George Bullard's Journey

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if its Relationships are About True Friendships

[This is the eleventh of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

True Friendships, Meaningful Fellowship, and Face Familiarity

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten year from now if it its congregational relationships are about creating and nurturing true friendships. It is marginal or uncertain to exist ten years from now if its congregational relationships stop at the point of being meaningful fellowship. It is less likely to exist if its congregational relationships are primarily about face familiarity.

True friendships are when people know one another, have periodic to regular relationship encounters with one another, have life concerns for one another about which they pray, and consider one another friends who can be called on for various life needs—even at 3:00 a.m. These friendships are long-lasting friendships that may remain deep friendships forever. At the same time they are not exclusive friendships. New people are regularly invited to enter each person’s sphere of true friendships. A person’s true friendship circle should never be an exclusive group not open to others.

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it is Experiencing Conversion, Biological, and Transfer Growth

[This is the tenth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Experiencing Conversion, Biological, and Transfer Growth

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten year from now if it is experiencing conversion, biological, and transfer growth. It is marginal or uncertain to exist ten year from now if it is experiencing primarily biological and transfer growth. It is less likely to exist if it is experiencing primarily transfer growth or no growth. Growth in this case means annual additions to the congregational membership and participation base before losses are considered. It is not net growth, but additions before losses are considered.

Definitions for conversion, biological, and transfer growth are needed. Here is one perspective:

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if Four Involvement Factors are Present

[This is the ninth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

What Percentage of Your Congregation Has All Four Involvement Factors?

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if at least 50 percent of the number of adults present on a typical weekend for worship have all four involvement factors. If 25 to 50 percent have all four involvement factors then its future existence is marginal to uncertain. When less than 25 percent have all four involvement factors its long-term future existence is very much in doubt.

What are the four involvement factors?

• Attendance at weekly worship a minimum of 39-42 weeks per year.
• Participation in a regular, even ongoing, disciplemaking group for spiritual formation.
• Existence of deep friendship with people who are members or regular attendees.
• Service in an elected, appointed, or volunteer role in or through the congregation.

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if its Attendance is Growing

[This is the eighth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Attendance Growing, Attendance Plateaued, Attendance Declining

While this may seem like a “no-brainer”, there may also be more to it than at first appears. Yes, your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if its attendance is growing. But what is attendance growth? It is marginal or uncertain if your congregation will exist ten years from now if its attendance is plateaued. If your attendance is declining it is less likely your congregation will exist ten years from now. But, is it all about numbers? No, it is more than numbers, yet at the same time as one factor of vitality and vibrancy, numbers can be important, and must be considered.

If your congregation is growing in attendance then it is beating the odds. The majority of North American congregations are plateaued or declining in attendance. Some estimates put the percentage as high as 75 percent; some 80 percent. But what is attendance growth? It is when the average number of people present for regular weekly worship services increases by a minimum of ten percent within a five-year period. It is when the number of households represented in the weekly worship attendance increases by a minimum of five percent within a five-year period. It is when the total number of different people present for weekly worship during a consecutive four-week period increase by at least 15 percent.

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it is Contextually Relevant

[This is the seventh of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

 

Growing Context, Stagnant Context, or Shifting Context

 

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it is in a growing context and is contextually relevant. It is marginal or uncertain if it is in a stagnant context with only some contextual relevance. It is less likely to exist if it is in a shifting context with contextual irrelevance.

 

This factor requires some definition. A growing context is where there is net population increase each year. Often this growth is similar demographically to who has been living in that context during recent years. A stagnant context is where little growth or decline is occurring in the context, and the average number of years residents have lived in that area is increasing annually. A shifting context is where a change in the demographics of who lives in a given geographical area is occurring that is making it a very different context or community over a period of years than it was in previous days.

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it is Kingdom-Focused

[This is the sixth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Kingdom-Focused, Self-Focused, Survival-Focused

 

Download: Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it is Kingdom Focused

 

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it is focused on expanding and extending God’s kingdom from a missional perspective. It is marginal or uncertain if it is focused exclusively on the numerical success of the congregation. It is less likely to exist if it is focused on institutional maintenance and survival until the death of the current generation of leaders.

 

Kingdom-focused congregations move beyond attractional church growth to the dimension of ministry popularized as missional. They are focused on transforming the lives of individuals with the love of Christ, and collectively transformation their community context. They seek to understand what it will take to connect the various target groups of people in their context with a Christ-centered, faith based experience, and then equip themselves to provide relevant effective ministry that accomplishes this.

Your Congregation is More likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it is Intentional

[This is the fifth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Intentional, Unintentional, or Accidental

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it takes intentional actions focused on its current understanding of its spiritual strategic direction. It is marginal or uncertain in its future vitality and vibrancy if its actions are good but unintentional regarding it direction. It is less likely to exist if its actions are accidental and clearly without focus.

Faithful, effective, and innovative congregations are highly intentional in the actions they take regarding programs, ministries, and activities. The sharpest congregations based on high expectations of members, an empowering shared vision, and clear core values are intentional in their actions so their spiritual strategic direction might become a reality. Intentionality is part of a full focus on the emerging future of the congregation that also affirms the foundation of the past and present.

Your Church is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it has Clear Core Values

[This is the fourth of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Clear Core Values, Fuzzy Core Values, or No Apparent Clarity on Values

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it has clear core values. It is marginal or uncertain in its future vitality and vibrancy if it is fuzzy about its core values. It is less likely to exist if it has no apparent clarity on values.

Let’s take a minute to mention some different types of core values. At least three are relevant to this dialogue. First, are the core values which are based on a biblical and theological foundation. What do we believe about the triune God and how does that inform our core values? Second, are the aspirational values a congregation holds. What character and nature do we want to reflect when we are at our best as a congregation? Third, are the core values based on the cultural habits and expectations of the congregation. What are our cultural patterns that form the unique identity of this congregation?

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it has Shared Vision

[This is the third of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Shared Vision, Pastor’s Vision, or No Vision

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it has a shared vision. It is marginal or uncertain in its future vitality and vibrancy if it focuses around the pastor’s vision. It is less likely to exist if it has no vision.

If an enduring visionary leadership community within the congregation is passionate about a common vision and is working for its fulfillment then a congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now. The enduring visionary leadership community is not a clearly identified formal leadership community within a congregation. It is an ad hoc community composed of people with deep passion for the future of the congregation toward which God is pulling it, plus people of position or influence in the congregation who support and empower a vital, vibrant future for the congregation.

Your Congregation is More Likely to Exist Ten Years from Now if it has an Empowering Vision

[This is the second of 25 factors that may impact the survivability and vitality of your congregation. A new factor is being posted each weekday for five weeks.]

Empowering Vision, Programmatically Flavored and Captivated, or Controlled by Management

Your congregation is more likely to exist ten years from now if it possesses an empowering vision. It is marginal or uncertain in its future vitality and vibrancy if it is programmatically flavored and captivated. It is less like to exist if it is controlled by management.

For a congregation to have an empowering vision means they are clear about who they are as a Christ-centered, faith-based community, they have clear core values, they are captivated by a vision of where it is God is leading them, and they are intentionally seeking to fulfill that vision. An empowering vision is the most important thing by which a congregation can be captivated. It needs to be the fuel that drives them forward. It must be the passion that thrills their soul.