been dreaming about. We’ll help you clarify what you need to change and why, get the right people around the table, and develop a real plan for communication and action. Oh, and it’s completely free.

By taking the challenge, you’ll receive daily emails full of the following:

Inspirational videos on the 5 aspects of leading change

Planning frameworks to help you make better and faster decisions

Frequent reminders that it’s time to take action — because we all need an occasional kick in the pants!

“So, you’re really not going to charge me for this?”

I’ve seen new year kick-off programs cost anywhere from $30 to $300. But here’s my opinion: The real cost of change is the time you put into creating it. If you’re willing to invest your time, I don’t want anything else to get in the way.

But first, I should warn you…

This challenge is not for the complacent or comfortable. I’m not willing to sit idle while churches maintain status quo. My aim is to challenge and inspire you toward real action that makes real impact. There’s too much at stake in your community to not start the year right.

If you’re a church leader who has been thinking about making real change — the kind of change that helps more people meet Jesus — sign up below and high-five the closest person nearby. Because 2017 just became the year when everything…starting with the right thing…changes.

So follow this link to get start 2017 off right with the Unstuck Challenge!

Posted in Leadership

What Growing Churches do Differently

Sunday, September 18, 2016

It’s not faith, it’s not luck, and it’s not some leadership secret. Growing churches are actually doing something differently than the other 80% of churches in America that are stuck or declining.

At the Unstuck Group we work with 100’s of churches every year and we’ve discovered that growing churches are actually doing some very tangible things differently than other churches. Below are just a few of them.

1. Staff Led

Look at the statistics across America and you’ll discover that growing churches have very few congregational votes. These churches are Staff led instead of Board led or Congregationally led. Practically speaking that is because Church Boards are part-time thinkers and they simply don’t have the time to give to a full-time job of running the church. As a result decision making and implementation slow down because the staff are constantly catching the Board or the church up on the past instead of leading the church into the future. I know this isn’t always an easy transition for churches to make. I’d suggest you pick up a copy of High Impact Church Boards to read through with the Board at your church and get the conversation started.

2. Intentionally Develop Leaders

Growing churches develop leaders at an exponential rate compared to most churches in America. They do this intentionally, not just “organically,” (which is code for we don’t have a plan and we hope it somehow magically happens). They don’t just use people to fill volunteer roles, they see volunteering as an essential part of the discipleship process. They delegate responsibility and empower volunteers with real ministry decision-making power. They develop some kind of formal content that is specific to the culture of their church and train up and coming leaders in that content. This allows them to hire from within instead of hiring from outside and jeopardizing their culture.

3. Embrace Technology

Growing churches embrace technology. This may simply be evidence that they are more likely to change methodology based on effectiveness more readily than other churches and that they are open to new ideas. But whatever the case they are embracing the use of technology through social media engagement, online marketing, big data, video teaching, and use of technology in weekend worship services. This isn’t new. I don’t think it’s a mere coincidence that the protestant reformation took place during a similar time period to the printing press and the Bible being translated, printed in the hands of the everyday guy. With advancements in technology come opportunities for advancements in the Gospel for churches that embrace them.

4. Clear Strategy

Growing churches don’t just hope and pray for growth, they plan for it and build a clear actionable strategy to grow. Hoping your church will grow won’t make your church grow and growing churches understand this. They develop clear strategies (strategy answers the question “How are we going to do this?”), to help them get to their vision (vision answers the question “Where are we going?”). This informs all of their decision-making and allows them to align resources (people, time, money, facilities, etc.) to get them where they believe Jesus has called them to go. They’re also fanatical about clarity, because they understand the clearer they can make things, the faster they can go and the more effective they can be.

Interested in getting your church unstuck and growing again? I’d encourage you to reach out to the Unstuck Group. We’ve built a trusted track record and have a proven process to help your church get unstuck!

Posted in Leadership

Why Churches don’t Change

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Churches don’t change. In fact most churches avoid changing at all cost, even if it means not growing. It’s so bad that I’ve seen churches choose to close their doors over choosing to change. Below are 6 common reasons I’ve observed why churches choose not to change. One of these might be why your church won’t change.

Procrastination

Churches find themselves talking about the same issues they’ve been talking about for years. Instead of making decisions and doing the hard work of dealing with those issues they’re sitting around waiting on a silver bullet, innovative idea that will never come but if it did it would magically solve all of their problems.

Structure

Churches don’t change because their structure won’t allow it. They can’t make decisions in a timely manner because there are too many boards, committees, polity to wade through, and church votes to take to actually do anything.

Focus

Churches are more focused on taking care of the sheep then they are inviting new people to the family. They make decisions based on who they are trying to keep rather than who they’re trying to reach.

Desire

Churches don’t want to change. They like things the way they are. They like knowing everyone at church, they like singing the same songs, they like the warm blanket and safety and security of knowing what to expect. In a world that is constantly changing around them they pride themselves on never changing.

Money

Churches don’t change because of money. If they really did change then the people who are funding the church might leave and stop giving. So they keep things the way they are

Fear

Churches are afraid of leading through change. The tough thing about leadership is that eventually you have to lead. It takes real courage to receive criticism, some of it fanatical in a church setting, and keep moving in the direction the Lord has asked you to go.

Want to change your church? Engage the Unstuck Group and let us help you grow your impact through church consulting and coaching experiences designed to focus vision, strategy and action.

Posted in Leadership

Page 4 of 12« First...«2 345 6 »10...Last »