The Church Revitalizer November / December 2014

THE

CHURCH

November/ December 2014 Vol 1 Issue 1

Revitalizer

“A Revitalization Retreat in Every Issue”

“The only magazine dedicated to Church Revitalization.” ~ Tom Cheyney

2

RENOVATE National Church Revitalization Conference

Speakers Include Tom Cheyney Jasen Allen Rodney Harrison Micah Fries Paul Borden Neil Franks Ron Smith Bruce Raley Lee Kricher Terry Rials

March 9-11, 2015 Kansas City, MO

RenovateConference.org Spurgeon Center @ Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary 3

THE

CHURCH

Revitalizer FEATURES

Nov / Dec 2014 | Vol 1, No 1

RENOVATE

The Church Revitalizer Subscribe to our weekly blog post focused around the revitalization of Churches in North America.

Follow

RENOVATE National Church Revitalization Conference The

RENOVATE

on social media via:

Revitalization Podcast

Facebook:

Subscribe to our weekly podcast focused around the revitalization of Churches in North America.

To subscribe go to: renovateconference.org/resources

20

The Pastor’s Personal Life and Leadership Capacity

24

RenovateConference

Twitter #RenovateConference

Better Preaching Can Turn Around Pastors and Their Churches

By Joel R. Breidenbaugh

Trust 32 Building

By Neal Franks 2 Minute Pastor

By Greg Kappas

38

The Sevnen Pillars of Church Revitalization and Renewal

By Tom Cheyney

4

42

The Characteristics of Successful Church Revitalizers

By Tom Cheyney & Michael Atherton

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Surviving the First Five Years Without Getting Fired By Glenn A. Miller

Six Steps In Starting A New Work In An Existing Church By Ron Smith

The Leadership Link…

By Michael Atherton

Multiplication or Division?

By Mark Weible

12 28 30 54

10

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year!

By Tom Cheyney

16

Setting New Goals

18

Get Your Hands Dirty

36

Create a “User-Friendly” Ministry Environment

48

Become Less Isolated and Be More Integrated with Your Volunteers

49

Remember Your Calling

58

Leading Churches Back to Vitality and Life: The Task of Church Revitalization

by Terry Rials

60

The Biblical Qualification of a Revitalization Leader

by Terry Rials

62

Four Convictions about Student Ministry

by Drew Cheyney

revitalizer

LIBRARY “The only magazine dedicated to Church Revitalization.”

BOOK REVIEWS 56 Turnaround Pastor, by Donald Ross 57 The Bridges of God: A Study in the Strategy of Missions By Donald McGavran

5

6

Pastoral Helmsmanship is much more than a book about church administration: it is about effectively navigating in the increasingly complex world of ministry “This is a must-have book placed on your study desk so you can learn from it daily.”

Tom Cheyney — Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference “Read these pages to your benefit and to the blessing of those you will serve.”

Jim Draper — President Emeritus LifeWay “Pastor Helmsmanship is chock-full of practical advice that every pastor needs.”

Dr. Jason Allen — President, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

Available from Amazon in paperback and Kindle 7

THE

CHURCH

Revitalizer Volume 1, No. 1 The Church Revitalizer is published monthly by Renovate Publishing Group 1906 West Lee Road Orlando, FL 32810 Email: ChurchRevitalizer.guru

PUBLISHER Dr. Tom Cheyney Associate Publisher Mark Weible Associate Publisher Circulation & Marketing Linda Goans Executive Editor & Brand Manager Tom Cheyney Magazine Designer & Format Editor Gerald Brown Executive Director of Advertizing Linda Goans Web Ad Traffic Director Mark Weible For subscription information contact this office at: www.churchrevitalizer.guru/subscriptions.

Subscriptions donatins are $30.00 per year for six issues, $52.00 for two years (12 issues).

Outside the U.S. add $10.00 per year prepaid.

ChurchRevitalizer.Guru

by Tom Cheyney

Welcome to the Primere Edition of the Church Revitalizer Magazine!

After a year of having church members and revitalization pastors asking me would the Renovate Publishing Group consider publishibng a quarterly magazine exclusively on the subject of Church Revitalization and Renewal, we have launched a bi-monthly subscriber based magazine for the purpose of raising up the conversation regarding this critical need in the local church. This new and exciting endeavor is the only periodical available on the subject. Our goal every other month is to provide you with a Church Revitalization retreat in every issue. This is for the sole purpose of assisting renewal pastors and laity in their efforts towards turning around their church.

Every place I go people ask me for a definition of church revitalization. Church Revitalization is a movement within protestant evangelicalism, which emphasizes the missional work of turning a plateau or rapidly declining church around and moving it back towards growth. It is lead through a Church Revitalization Initiative, which is when a local church begins to work on the renewal of the church with a concerted effort to see the ministry revitalized and the church become healthy. Church Revitalization means that the local church knew how, at one time previously, to renew, revitalize, and reestablish the health and vitality of the ministry. One of the challenges for the laity in the day in which we live is that they have lost the knowledge of church renewal and no longer want to cultivate the skill sets necessary to see their church experience revitalization. Even sadder is when a congregation does not have the corporate memory that there was a day when the local church was reaching people for Christ Jesus and active as evangelistic witnesses into their community. Stay connected, mre is coming...

Stock images from ISTOCK Photo or where otherwise noted. Š Copyright 2014 Renovate Publishing Group

Dr. Tom Cheyney is the founder and directional leader of Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference and Executive Editor of the Church Revitalizer.

8

Thirty-Eight Church Revitalization Models For The Twenty First Century Authored by

Tom Cheyney Renovate Publishing Group

ISBN-13:978-0990781608 ISBN-10: 0990781607 List Price: $19.95

Purchase Online at: RenovateConference.org/Bookstore

While some church revitalizers see church revitalization models as mere fable, others see the validity of having examples and samples to study in the effort to get a glimpse of what God might be saying about how to bring church renewal to their present work! Regardless of the debate regarding myths for models or strategies for the revitalization churches, there appears to be at least six areas and thirty eight strategies that a church seeking renewal could consider.

9

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year!

The beginning of a new year allows individual churches and individual Church Revitalizers the opportunity to rethink the previous years work and begin on a new note with renewed vigor and ample time of reflection.

New Year’s day has always served me as a day of reflection and anticipation. One of the things I do each new years day is look over my very first sermon I ever preached and sense the humbling and appreciation that I did not stay at that level. A moment of humbly thanking God for His blessings is a great way to begin the New Year. A day of anticipation for the upcoming year of ministry opportunity is also a good way to spend the day. In a few days, right after an early morning work out, I will begin my new year and I am so excited about the opportunities it brings for ministry and my individual growth. I could go on, but the emphasis of this blog series is to share some specific things everyone working within the area of church revitalization and renewal should do early in the New Year.

New years are a time for newness and the passage in Revelation 21:5, which says: “Behold, I make all things new,” is a strong reminder of whom we serve and follow.

Yet, beginning early tomorrow I will start seeing lots of people wearing the new clothes they have received as Christmas gifts. Some will have a new coat;

10

others will have ipads or laptops.

Things are new in the New Year.

Perhaps the greatest opportunity for you is that the New Year offers a chance for a new you as a Church Revitalizer. So here are some things every Church Revitalizer should do in the New Year: An Opportunity for a New Beginning New things give us an occasion to start over. Wise revitalizers challenge their churches early in the New Year to see a compelling vision of what the church could become if everyone decided and committed to work together for the cause of revitalization and renewal. Could there be some things you as the minister could do better than last year? The New Year provides all of us second chances to do something better.

Starting anew with a hope of a new beginning. Clean the slates, start over a few things, and learn from previous mistakes.

I heard about a son who called his parents to wish them a happy New Year. The dad answered the phone was asked, “Well dad, what’s your New Year’s resolution?” He answered proudly, “To make your mother as happy as I can all year”. Then his mom got on the phone and he asked her the same question, “What’s you resolution, Mom?” She replied, “To see that your dad keeps his New Year’s resolution.

by Tom Cheyney

Our Lord gives all of us when we enter into a personal relationship with Him a new beginning.

Though the passage speaks of the great gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus, 2 Corinthians 5:17 says “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

Even those outside of Christ are offered new beginnings and at one time in our lives as believers we were given the greatest gift of salvation through Christ Jesus.

But I believe this verse to be an encouragement to all of us as Church Revitalizers of the special blessings we are given through new beginnings.

Create a Sense of Urgency Our communities all around us are changing and as the Church Revitalizer you can ill afford to grow complacent. We are living in a time of rapid change and only the church, which keeps pace with, its ever-changing cultural environment will advance. As a church revitalizer you must have a sense of urgency to assure that your God given vision stays ahead of the demands of com-

Continued on page 16

CHALLENGING ENCOURAGING

It’s More than a book, it’s a RESOURCE for today’s Church!

Free Resources visit RonBSmithJr.com

Available in print and digital editions everywhere books are sold.

“Without revelation people run wild.” Proverbs 29:18 HSCB11

Surviving the First Five Years

Surviving the First Five Years Without Getting Fired The meeting was a fairly normal one. The pastor of a medium size church came to our firm to inquire about our accounting services. The church was running about 250 people on Sunday mornings, they were approximately 10 years old, and they felt a bit uneasy about how their financial reporting was being handled. We reviewed their needs, gave them a quote, and they signed up for our service.

Easy enough! As the weeks and then months went by, I would get calls from the Senior Pastor, “Hey, what is the status of your firm taking over our books?” My answer each time was the same, “Well Pastor, I have called your treasurer many times and left messages, but he never returns my calls.”

A few more months went by, and the church treasurer never called. Then, after six months, I received a call from the Senior Pastor. “We’re shutting down the church, we are financially bankrupt.” He went on to explain that the treasurer had been embezzling money and shipping tens of thousands of dollars to his favorite missions’ agency. The church could not meet its obligations, and when the events became known to the congregation, people lost faith in leadership, in God, and started leaving in droves. This is just one, among hundreds of examples, that lead the Professor, the Pastor and the 12

by Glenn A. Miller, MBA, CFE

Practitioner to partner together to write this important book, Pastoral Helmsmanship – A Pastor’s Guide to Church Administration.

Having lead pastor’s conferences across the USA and around the world over the past 25 years, and having worked with over 1,000 ministries, one noticeable trend has become painfully clear to me: a lack of good administrative practices are slowing some churches down, holding some churches back from growing, and is the cause of some churches closing their doors. This does not have to be! I regularly sit in on church board meetings and the pastors sit on one side and the business people sit on the other side, physically and in their understanding. “The church is not a business! We are family, this is a ministry!” cry the pastors.

“We have buildings, grounds, computers, phones, bank accounts, 500k in revenue and expenses, we need to be more businesslike!” cry the business folks. They are both correct.

Perhaps businesses can learn a lot from the church, and so also the church can learn a lot from business! I often ask church leaders in workshops “Is the church the financial integrity leader in your community?” If not, why? Are churches known for doing business well? Are they known for being well organized, good communicators, good to work with as customers? Sadly, most of the time, the answer is no, and we must examine why.

A builder friend of mine, who

builds churches and businesses, told me that his worst clients were churches! This should not be.

I have worked with literally dozens of fallen treasurers, pastors, and lay leaders and viewed firsthand the carnage that transpires by poor administration that led to fraud. The individual and their family suffer immeasurable shame and despondence.

Church members struggle in disbelief that something like this could happen to their church, by one of their own. Church leaders are strapped with the inevitable blame for allowing it to happen, and the community looks in and says with great pleasure, “See, they are no better than us!” This does not have to be.

One of the co-authors of our book, Rodney, puts it this way - “As a pastor, denominational leader, professor and seminary administrator, I regularly meet with former students who are facing a crisis. It is my experience that the majority of church administration books lack the theological foundation that good administrative practices should be built upon. Many pastors desire to focus on the “outwardly” manifested ministries such as preaching, teaching and pastoral care. When administrative issues arise, they hope that someone will take care of the problem, not recognizing the theological crisis that is being presented. As a result, many pastors and churches have unresolved administrative issues that have festered, and are

now infecting relationships and processes.”

On average, 1-2% of seminary curriculum and training is in the area of church management and administration, and yet the average church pastor will spend 40-60% of their time doing administrative functions. Where does a pastor gain the necessary training in all facets of church administration? The authors’ combined vision is that this text will serve as a practical reference guide to bring awareness, hope and actual solutions to an increasingly complex world of church administration.

Wait, hold on! We are not going to try to make you into an accountant, financial wizard, physical plant engineer or human resource specialist. We will however give you the practical tools, knowledge and awareness that the pastor and church noted earlier in the article should have had to avoid devastating and unnecessary calamities in your ministry.

The book is divided into four key sections. Section one deals with the pastor and all that they must manage personally in order to be more effective. Section two deals with the Pastor and what they need to understand regarding basic church administration. Section three deals with the Pastor as the leader, manager, or as we say the “Helmsman.” And finally section four is a treasure chest of useful, practical church administration resources that actually help!

Every pastor will face personal trials, personnel issues,

risks, budgets, meetings, and changes. Are you prepared?

Would you like to know how to make your meetings more productive and help eliminate arguments? How about learning how to deal with troublemakers in your midst, or how to lead the church through the stormy waters of change and perhaps learn how to actually enjoy the budgeting process? Pastoral Helmsmanship is written to help every pastor lead and protect their church. Written as both a handbook and textbook, the goal is to help pastors pastor.

Just as an oil change is considered normal maintenance, reviewing and enhancing ones administrative awareness should be considered normal maintenance for the pastor and church leader. The authors want you to succeed, thus this resource is grounded scripturally, and filled with insights gained from 100 years of combined experience in the area of churchmanship and administration. learn from it daily.”

Glenn Mille, MBA, CFE

When to know it is time to leave!

So you think about leaving, but then you begin to feel guilty.

Here is how you can respond to the frustration you feel: • • • • • • • • • •

• • •

Pay attention to your yearnings.

Differentiate between leaving church and leaving God. Differentiate between looking for more and nursing wounds.

Consider whether or not you’ve grown out of the church’s message.

Consider whether or not you’re able to ask questions. Do the people at your church welcome honest inquiry?

Consider whether or not your church is relevant to your real life.

Consider whether or not you have something meaningful to do.

Consider whether your money is used well.

Commit to God, not just practices.

Dream of more. If you do decide to leave your church, don’t settle for less spiritual growth than you experienced before.

If you decide to stay, find new hope and joy in the process.

If you decide to leave, do it well.

Stay connected to God and others after leaving.

13

Integrating Doctrine and Expository Preaching in a Postmodern World

14

15

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year! - Continued on page 18

munity. Far too many pastors working in churches that need to be revitalized believe that business is equivalent to urgency.

Creating a sense of urgency is more about activating volunteers and lay leadership into the cause of revitalization and its tasks.

Strategies must move forward.

Objectives must be advanced.

Methodologies must be always evolving and executed in a timely manner. Simply, Church Revitalizers must begin the New Year keeping themselves and their followers on their toes by training the church to look for God’s unexpected and then act upon His opportunities. You as the leader will have much to learn in the New Year and your people will need to embrace the attitude of daring so your renewal efforts might be accomplished.

Take the Occasion to Set New Goals Healthy churches and healthy pastors set goals, which will provide barometers for how the church is doing in the new year.

Church Revitalizers understand that individual drive and a list of goals are key to the renewal innovation. It was the late great Zig Ziglar that said, “If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time.” At the beginning of my first calendar year here in Central Florida, I asked my staff to turn in individual goals for the upcoming year for their area of ministry.

16

You would have thought I had tortured them. It was like pulling teeth. I scratched my head in disbelief. Have they never been held accountable for their area of work? Had a laze fare been allowed with no accountability? We work for our network of churches and don’t they deserve goals set and worked towards reaching.

Every one working in areas of ministry should set goals for his or her ministry area and then be willing to share them with the rest of the team. I have learned a wonderful lesson, which is that I am (and you are) more likely to accomplish my goals, if I can see other people also working on their individual goals. As a Church Revitalizer, if you have 10 volunteers working in ministry areas, make a goal to get to 20 volunteers. If you are poor with communication, make it a goal to communicate better this New Year. Remember what people are not up on they are usually down on. If you are bad with member follow up and prospect assimilation, make it a goal to make a certain number of visits, send out letters, send emails, and make phone calls this new year each and every week. Set new goals to grow spiritually and professionally.

Carry a Journal Everywhere You Go I usually have a journal with me where ever I go and if not I have

by Tom Cheyney

one in my ipad. The reason I journal and write things down is because I am often bombarded with not one good idea but many and if you do not write them down they will be lost. Great ideas often are pushed to the surface by a series of really good ideas but not great ones. Ideas are fragile, and our memory does not always work. So I write them down. Poor writers are seldom journal writers. Jess Moody, former pastor of First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach gave me the best advice when I was a young freshman in college at Palm Beach Atlantic University. His advice to an 18-year-old ministerial student was to put aside two hours every week, even while in college, and write. He said, “Write good sermons and bad ones. Write articles and ideas because if you begin to do this while you are young, it will pay off in great dividends as you mature in the work of the ministry!” He was so right. I have discovered in my journaling journey that great ideas come in the strangest places, and if you do not write them down, you will lose the idea that could transform your church or ministry. Learn to write down your thoughts, ideas, opinions, and beliefs. Failure to do so just might cause you to regret it later.

This was made so clear to me when the space shuttle exploded on re-entry that horrible Saturday morning. I had just left my house

Multiplying Churches Training Developing Church Planting Centers in the Local Church

April 30 - May 1, 2015 Immediately Following Exponential 2015

Willow Bend Community Church 2541 Henley Road Lutz, FL 33558 (TAMPA, FL)

$25 Per Person or Two for $30 Register: ReproducingChurches.com

Exponential multiplication of Disciples, Leaders and Churches happens when church leaders are committed to evangelism that results in disciples, disciple making that results in leaders and leadership development that results in church planters who multiply. You will hear from practioners who are leading, developing and multiplying church planting centers.

17

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year! - Continued

after having breakfast with my wife and children before driving 310 miles to preach in Savannah, Georgia the next day. My Bible was in the front set along with my sermon notes and my journal, as I was prepared for what I thought was a typical Sunday of preaching. Not ten minutes out of my garage as I was listening to the shuttles landing on the radio, I heard from the reporter of the horrible crash. Journaling my thoughts, over the past year had many things useable to allow the Lord to change my message and provide incredible insight and comfort to those church members I would preach to the next day. For the next five plus hours of driving while listening to the tragic event I was able to add to my journal thoughts from the various reporters and when I arrived at my hotel later that day in a few short hours I was able to develop two timely messages for morning and evening of the following day.

Had I not carried a journal with me everywhere I go I would not have had the tools and ideas God had given me over the past months to fashion such timely messages.

Get Your Hands Dirty by Touching the Ministry Every Church Revitalizer must see the importance of getting ones hands dirty by touching the 18

ministry. Pastors must touch the work of the Lord in a local church as much as they are to lead it.

Many declining church pastors admit that they are uncomfortable with getting their hands dirty in the work of ministry. It is sad because this allows them to appear to be unfamiliar about the changing demands and requirements for their local church to be locally relevant as well as globally relevant. Some pastors of declining or plateaued churches enjoy roaming the sidelines and observing the performance of others, rather than getting in the game and taking a more active role. As a church revitalizer do you immerse yourself in the things, which keep you in the office over the things that get you out with your people and prospects? Church Revitalizers much like church planters must be more entrepreneurial than ever before. As the leader of the flock one must touch the ministry enough so they are better able to anticipate crisis and manage change before circumstances force their hand. Leadership is all about people and if leaders begin to lose touch with those they lead, they will become detached and disengaged with the requirements of the community and church in which they serve.

Avoid the Tyranny of the Urgent at the Cost of the Vital.

by Tom Cheyney

can pull you away from the important work of the Lord. Some it is actually very good but not the best. Are you known as one who can count noses, nickel, and numbers yet lacks the time required to connect with those who long for your presence?

Would you rather go to a committee meeting and enlist others or do the work yourself? Every church revitalizer worth his or her salt knows how to eliminate the distractions so they can concentrate on the true priorities of ministry. I like the little ditty I heard some time ago: “Whoever invented the open door policy for leaders never accomplished much.” There are times you must speak to the urgent, yet far too many pastors allow the seemingly urgent to push away the actually urgent and vital to the cause of Christ.

Know and Understand Who your Church is Called to Reach.

International missionaries learned long ago that to reach a people group for Christ, they would need to understand their culture. By understanding the group’s beliefs, traditions, and values, they could eat, drink, and talk like them. Then missionaries could more effectively share the love of Christ within the context of the group’s culture. So whom Continued on page 36

There are always things, which

19

The Pastor’s Personal Life and Leadership Capacity

by Greg Kappas

“I do not know Greg. I am not so sure that I am cut out for long term pastoring. So much criticism. So many problems with people who often do not act on the Word of God and The Spirit of God to see transformation. I love to study, to read. I like to think outside the lines. I enjoy the academic arena and think that maybe that is where I should be. I am considering moving to get my doctorate. I have been thinking about a few schools, cities and praying through which one might be the best for me, my wife who wants to continue her education, and our children.”

20

I sat with the young pastor, relaxing by a harbor side in Southwest Florida. I knew he had to stay the course and hang in there with his pastoral ministry. The Lord made it so obvious that he would be the future team leader at this Florida church. He had already been serving on the staff for several years, having a fruitful ministry. The Lead and Founding Pastor, a trusted brother and board member with Grace Global Network had done a great job of nurturing this young man, sharing leadership and even opening the pulpit regularly to him so that he could someday hand it over to my friend.

The young man is bright. Like extremely bright. Like mucho smarto. He is humble.

He follows Jesus and listens to Jesus. Since taking the Lead Pastorate he too has continued a team emphasis where he is the point leader and a few of his fellow leaders share in the preaching/teaching load and other key influential ministries that impact many. The church in just a few years has doubled and the Founding Pastor continues on the staff in a major communication and leadership level, including local missional ministry (now that is novel, but continues to feel right before the Lord, as the Founding and former Lead Pastor and current Pastor are both secure and relational).

Under his leadership there are hundreds of new believers. There are many who have seen Biblical healing emotionally, mentally, physically and most importantly spiritually during the last few years. There is an outdoor park with beautiful water shoots and a coffee house setting that the people from Cape Christian Fellowship (CCF) gave nearly 2 million dollars to build, to be a light for their community. This was all for the sake of the Gospel, the Name of Jesus and to say that We will make a difference in our city. There is a genuine vision, passion and tenacity to help reach every man, woman and child with Jesus and to give them repeated opportunities to respond to our Lord. In fact, a new person comes to Jesus Christ on average every day at CCF. So, what happened? Why put this in a church revitalization piece? Because it POINTS TO STRUGGLE. My colleague and dear friend was struggling to find his perfect fit…just LIKE MANY OF YOU ARE STRUGGLING. He was in anguish because his multiple God given gifts and his passion for scholarship seemed juxtaposed to him, but was perfectly designed

for what God wanted for him and his local church…so it is with many of you. With you, the gift mix may be similar or different, the passion may be opposite or united…yet the real sense of struggle is felt many times a day.

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL! I have found that many of you young, mid age and older pastors are really called into ministry by the Lord. However, a significant portion of you are called to serve Jesus in a different role than where you are rooted.

Some of you are simply misplaced. You are essential to the Lord and His Kingdom, your God given role is imperative for your local body to function in a healthy manner. But, some of you have been called by your mothers’ into a role that is not your Spirit empowered ministry. You do have the capacity from Jesus to excel in your work, but stop listening to your mother’s or father’s plan for your life and lean on His design for you. Lay aside your ambitions, dreams and the plans of others and connect to Christ.

For some of you, your struggle and frustration has led to deep depression…joy and freedom may be right next to you in another seat on the bus. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL! The place for you may just be very nearby. My friend, Wes, had the gifts, calling and passion of the pastorate, including leading CCF as Dennis was transitioning to a different role at CCF. Dennis had functioned well as the Lead Pastor and he sensed from the Lord it was time to hand the baton over to Wes. Wes simply had lots of interests and was intrigued by many of these interests. He needed time to explore and connect with Christ. He needed to be given the freedom to struggle with conflicting messages in his mind and spirit.

21

In time, over the three year transition, Wes’ answer from Jesus was to stay. Your answer may be to stay. Your answer may be to switch roles within the team, or transition to a new Kingdom work. Hold onto Jesus and His voice…let go of your dreams that do not center back into Jesus Christ. His peace lives for a reason. His peace desires to enrapture your heart even more than your plans or the plans of others…a holy discontentment stirs up the heart to find His holy contentment.

Some of us are like Jacob. The Lord brings roadblocks in our lives and we just keep knocking them over to persevere in the ministry. He brings pain, He allows us to experience hard hits after hard hits. Instead of seeking Him in prayer we just keep thanking God that we are soldiers for Him and it is an honor to be blown to pieces emotionally, spiritually, mentally and physically…because “that’s what soldiers do”. We never stop to check the strategy with the Commander and see if the troops moved north. In fact, we are not even sure the troops are with us. Jacob, in Genesis 32 wrestled with the Preincarnate Christ. His Struggle was very real! He was blessed by the Son of God and in Genesis 35 picks up a perfect placement blessing from the Lord.

1. Take extended time away from the noise and hear God…read His Word and listen to His voice.

You may need to sleep for a day or so before you can block out the noise and static. Exhaustion causes us to lose perspective.

2. Repent of your conniving and scheming. Rest in the Lord and live in His peace. Be blessed by His Word. Listen to His new calling for a new day.

3. Act on what Jesus says to you.

It may just be to stay…or it may be something else. Do not fear, but faith.

Healthy Leaders Reproduce and Multiply… and the same is true for healthy churches.

Let’s make progress through OUR struggles!

Greg Kappas is the President of the Grace Global Network and Vice President of TTI 22

23

Better Preaching Can Turn Around Pastors and Their Churches

by Joel R. Breidenbaugh Sooner or later it will happen to you. You may be at home or out in public with a friend or behind a closed door with one or two others, but it will come. I’m warning you now because I don’t want it to catch you by surprise. “What is it?” you ask. The it I’m talking about is your health or lack thereof. Whether you step on a bathroom scale or look in the mirror, you will begin to notice it. If neither of those things gets your attention, hopefully an honest friend or your own doctor will lovingly and carefully tell you what needs to change in your daily habits so you can become healthy (or healthier).

You may be thinking, “I have the body of a world-class athlete!” Me, too, but my body looks like the world-class athlete hasn’t hit the gym in 15 years!

But I’m not writing this piece to address your physical shape. I’m writing to speak about your spiritual health, specifically, your preaching. Factors involved in your spiritual health and sermon preparation include pray, meditation, proper rest and spiritual food. The last area is what I want to cover, because food and diet has much to do with overall health. I believe preachers who train better spiritually will not only add to their own spiritual health, but also the health of the church, the body of Christ.

24

Reality Check Let’s face it: we all need to become better preachers and teachers of God’s Word.

Even the best preachers cannot coast into eternity, but they must continue to study and prepare well to stay at their best.

“Okay,” you say, “I know I need to improve my preaching. But how can I do so?” I’m glad you asked! Let me share with you a few helpful practices to deepen your preaching and strengthen your congregation.

Exercising Your Spiritual Muscles I don’t know if a study has been done on what percentage of pastors continue to read theology after their seminary and Bible college days, but my experience tells me the percentage is quite low. I have interacted with a few thousand pastors over the last 20+ years and very few of them do anything to grow deeper, develop their preaching and lead their church in spiritual growth.

Please do not get me wrong. I’m not trying to beat up on you. I’m not questioning

how hard you work. I know most pastors are working 50+ hours each week, visiting homes and hospitals and counseling and preparing to preach and teach. But, I also know these same pastors will almost invariably burnout and quit the ministry. Those who persevere tend to accept sameness and routine in their ministry.

It’s no wonder some 75-85% of churches are plateaued or declining when their pastor-leaders aren’t growing as individuals.

touches the ear, another takes hold of the trunk, another feels the tusk, the fourth man touches the tail and the last man puts his hands against the side. If you were to ask each man to describe what an elephant is like, you would get five different views. But each of those views would be part of the total picture. In much the same way, biblical theology gathers pieces of the whole truth of God’s Word.

So what can help you avoid an unhealthy routine? For starters, pick out a good theology book and read a chapter each day or week to challenge your thinking and help you understand the big picture of God’s Word.

Building Muscle Mass—Using Systematic Theology

Toning Your Muscles—Using Biblical Theology As one who likes theology, it is easy for me to run to a systematic theology book.

But I know better. I need to grow in biblical theology first. Why is that?

Biblical theology focuses on the subjects taught by the human authors of Scripture (Paul, John, Peter, Moses, etc.). While the entire Bible is God’s Word, biblical theology forces students to wrestle with John’s view of regeneration, for instance, rather than automatically seeing what Paul has to say about it.

Think of biblical theology this way: imagine five blind men are led to feel an elephant for the very first time. One man

Systematic theology, on the other hand, gathers the data from biblical theology and church history (how church leaders have wrestled with various doctrines over time) to offer an organized system of all the Bible teaches—on God, Christ, sin, salvation, the church, etc. Integrating the five blind men’s accounts of the elephant along with similar perspectives throughout history will present you with the entire picture. In terms of a workout analogy, biblical theology is like push-ups while systematic theology is like bench-pressing. Both are necessary to a well-rounded upper-body workout.

Training Others to Become Body-Builders Once the pastor pours into his own life so he can grow deeper and stronger, he will inevitably grow deeper in his preaching,

25

helping his congregation grow. Not only is this assertion true in modern times, but we see its truth played out in the Scriptures at different times. While complete coverage of the biblical models is well beyond the scope of this article, consider an example from each of the testaments.

In the Old Testament, spiritual revival came to Jerusalem whenever Ezra read from God’s Law and gave clear explanation and application (Nehemiah 8:8).

While some may argue the revival came because they hadn’t heard God’s Word for several years, the text says they celebrated “because they had understood the words that were declared to them” (v. 12). They grew spiritually because their spiritual leader knew the depths of God’s Word well enough to share it with them on their level.

When you turn to the New Testament and look at the churches, it doesn’t take long to realize the better and deeper the preaching was the better off the church was. Whether the church of Corinth under Paul, then Apollos or Ephesus under Paul, then Timothy, these churches were stronger and didn’t face significant problems until strong preaching was no longer present week-by-week. That is to say, solid preaching and teaching led to a spiritually healthy congregation, but when the solid preaching was removed, so was the church’s health (see 1-2 Corinthians and Revelation 2:1-7).

Just as the best physical fit individuals challenge others to exercise regularly, so growing pastors will positively influence congregants to get stronger. And a spiritually stronger church body is a key ingredient to church revitalization.

Time to Workout I don’t mean to imply the only thing you should do to revitalize your church is strengthen your preaching. Just like several things may be needed to return one’s physical body to health, including proper diet, exercise, vitamins, supplements, new habits and the like, so it is with helping a church move toward health. One way is through your preaching habits and your preparation. Ask the Lord to teach you and deepen you, so you can in turn be used

by God to strengthen others. And while you’re at it, enjoy your workout!

Joel Breidenbaugh is the lead pastor of FBC Sweetwater where he has led the church in revitalization and renewal.

26

Church Revitalization in Rural America

By Tom Cheyney & John Kimball

Book & DVD Resource Set

27

It’s Monday, Let’s Get Ready for Sunday

Feature Writer

Six Steps In Starting A New Work In An Existing Church Talk about a case study in the work of renovation, Joshua following Moses is a good study. Every renovating pastor serves in the shadow of a former pastor.

Unless you are a church planter, you will not be the first guy on the scene.

We, like Joshua, follow the work of someone before us.

From Joshua we learn timeless principles that can help us all kick-start a new work in an existing church.

From the words of God to Joshua, we learn how to navigate the process of turning people around and focusing them back on their mission.

Six Steps to Starting a New Work

1. Face Reality

Joshua 1:1-2a God was saying, ‘Moses is dead; I Am not!’ This is a critical first understanding. The first action you must take as a leader is to understand what is dead in the church. Don’t announce these findings right away − that time will come. Chances are they know it and don’t want to hear it, or they don’t know it and still don’t want to hear it. As a leader, you need to know it, but wait for the time to share it. The first thing you need to communicate is the overwhelming evidence that God is not dead. Preach, teach, remind, lead, communicate that God is alive. Preach on the power of God. Communicate over and over that as long as God is alive we will be too. Preach hard, preach long, and preach faithfully on the power of God in their lives. In other words, do the work of a revival preacher.

Let them know that life changes, but God doesn’t.

Let them know that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob − and the church − is not dead. The time will come when you will present a plan of action to

28

by Ron Smith

address what is dead. Until your plan is ready to be initiated, the church needs to develop a rock solid conviction that they are following the living God. A pastor is like a medical doctor that must diagnose and prescribe a remedy. While you are praying, studying and meeting with leaders, you can begin to slowly diagnose and prescribe where the church needs life.

Diagnose the body. Discover the symptoms of sickness. Define what is healthy.

Preach the powerful truths of God’s faithfulness.

Prepare the people to go on an incredible journey of working with God.

2. Move On

Joshua 1:2b Prayer, planning and preparation are necessary; but there comes a time for action. Do you recall Joshua 1:3? The promise was activated as steps of faith were taken. Steps of faith are steps of action. This is when you begin to call for action. The first step is always the hardest. Decide what the first step will be. Nonetheless, take a step.

3. Don’t Be Afraid

Joshua 1:5 Leadership takes courage. The hardest thing I have ever done is the work of renovation. Facing reality and taking steps of faith in a church body that believes they are okay is a tough work. There have been many weeks where I have wanted to run and hide. In Joshua 1:5, God guarantees three things: (1) His Person – “I will be with you,” (2) His Power – “I will not fail you,” and (3) His Presence – “I will not forsake you.”

Joshua’s success was not based on his resume, but on God’s guarantee!

Leadership takes courage. Paul encouraged Timothy not to be timid. Timidity is a disease. Timidity is contagious. Fight the battles in prayer. Enable and empower the people through worship. Equip them in preaching and in small group teaching.

4. Stand Tall

Joshua 1:6,7,9 If God says something once, it’s important. If He says it twice, it’s significant.

If He says it three times in a mere three verses, it’s indispensable!

Always take a stand on the Word of God. Never stand on your own opinion.

I can always be challenged as a leader if I share my opinion; but when I share the truth of God’s Word, it silences the critics. Now, they will still criticize you as a leader, but they do not have a leg to stand on when you are rooted in the convicting principles of the Word of God.

5. Stay Focused

Joshua 1:7b Notice God calls us to be strong, be courageous, be obedient – all the things we are not. Here’s the message: Don’t get sidetracked! If there is one encouragement I can give you that will make a huge difference in the work of renovation it is this: Stay Focused.

“get it” and agree to join you and help you! That feels good!

Know this: each person chooses his or her own level of spiritual experience. Not everyone will follow.

Everyone will not worship, pray, and see God move.

Most of the New Testament contains letters from Paul to churches who did not “get it.” Yours is not the job of making everyone happy. When God blesses you with people who get it, celebrate and step out to start a new work.

Ron is a husband to Rana, father to three girls and Pastor of FBC Altamonte Springs. Ron is the author of Churches Gone Wild. You can follow Ron and receive free resources at RonBSmithJr.com. Ron serves as CO-Leader of Renovate Podcasts as well as serving on staff of the Renovate Coaching Network.

None of us like to follow a distracted leader. There is one powerful way to stay focused: develop an annual plan. As a leader you should know the strengths and weaknesses of your church. Develop a theme, a preaching plan, mission trips, and local outreach events aimed at moving your church in one direction.

The benefit of an annual plan is it keeps you on track.

An annual plan has a goal; it defines what needs to be done and what should not be done.

Focus is most needed when it comes to vision, direction and health.

6. Enjoy This

Joshua 1:8 ssion and celebration: they go hand in hand. The work will be tough. We will need courage. We will have tough business meetings and hard counseling sessions; but there is no reason why we cannot find moments of joy, provision and blessing. I love Joshua 1:16. It sounds selfish and self-absorbing to state that I like that verse, but here is the truth: when we pray, study, preach and give our everything towards bringing life to a church, it is a blessing when the people

Ron Smith is the lead pastor of FBC Altemonte Springs a church working towards revitaliztion and renewal.

29

The Leadership Link…

Feature Writer

Dr. Michael Atherton, Senior Pastor Cornerstone Church, Lone Tree, Colorado Over a decade ago, George Barna made the comment concerning the importance of church leadership: “I have reached several conclusions regarding the future of the Christian Church in America. The central conclusion is that the American church is dying due to a lack of strong leadership. In this time of unprecedented opportunity and plentiful resources, the church is actually losing influence. The primary reason is the lack of leadership. Nothing is more important than leadership (C.f. George Barna, Leaders on Leadership (Ventura, CA: Regal, 1997), 18).

Though it may be inaccurate to suggest that nothing is more important than leadership, Barna’s correlation of church leadership to church health and church growth is reasonable. The church will experience her success or lack thereof through the hands of capable, godly, and God-fearing leaders..

As we begin to explore revitalization leadership, there is something we must know up front. Revitalization is not a program. Rather, revitalization is a process that involves distinct elements. At its simplest level, revitalization requires a deconstruction of your current situation and an eventual reconstruction of the church to reflect the glory that God intended for her. I like to think of it in terms of auto mechanics.

If I were to take my car down to the local shop and tell them that my engine is sputtering, a number of scenarios could unfold. Let’s consider a few.

First, the mechanic could say, “There is too much damage here, and I am not going to attempt to fix it.” Before he even opens the hood, he would be rendering a judgment that says he is not interest30

by Michael Atherton

ed in doing the diagnostic work necessary to fix the problem. How frustrating must it be as a car owner to know that someone is not even willing to try?

Yet the same thing happens in the church. How many people, pastors, leaders, and deacons have just given up on the local church? It is frustrating to think how many church plants begin because people have been unwilling to deal with established churches’ traditions. That is not at all an indictment on church planting; we need more churches. However, we do not need more churches at the expense of helping to heal hurting churches or straightening out sinful churches. When revitalization is needed, don’t run away.

Another option is this: the mechanic opens the hood and misdiagnoses the problem. Instead of fixing the engine, he replaces the tires. Maybe you were sputtering in your car because your tires were balding. That’s clearly not the case.

Even as a layperson, you could figure that one out. Pastors, how many times have we taken the real issues that are major to God and relegated them to something of lesser importance, all the while deciding that God will turn a blind eye so long as we have a wonderful children’s program?

Friends, I have learned over the years that if you want God’s blessing to be on you and your church, you must care about the things that God cares about! Let me encourage you not to walk the road that has hurt so many churches, while it has baffled so many church leaders. Address sin!

I know it is uncomfortable, but God honors it.

A third option includes the following: the mechanic opens the hood, realizes the engine is a problem, and takes it all apart. However, while the engine is in a hundred pieces, he decides to take a new job at a different mechanic shop and tells you to put the pieces back together.

Absurd … or is it? Here is a simple reality concerning leadership: it does not take a great leader to take something that is whole and break it into a hundred pieces. Trust me, I am a father of six, and each one of my kids has demonstrated how easily things can be broken! But pastor, deacon body, elder board, I have a question for you: we all know that we can deconstruct the church, but can you reconstruct the church according to God’s blueprint? That is the real test of leadership.

When I was in seminary, I served at New Hope, a church with major issues. I came to the church six months after the former pastor had a moral breakdown with his secretary, who was the wife of the chairman of deacons. The church was fragmented, unity was an afterthought, there was no mission, vision, or purpose, and attendance was dropping weekly. The Sunday school teachers were fighting for the best rooms, never mind that nobody was coming to the class. The baptistery was all but wasted space in the church. We were going nowhere and getting there quickly.

Yet, despite all of the issues, I was convinced I could do something to help turn the church around. Four months later, my enthusiasm had dissipated to the point that I called my wife while she was at work and told her I was updating my resume. I could not take it anymore. I was loving people, preaching my heart out, working diligently, and adding programs. We were even having major church cleanup days and painting all the walls inside the dark hallways to add a little bounce in our step. Why was God not bringing about the desired results?

with four months of good intentions. We had fresh paint on our walls and new innovative programs, but we failed to rid ourselves of the real issues. We were just masking problems.

The pride, hatred, and sin were all still there.

We wanted God’s blessing, but we did not care about the things He cared about. What we had to do was regroup, identify the problem, dedicate ourselves to opening the problem, and stay long enough to actually fix it. Then God’s power came in the church. What an experience it was to watch God work!

This leads to the fourth and best option: the mechanic opens the hood, identifies the problem, fixes the problem, and then puts all the pieces back together the way they were designed. You come back to the shop and pay your bill, and everybody walks away satisfied, happy, and fulfilled. Why? Because the mechanic did his job and did it correctly.

Therein lays the secret to church revitalization.

As a pastor or church leader, you must be willing to see the potential in the church, identify the problem area, deconstruct it, fix it, and reconstruct it, allowing God to bring vitality back to the part or whole of the church, which was otherwise dying on the vine. It is a process, not a program!

Much of this article taken from: Atherton, Michael. The Revitalized Church: Forfeiting Self to Follow God. Bloomington, IN: Cross Books, 2012.

Simply put, this ship was not going to be fixed

Michael Atherton is the lead pastor of the Cornerstone Church in Longtree, CO where he has turnaround two churches through a church merger.

31

Building Trust (Part One)

by Neal Franks

“Trust me!” Ever hear yourself say these words to those you lead? We live in a world that is skeptical of trusting anyone! A recent Gallup poll1 stated that Americans don’t trust everything from used car salesmen to Supreme Court justices. The poll also included banks, television news reports, police, public schools and just about everything 32

you can imagine. Probably for good reasons, 56% of those surveyed don’t trust church leaders either. In 1973, “the church or organized religion” was the most highly rated institution in Gallup’s Confidence in Institutions2 measure, and it continued to rank first in most years through 1985. Since then the number is at its lowest ever.

Most leaders have no idea how critical trust is to the health of their church’s future. In the introduction to the book The One Thing that Changes Everything3, author Stephen Covey writes: “There is one thing that is common to every individual, relationship, team, family, organization, nation, economy, and civilization throughout the world—one thing which, if removed, will destroy the most powerful government, the most successful business, the most thriving economy, the most influential leadership, the greatest friendship, the strongest character, the deepest love.

That one thing is trust….”

Not that long ago I was on a trip to a church conference. I spoke the street address into my smartphone and relaxed as the phone told me where to go. When I arrived I realized that I was not only at the wrong church but on the opposite side of town. I then called to get the accurate directions and of course, arrived late! I put my trust in the technology of the phone. Much like taking a trip, I automatically know I have to lay out a map that gets me to the destination. Without proper planning, anyone would get lost! The roadmap to growth in any ministry begins with building trust with the people you serve. Every leader probably knows

that trust is important but may not know it is imperative! If you were building a new house, think of trust as the foundation.

First and foremost it begins with trusting God for the growth that He desires!

Most pastors struggle with maintaining a personal walk with God. Your effectiveness as a leader lives and dies on your walk with God! (Matthew 6:33: “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”)

Trust is both vertical with God and horizontal with people. Trust begins with relationship. Dictionary.com defines trust: to have confidence or faith in; reliance on the integrity, strength and ability of others based on past experience. “Trust” is related to the Old English word “treowe”—from which we get the word “true.”

Creating A Culture of High Trust & Low Fear These first few principles in part one are the foundations for trust. First, it begins with creating a culture of high trust & low fear. A pastor can be gifted at preaching, a good manager of details and great at growing the church, but not maintaining high trust weakens the first three! When church members trust their pastor, amazing things

33

can happen. But, a lack of trust can ruin everything and kill the ability of the pastor to lead. High trust may not help a poor plan, but low trust will crush a good one!

foundation of high trust and low fear among your staff and your church!

When a pastor wants to make a change at church, considering the effect the change will have on individuals is often forgotten! I have noticed that at least half of all people hate change. The other half are lying. Change causes all sorts of emotional reactions. Lots of pastors just decide to make a change and assume it will work out later. This is where high trust is critical. High trust begins with the character of the leader.

Someone is “trustworthy” when living an honest lifestyle. Trustworthy people tell the truth. Integrity is revealed by the action taken to carry out the values, ethics and morals the person believes. It also involves being faithful.

People must know they can rely their leaders.

The next principle is being capable and consistent. Great character is impressive but your skills to produce are also very important to build trust.

People have to know you are the right person for your role and they must witness the results over and over. Consistency builds the best kind of trust.

People rely on your strength and habit of follow-through. Doing the next “right thing” over and over again builds a bank account of trust. Every deposit adds confidence in the leader. Keep leading in the right direction and there is a great chance people will follow your plan.

High trust comes from showing others that character counts from the words we say and our actions. Pastors are often guilty of saying one thing and then changing their mind. People are caught off-guard and surprised by the new “change”. Over time this creates a “belief” that your leadership cannot be trusted. That is the definition of high fear! If you cannot be trusted, you have just created an environment of high fear. So above all, you must build a

34

Capable and Consistent

Communication The final principle in part one of building trust is communication. Here are some practical suggestions to communicating change. Begin with doing your homework on “why” you are going to change something. You need to cover every detail. Is the need really valid in your “why statement”? Next, craft the way you will share “what you want to do”. Communicate the why and what to your key leaders first.

Share your concerns about your ideas.

You need to be transparent. Then, if

you believe you have a green light to move forward, communicate at least 3 times to your people! Communicate it in various settings whether in the hall, in a small group, or in a large meeting.

When the change happens, communicate that it happened and how it is going. When the change is over, communicate how it went and the results it produced. Although exhausting, this is probably the most powerful communication method you have to improve and grow your church.

The gospel will save people but effective communication will unify your body of believers. Trust creates a healthy group of believers who can love and serve both God and each other.

For a continuation of trust building principles, be sure to see Building Trust (Part Two).

1 Jones, Jeffrey M. “Confidence in Congress: Lowest Ever for Any U.S. Institution.” Confidence in Congress: Lowest Ever for Any U.S. Institution. Gallup, Inc., 20 June 2008. Web. 18 Sept. 2014.

2 Saad, Lydia. “U.S. Confidence in Organized Religion at Low Point.” U.S. Confidence in Organized Religion at Low Point. Gallup, Inc., 12 July 2012. Web. 18 Sept.

2014.

3 Covey, Stephen M. R., and Rebecca R. Merrill. The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything. New York: Free, 2006. Print.

Dr. Neil Franks serves as Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church of Branson, Missouri and launched the first daily video devotional App called, 2-Minute Pastor for smartphone users.

35

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year! - Continued

are you called to reach? Is it a specific people group, cultural pocket, or geographic area? First, define the target group that God has placed on your heart for your church to love and reach. Once you have defined the target group, create a profile describing them. Gather all the information available through community demographic studies, community history, and people group statistics. Evaluate the community to determine the flow of people’s lives, what they do on a week-to-week basis, what activities they are involved in, their priorities, musical preferences, values, and beliefs. Learn to understand how the average family thinks, their life issues, challenges, and goals. Then determine what questions people are asking that the gospel can answer. There are many resources and activities you can utilize to help you understand your community. As you understand your churches surrounding culture and become experts on your community, then you can develop a ministry plan that fits within the context of your target group’s culture. By doing so, you can increase the effectiveness of your ministry.

Become Impassioned Pioneers of New Possibilities Church Revitalizers must become impassioned pioneers of new possibilities. One needs to release their passionate quest of excellence in order to challenge the status quo and seize previously unseen ministry opportunities to build sustainable momentum within the ministry area. Impassioned revitalizers are the real explorers of new potentials and possibilities. The impassioned pioneer of new possibilities is more often able to outperform those who are just trying to get it done but lack the zeal of the other leader.

Your leadership as a Church Revitalizer is more about standing for something and transitioning your beliefs into action, and then taking it all the way through to the completed and envisioned end. When pastors are not exploring and pressing forward, they are playing it safe and can over time become complacent in their role as the shepherd. I have discovered that you will learn more from a pastor that explores than 36

by Tom Cheyney

from one who merely floats along. When a renewal pastor explores they challenge everyone on the churches leadership team to get out of their comfort zones and step up their games.

Create a Moment-in-Time with as Many Church Members as Possible Your presence with your flock is so vitally important and wise Church Revitalizers develop the ability to create individual moments with church members that express your interest in them. The more your church grows the better you will need to be at this ability. Your interest in them even for the moment in time often will ignite their interest in your and your cause of revitalization. Moments-in-time are mastered over time. This ability and presence requires self-trust, confidence, self-awareness and the ability to navigate the needs of other people. When you are with others your time is focused on them and not on the next thing. Creating a moment-in-time with as many church members as possible requires becoming a good listener and the ability to quickly connect the individuals patterns of conversation in order to detect one’s personal interests, leadership style and personal needs. Moments-in-time is not about you but all about others. These Moments-in-time are about having impactful, long-lasting moments with members and prospects that inspires others to want to know more.

Create a “User-Friendly” Ministry Environment.

There are many barriers that obstruct an unchurched person from hearing and receiving the gospel message. Many of these are due to negative perceptions; others are spiritual issues of the heart. Here are four barriers that an unchurched person must cross to become a Christian: The Image Barrier—Many perceive church as being irrelevant, boring, judgmental, and disingenuous.

Continued on page 48

37

The Seven Pillars of Church Revitalization and Renewal: Foundational for Declining Churches

The Seven Pillars of Church Revitalization and Renewal Our Lord loves the local New Testament Church and it is His desire to see it grow! The need for Church Revitalization has never been greater in North America!

An estimated 340,000 Protestant churches in America have an average attendance of less than one hundred. Research data tells us that in the United States more than 80% of the churches have plateaued or are declining. Each and every week we are currently seeing somewhere between fifty and seventy-five local churches closing their doors and not opening them again. Everything that must be done in the area of church revitalization cannot be accomplished in a few hours on the Lord’s Day!

The most recent research data released in January of 2012 by the Leavell Center for Evangelism and Church Health, has said that within my own Southern Baptist Convention we are at a critical juncture regarding church plateau and decline. The most recent series of studies have been conducted by Bill Day; Associate

38

Director of the Leavell Center for Evangelism and Church Health, who serves the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary as the Gurney Professor of Evangelism and Church Health in his sequential studies on church health and growth of 2003, 2007, and 2010.

In January of 2012 Bill Day reported, that currently there are less than seven percent (6.8) of our SBC churches that are healthy growing churches. That means 3,087 of our 45,727 SBC churches are healthy. Even the number of SBC churches is in decline and we need to address the needs for church revitalization immediately.

Thinking About the Seven Pillars of Church Revitalization Working in the area of Church Revitalization will lead you eventually to consider the Seven Pillars of Church Revitalization.

A Church Revitalizer will not be working in all of these areas at the same time, but you will eventually find yourself working in most of them at one time or another. Take a moment to reflect upon the Seven Pillars graph as we discuss these areas of renewal and revitalization.

by Tom Cheyney

Revitalization and Realignment Perhaps the easiest pillar to address is revitalization and realignment. Some observers of church revitalization and renewal argue that the era of small churches is over and that the future belongs to the arising mega churches across North America. Granted mega is an amazing phenomenon of the past thirty years which seems to have arisen with the concept of the massive campus church. But to ignore the 340,000 plus churches in North America that average less than 100 weekly in church attendance would be ill advised! Those who serve and those who attend these churches are an enormously significant network of Christian influence.

Even the mega church finds itself struggling to avoid plateau and decline.

A church in need of Revitalization is described as one where: there is the plateauing or declining after a phase of recent or initial expansion; then the church experiences the beginning of a high turn-over of lay leaders; there becomes a shorter duration of stay of fully assimilated people within the work; the church morale and momentum level drops; the church coasts for a brief time

and then drops again, only to see the cycle of decline repeated again and again. The result is the church hits a new low! This new normal is the first sign of a church in need.

Refocusing Refocusing is the second pillar and it helps churches that are growing, but still need to set new challenges and look for new opportunities to expand their gospel witness into their target area. Questions such as what is your biblical purpose and why do we exist as a congregation must be addressed. Looking at how God showed up in the past is a good way to get the church unstuck by addressing where it has been, how God has worked and

what does He have for its future.

Addressing the church’s focus, vision, and leading them to discover God’s new direction is just the beginning of helping a congregation to begin refocusing towards the Lord’s new calling plan for the church! Many a pastor today has never been taught how to grow a church and they feel quite stuck and in need of someone to come along side of them and challenge them to refocus one’s self and the church!

Re-visioning A little bit harder certainly, but not as hard, as the descending order of decline that will eventually lead to the Restarting pillar of revitalization. Have you ever seen a church that once was alive

and vital begin to lose its focus and drive for the cause of Christ?

That is a church that needs to work on its Re-visioning strategy! Any Re-visioning strategy works to help churches dream new dreams and accomplish new goals that lead towards re-growing a healthy church!

This strategy is designed for a weekend retreat tailored fit to foster a sense of ownership and team ship related to discovering a shared vision for the church.

Understanding the critical milestones necessary for a new vision will help foster healthy church practices that might have been lost. Something as simple as achieving a great goal of some sort can begin to launch a church back into a Re-visioning strategy.

Something as simple and dangerous as the Lord’s children taking 39

an ill advised rest that resulted in a slowing or stalling of the momentum into a maintenance mentality can cause a church to become stuck.

Renewing Church Renewal is the forth pillar of the seven pillars of Church Revitalization process. Often the church simply needs to get back to that which was working and get back on track. When that is needed a careful renewal strategy needs to be planned and carried out. Renewing a congregation becomes much harder than the refocusing, re-visioning and revitalization process. Not everyone who works in church renewal is wired the exact same way and it is important to understand each congregation’s individual needs and not try to make a one size fits all! There is no magic pill in church revitalization. Far too much writing on church growth of the 1980’s was designed in a one size fits all “bigger is better” model and while it may not have been the only cause for declining numbers in our churches, but it certainly contributed! It is vital that you prepare the laity for the work of church renewal as well as yourself. Communicate early and often with the church how the renewal process will take place and how it will be implemented.

Prepare yourself spiritually and then prepare your leaders spiritually. Then begin preparing your church spiritually for renewal! A Church Renewal Weekend is a great way to start! Church renew40

al is not about finding the magic medication or treatment to get growing. It is more about discovering God’s vision for the church and practicing it for the long haul. The utilization of a Church Renewal weekend works well to draw God’s people back towards health and vitality.

when it is necessary to reinvent itself to a changing community.

When a church experiences a shift in the community makeup, often there will be to various degrees, the need to redevelop a new experience for those who make up the new church context!

New experiences must replace old experiences. New practices likewise will replace old practices. A church that is experiencing the need for reinvention must take seriously the need and make the commitment for reinventing itself, revaluing itself, reforming itself, and reinvigorating itself to fit the new context.

The restart church revitalization model is being used all across North America. Changing the mindset of the residual membership can Restoration This sixth area of Church Revitaloften be very difficult. ization deals with things a church Senior adults occupy and a minister must go through when circumstances necessimost of these restart tate that a restoration process is candidate churches called for! Things such as: Gaining a new and fresh underfor which change is standing of the new future for often hard to come the church is vital if success is in the church’s future. by. Until the church is ready to make drastic Inspiring new prospects with a vision that is both compelling changes, it is useless and motivational. Prospects seek to become involved. to be inspired and not dragged down in the world in which we live in.

Reinvention

Meet new needs in order to give you a restored place among the community in which you seek to further minister.

This fifth pillar of Church Revitalization deals with tools and techniques to assist the church

Become prospect driven during these days of transition. Look

for new and yet to be reached opportunities to minister.

Remember if you try to do everything you will end up doing nothing. Therefore pick your greatest opportunities first and let the rest follow along later.

Craft something that comes out of a community in flux and look for ways to reconnect to the community where you once were firmly entrenched. Keep in mind you have been given a second chance so don’t blow it. Prayerfully seek the new things because it might be something you will be doing for a long long time!

Restarting The final Pillar of Church Revitalization is the hardest and often only happens once the church’s patriarchs and matriarchs have tried everything else they could think of to grow the church with no success! The challenge here is that most churches wait too long to enter into this area of revitalization and by the time they are willing to utilize this strategy, they have sucked out all of the life within the church and it is no longer a viable candidate for this effort. When a sick church no longer has the courage to work through the various issues that led to its poor health, it is usually identified as being on life support and in need of a restart. This type of church has been flat-lined and just holding on by means of its legacy and the faithful few who attend. The Restarting Strategy (also known as a Repotting strat-

egy) is for an unhealthy church to once again begin growing and to engage in a renewed vision that is demonstrated through sufficient evidences of hope.

The restart based church revitalization model is being used all across North America. Any group planting churches or working in the area of Church Revitalization should have a restart strategy if it is going to be a wise steward.

One critical point from the start is a complete change of leadership and direction is a must for this revitalization model to be successful. Lyle Schaller reminds us that 85,000 evangelical churches are running fewer than 50 on Sunday. Being aware of their “critical” condition, however, is not enough. They have got to become convinced they need “major” surgical treatment. One church I have worked with still believes that they have more to offer, though their decline has been meteoritic and yet they

refuse to allow a restart to take place.

Changing the mindset of the residual membership can often be very difficult. Senior adults occupy most of these restart candidate churches for which change is often hard to come by.

Until the church is ready to make drastic changes, it is useless to become involved. There are thousands of churches like this all over America: Some are Baptists, others are Methodists, even in the Assemblies you can find them, Presbyterians, the Lutherans have them, Congregational, Christian, and many others, waiting for a mission-minded congregation to get involved in offering “new life.”

One startling phenomena is there are churches today that as the laity begin to depart this life often see nothing wrong with taking the church to the grave as well.

That was never part of God’s plan for the very thing He gave up His life.

Dr. Tom Cheyney is the founder and directional leader of Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference and Executive Editor of the Church Revitalizer.

41

The Characteristics of Successful Church Revitalizers

You ask most practioners

working in the field of revitalization what are some of the most important characteristics for a church revitalizer and many of these will be offered. Not everyone will have all of these but granted there is a need to possess more than a few in order to have the stuff necessary to turnaround a church stuck in decline and in need of renewal. Here are the following skill sets we deemed necessary: 1. Possess brokenness before the Lord over the situation of the church.

2. Need an active, effective and consistent prayer life.

3. Seek God and get their vision from Him. 4. Need to be completely honest with themselves and with God about their sins and the sins of the people they lead.

5. Are patient plodders who seek counsel, and who also understand the importance of timing-Eccl 8:5 6. Make very informed decisions and stick with them.

7. Are passionate people who are completely committed to their Lord, the church, and the revitalization process.

8. Are hopeful, and not just optimistic.

9. Inspire more than they motivate.

10. Are able to take extraordinary risks in order to achieve their objectives.

11. Are able to handle conflict, opposition, and personal attacks by keeping the objectives in view.

12. Work at effective and honest communication.

13. Have a bias for action.

42

by Michael Atherton & Tom Cheyney

14. Encourage creativity and are willing to risk failure.

15. Understand the needs of their target community.

16. Have a genuine interest in meeting the needs of people.

17. Keep prospects close and seek to minister to them.

18. Practice freedom and entrepreneurship. There is freedom from bureaucratic policies and red tape.

19. Work diligently to utilize the creativity of small ministry groups.

20. Do the work of ministry through the gifts of its laity.

21. Have high expectations for ministry and give very generous affirmation for achievement.

22. Deliver and express quality programs that provide a perceived value that participants are seeking. These

churches are contagious and stimulating.

23. Generate energy rather than deplete it.

24. Keep the main thing the main thing!

25. Focus on what they do best and avoid launching programs that take away from the vision and spread workers too thin.

26. Keep the staff lean and utilize volunteers over hired staff preferably. These leaders keep the church flexible and stable by practicing lean simple forms.

27. Practice creative chaos while adhering to the core values for the vision.

28. Understand the tension between the creative chaos necessary to do something new while still remaining faithful to the core values of the church.

29. Often referred to as builders. They are individuals that seek to make things better within the church.

They believe deep down they can make a lasting difference.

30. Take the time to honor the past so they can move productively into the future.

31. Seek to develop as much knowledge and Biblical training from experienced leaders in church revitalization so when they are deployed into the work of ministry they will know how to lead a church that must rise from its deathbed vigil and get it growing spiritually and numerically once again!

32. Must possess a single-mindedness that seeks out life and fosters the ability for others to sense life.

33. Sense God’s call as a leader to develop growing spiritual churches.

34. Refuse to simply go through the motions as a pastor and play church.

35. Seek regeneration over stagnation.

38. Expend their time on ministries that will grow a church over ministries that are detached from the congregation’s life and ministry.

39. Choose making ministry fun again over one that snoozes on.

40. Choose bold advancement over mild maintenance.

41. Choose to be pioneers over patio sitters.

42. Choose to move forward now over tomorrow!

43. Function more as an apostle than a lethargic leader.

44. Their spiritual experience is living and fresh.

45. They know they are chosen and sent.

36. Choose life over death.

46. They are not afraid to get help from others in the endeavor.

37. Choose to be reaching out into the community over isolation behind fortress walls.

47. They repel those who are caretakers and managers of the status quo and choose those of life and vitality.

43

48. They are committed to the mission of revitalization.

49. They have a clear determination to clear new paths and lead the church to new places and reach new people.

50. They grow bored over unchanging routines and maintenance chores.

51. They get their energy from short term challenges and sprints rather than from marathons.

52. They can easily persuade others to jump on the bandwagon.

53. They are personal evangelists and actively participate in reaching individuals for Christ as a soul winner.

54. They joyfully reproduce disciples.

55. They are not afraid of taking risks for the advancement of the Gospel.

56. They reach out to pockets of people not currently being reached in one’s community.

44

57. They change from pastorate to pastorate so the adjustment is more in line with that which the church needs over a bag of tricks and tracks.

confront problems, manage conflict and love everyone.

65. They have the courage to do the things necessary in the face of opposition, criticism and emotional pain.

58. They care more about everyone coming to know Jesus Christ than they care about keeping their churches small enough so that they can know everyone.

66. They understand that people are the conduit necessary to get things done in the church.

59. They have the right attitude.

67. They wait to receive the “go” word from God and then they are laser focused on fulfilling God’s plan.

60. They possess the right skill sets for turning a church around.

68. They keep the focus off of “non-essential” matters.

61. They have the ability to motivate others to follow their leadership.

69. They control the communication narrative and the communication pipeline.

62. They focus to keep the church moving towards its goals.

70. They understand the value of prioritizing

63. They always want the “ball” in the critical minutes of the game.

64. They realize that most churches do not grow under the leadership of the “nice” leader! A renewal pastor must be open, honest, firm, straight forward, be able to

71. They are forever learners, always seeking new information that helps them lead in the revitalization process.

72. They are not afraid of new ways of working, new people, or new systems.

73. They know how to change the storyline/narrative

74. They are committed to the long haul

Do Something in Church Revitalization! Fix the Hole!

75. They accept much of the work needs to be done through the stakeholders

The plateaued and declining church needs to do something.

Church and denominational leaders need to do something.

We have spent enough time ringing the bell, shouting that there is a hole in the boat. It’s time to fix the hole. The more I study the existing church, the more convinced I am that the people in the pews want to see their churches turn around too. There is some disagreement on what must happen, but I would say that most are ready for some positive change. Here is some sage advice:

76. They are okay not receiving credit when they deserve it and criticism when they don’t deserve it.

The list is complete for sure and yet there are some which rise up to the top as kill skill sets necessary to revitalize a church. While no barometer is complete these are what hundreds of participants have sid were critical skill sets for a church revitalizer.

First and foremost, pray about church revitalization and seek God’s face for this undertaking.

Second, affirm your pastor and his leadership in the church.

Third, get to the point that you and your pastor can speak about your circumstances openly and at length with the church. Nothing is worse than attempting to effect change without the help and support of the congregation. I Fourth, don’t be afraid to ask for outside help. One dangerous consequence of pride is the inability to ask for help from others.

Fifth, address the opposition that comes from revitalization biblically and immediately.

Terry Rials

Michael Atherton is the lead pastor of the Cornerstone Church in Longtree, CO where he has turnaround two churches through a church merger.

Dr. Tom Cheyney is the founder and directional leader of Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference and Executive Editor of the Church Revitalizer.

45

Multiplying Churches Training Developing Church Planting Centers in the Local Church

April 30 - May 1, 2015 Immediately Following Exponential 2015

Willow Bend Community Church 2541 Henley Road Lutz, FL 33558 (TAMPA, FL)

46

$25 Per Person or Two for $30 Register: ReproducingChurches.com

Exponential multiplication of Disciples, Leaders and Churches happens when church leaders are committed to evangelism that results in disciples, disciple making that results in leaders and leadership development that results in church planters who multiply.

You will hear from practioners who are leading, developing and multiplying church planting centers.

47

Things Every Church Revitalizer Should Do in the New Year! - Continued

The Cultural Barrier—For the unchurched, church culture can sometimes be as scary as it would be for some of us if we walked into a biker bar at 1 a.m. on Saturday night. Culture affects terminology/language, musical preferences, dress code, social traditions, and so forth. Some who are unchurched may not relate to church culture and may quickly decide that church is not for them.

The Gospel Barrier—The Holy Spirit must convict them of their sin, so that they repent and confess faith in the resurrected Christ.

The Total Commitment Barrier— Accepting that a commitment to Christ is a lordship decision involving total commitment and surrender to God. Although many churches say that they care about reaching the unchurched or lost in their communities, they are hindered by inwardly focused ministry practices, which serve as barriers to reaching the unchurched.

Everything from signage, service flow, dress code, and musical style is determined based on the needs of those who are already members. Members normally are familiar with the church facilities and ministries (so they don’t need greeters or good signage), have established strong relationships with other members, and are comfortable with the cur-

48

rent culture of the church. New families often find the church experience to be uncomfortable, awkward, and confusing. They ask themselves, “Where do I go?

Where do I take my kids? What do I wear? Will they ask me to pray?”

They enter the church doors with hearts racing and sweaty palms hoping to find someone, anyone with whom they can identify.

When creating a “user-friendly” environment, remember to remove the barriers that may hinder a person from hearing and responding to the gospel.

Many times, people are not willing to give church a try. The barriers, for them, are too large to maneuver, people within a church have hurt them, or they do not see the relevance in attending a church service. So why not go to them? Jesus did it—and so should we. Try volunteering for community events, coaching Little League, or taking a part-time job at Starbucks. Invest in relationships with people in the community, and show them that your love is genuine and unconditional.

Become Less Isolated and Be More Integrated with Your Volunteers Church Revitalizers work towards increasing collaboration with volunteers. Successful revitalizers know that their success is highly dependent upon collaboration

with others. They know they must always improve their ability to mentor, inspire and motivate others. Church renewal and teamwork is recognizing that leadership success comes most to those who are surrounded by people who want their success to continue. Strive to create an environment where everyone has each other’s back. Lack of this ingredient makes the chance for successful revitalization very low.

If you as a pastor are a leader who has made the decision to go at it alone, this is often a no-win situation for everyone involved.

It is through increased collaboration that church revitalizers get the opportunity to know and engage with their volunteers well enough to detect and enable their talent potential.

Investigate the Internet and Social Media.

The latest study indicates the average American family watches TV and surfs the Internet an average of 10 hours each day. Compared to your time in the pulpit of a couple of hours each week, who has the most influence? Unless pastors and ministry leaders learn the power of the Internet and social media and how to use it effectively, we will continue our Churches not so slow slide into extinction. Discuss movies and TV programs with your congregation, and teach them how to properly prioritize the Internet

by Tom Cheyney

and social media. And think more about your Internet social media outreach where even the smallest church can create an effective Web site. The battle for influence in your congregation’s life has begun, and you had better get into the fight.

Begin Something Highly Significant for Your Personal Ministry I talk to ministers and pastors all the time. Many share with me of something big they want to do and achieve. I am often compelled to ask of their dream its status only to find that nothing besides a thought has been accomplished. Stop dreaming and start producing. Begin right now the endeavor you have always dreamed of beginning. Tic Tock stop watching the clock because the clock is ticking, and you are not getting any younger. Some preachers have a book they want to write but lack the commitment and discipline (yes writing is a discipline) to get moving. How about that ministry you have wanted to create? What is keeping you from accomplishing that dream? Stop dreaming and start doing. There is no better time than now.

Read More Books, Blogs, and Magazines It is interesting that many younger ministers no longer like to read. Yet for all of us who pro-

claim the Word of God each week lack of reading often eliminates our ability to see the power of drama. When we become avid readers and life long learners we experience the power of drama in our reading, which often is carried over, into our preaching.

Read blogs (you can go to our web site and see ones we think are important) books, and other publications. Novels provide you the ability to utilize narrative in ones preaching. Storytelling is an art which when well learned will compel others to listen closely.

Remember Your Calling Do you remember why you were called into the ministry? It is so easy to get caught up in advancing technology, paying the bills, preparing sermons, and the daily grind, we often forget the reason we were called into the ministry in the first place. Chances are you had a dream and calling back then. Was that vision ever accomplished? Cut through the clutter, and get back to the heart and soul of why you do this for a living. The most precious asset you have right now is not money or even knowledge it is time.

Time is the currency of the most successful people in the world, and you can always identify influential leaders by how they value their time. As a church revitalizer use this coming year to reconsider your priorities, cut away the litter, and get back to the heart of your ministry.

Wrapping It Up! Our communities are filled with people who have a need in their lives that only Jesus can fill.

Deep down, most people want to connect with their heavenly Father, be forgiven for their sins, and they desire the same for their children. The stakes are high, and the need is urgent. As you plan for 2014, prayerfully consider how you can reposition your church for greater impact for loving and reaching your community for Christ. As you head into the New Year, you should have great anticipations for your fellow ministry leaders and play a more active role in holding them accountable to step-up their game.

As a church revitalizer do not wait for your ministry leaders influence your future more than you may know and you do not want to be the one that regrets not doing anything about it in the long run. You will never have another chance to relive this year, so let us invest this year in what could potentially change the world for the cause of Christ Jesus.

Tom Cheyney Founder & Directional Leader Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference 49

50

51

52

53

Multiplication or Division: What is your Church Revitalization Strategy?

The church exists to make disciples. Or, you may say the church exists to glorify God by making disciples. However, if the church is not making disciples, is it glorifying God? Real disciples make more disciples, which is a strategy for multiplication. Having a concise vision and strategy for multiplication can dispel division.

When you have a diversity of visions, you have “di-vision”.

“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

(Matthew 13:23) Developing and delivering a compelling vision begins with God’s Word and ends with a mental picture of what God intends to accomplish in the future. God called Moses to lead His people out of slavery in Egypt (an undesirable situation indeed!) to a preferred future - a land of their own. The vision originated with God, was given to Moses and was delivered to the leaders of the Israelites. Moses’ job was not to create the vision, but to sell it to the leaders of the people. Notice how God used vivid imagery in Genesis 3:17 of a land flowing with milk and honey to help Moses to sell the vision to the elders of the Israelites. A vision is by definition, visual. So, a compelling biblical vision will require some creativity to help non-vi-

54

sionaries to ”see” what God has planned.

Overcoming Resistance God promised Moses that the elders would get on board with the vision and follow his leadership, but not without a considerable amount of resistance. As you prepare to communicate God’s vision for becoming a multiplying church, be prepared to encounter some resistance. At this point it is important for the church to understand that multiplication is both commanded in scripture and expected by God. Failure to comply would put the church in conflict with God’s agenda. Even though the church at Ephesus had fulfilled the mission of multiplication in the early part of the First Century, Jesus threatened to shut the church down near the latter part of that century because they had “forsaken your first love…” (Revelation 2: 4). An entirely new generation of people had come to adulthood in Asia Minor and they needed to hear the gospel too. The church could not rest on their past success!

Reaching Is Not Optional Multiplying churches understand that reaching the next genera-

by Mark Weible

tion is not optional. Multiplication is intrinsically woven into the mission of the church. Christ commanded it in the Great Commission and New Testament churches modeled a culture of multiplication. We simply can’t be a church that glorifies God if we don’t passionately pursue lost people, disciple them, and train them to plant more churches.

Reach People Who Will Reach Others Multiplying churches focus on reaching people who reach others. The moment a person becomes a follower of Christ, he or she is asked to share Jesus with friends and family. They go back into their network of relationships and simply tell the good news of how they became a follower of Jesus and how others can come to know him too.

They don’t have to wait until they finish a discipleship class or to be trained to share their faith. They are witnesses.

Becoming a disciple of Jesus is more than learning about Jesus.

In the Great Commission, Jesus taught his disciples to make disciples by going to and sharing the gospel with lost people, baptizing them, and teaching them to obey His commands. Jesus both taught and modeled disciple making by directly involving his new disciples in hands-on ministry. Discipleship training in mul-

tiplying churches is the practical application of the commands of Christ that results in more people coming to Christ and obeying his commands. Multiplying churches have a systems in place that move people from disciple to leaer.

Leaders are Influencers Leaders are people who influence others. Making disciples also involves developing leaders. The Bible makes it clear that the primary role of leaders in the church is to develop more leaders (Eph 2:12, II Tim. 2:2).

If your church does not have enough qualified leaders to carry on your current ministry and to start more churches, then the church is not following the biblical commands to develop new leaders. Multiplying churches allow new leaders to lead. That means that current leaders need to give their leadership away to the next generation.

The indispensable leader is not the one who has obtained special knowledge or experience that the church cannot live without. It is the goal of every great leader to give away all of their leadership know-how to people that they are leading. In other words, there should be nothing that only one person knows how or is authorized to do in the church.

Jesus modeled this by turning over the leadership of His global movement to His followers. He

even said, “...whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12). Great leaders expect those that they lead to surpass them.

Catch God’s Vision for Your Church With a God-given vision clearly presented by the lead pastor and accepted by the church, a church in decline can move from division to multiplication. Multiplying churches celebrate when leaders leave to go to the mission field or to plant another church, because there are plenty of other leaders to fill the gap. The church at Antioch, at the direction of the Holy Spirit, sent off their top two leaders to do the work that God had called them to do. When Barnabas and Saul left Antioch, they did not leave behind a leadership void because there were plenty of others who could step up and lead. The church did not mourn the loss of their two best leaders. Instead, they celebrated!

They prayed for Barnabas and Saul and laid hands on them as a sign of being officially sent. That is a beautiful picture of unity an multiplication.

If your church does not have enough qualified leaders to carry on your current ministry and to start more churches, then the church is not following the biblical commands to develop new leaders. Multiplying churches allow new leaders to lead. That means that current leaders need to give their leadership away to the next generation.

Author Quote

Mark Weible is Strategic Director of RenovateConference.org and Directional Leader of ReprodcuingChurches.com.

Mark also serves as Director of Church Planting for Greater Orlando Baptist Association in Orlando Florida.

He is a Search Engine Optimization master trainer and Google Adwords professional marketer.

55

revitalizer

LIBRARY Bibliography Citing:

Ross, Donald, Turnaround Pastor, Montlake Terrace, WA, Turnaround Church Coaching Network, 2013, 196 pages.

Donald Ross tells his stories of successes and failures as he led churches throughout his ministry, particularly in the turnaround process of Creekside Church. Ross shares of his painful journey in leading of churches, which lead him to begin his own personal revitalization journey. Creekside Church was a church that was spiraling downward in attendance, giving, and influence. The author gives the reader an opportunity to hear many critical decisions, along with the consequences that follow, as he led the church further into decline and ultimately to a large, multi-campus mega-church.

Ross clearly articulates the cost of leading a turnaround church and makes no guarantees about success. The book is grounded in reality and written by someone who has paid the price.

56

Donald Ross teaches the nine phases (induction, introduction, obstructions, destruction, construction, deconstruction, reconstruction, production, and reproduction) a pastor will endure in a turnaround process. This is a book full of wisdom about remaining alert and focused allowing the unexpected to rise to the top. The author demonstrates that we can allow people to leave our church without harboring a grudge against them and even maintain a friendship with them. He concludes his work by encouraging the pastor to carefully investigate his calling to determine if he is truly called to lead a turnaround process. If so, he coaches the pastor to be courageous and do not give up. This is an honest look at mistakes made in the journey and their outcomes. If you are a pastor or member of a declining church, Turnaround Pastor is a must read.

It is a great guide and must read for anyone wanting to revive a rapidly dying church including the staff leadership team, lay leadership, and those members who want to see their church revitalized.

Donald Ross is the lead pastor of the Creekside Church in Seattle, where he has served since 1995. This 60year old church once, 2000 in attendance, declined over fifteen years to painful 150.

Don first served as a consultant to the church, and then became pastor. Over the next ten years many of the issues the caused the decline were addressed and in 2004 the four acre, 80,000 square foot campus in Seattle was sold and Creekside Church relocated north seven miles to a ten acre parcel in Mountlake Terrace.

revitalizer

LIBRARY Bibliography Citing:

McGavran, Donald Anderson, The Bridges of God: A Study in the Strategy of Missions, Eugene, Oregon, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 1955, 158 pages.

Donald McGavran has written a classic for anyone who desires to be productive, effective and more efficient with the resources for which God has blessed him or her. This book was a hard read, but it was so worth it! McGavran makes the case for the need of mission organizations to reconsider its current methods that have reached their pinnacle and have become stagnant, and to consider the shift from the Mission Station Approach to People Movements.

He offers revolutionary ideas that stir the fire of evangelism. The author’s discussion on the “method replacing the message” was not only accurate, but also timely.

There is continuing debate as to the various styles and methods utilized in mission and ministry work. People tend to become defensive over personal agendas that may be challenged, while missing the ultimate goal of getting the Gospel message of Jesus Christ to a world that desperately needs to hear it.

He begins his discussion by stating that the question that really needs to be answered is, “How are people converted to Christianity?” He identifies the problem with the Western mind-

set, which is primarily centered on individual spirituality. The overall concept of building “bridges” to reach people to be prepared for the Gospel is biblical and the author demonstrates this well. He considers the journeys of Paul, noting the success Paul had with the idea of making connections through family and friends so the doors to discipleship would open. The author’s interest in a “Christward” movement is inspiring and uplifting.

He recognizes the mission work in Acts to be the example of building bridges through the connections of families and friends in other places, thus reaching whole groups in the process. The author wants readers to review their practices and develop a better system of appropriating workers and resources for better effectiveness.

The five distinct advantages of People Movement are stated well and worthy of serious consideration. The fact that such a method would allow for independence from Western Missions for the church to be firmly rooted in its own soil is important. These churches would be naturally indigenous where converts are not simply rescued out of their current context. There is room for spontaneous expansion or multiplication of the church. The possibility for growth is good as strategic doors are opened for reaching people, and there is an emphasis on inner change of character, rather than simply on one’s standard of living.

place in church reitalization due to the heritage it had within the church growth movement. some will love this book while others will not. It is worthy for both parties to read this book. You will be better for it.

This is a classic book and while most rea this book for the purpose of missions, it has a 57

Leading Churches Back to Vitality and Life: The Task of Church Revitalization

Leading Churches Back to Vitality and Life: The Task of Church Revitalization In some upcoming posts, I would like to explore the journey of leading churches back to vitality and life. We will explore how to set the sails and wait for the wind of God to blow.

The church is like a sailboat, but sailboats are powerless. It has been said that without the wind, a sailboat can only claim the title of organized driftwood.

They have no engine, no motor, and no oarsmen. The sailboat is completely dependent upon the wind; in fact, it is designed to harness the wind. The church is powerless without the presence and work of the Holy Spirit. The church was designed to catch the wind of revival. The upper room disciples felt the mighty rushing wind and in a matter of hours they changed the world.

The church is floundering because it has no power in it. Most churches can function in their normal program and ministry for an indefinite period of time without the work of the Holy Spirit because most churches are not dependent upon Him. To be sure, a few churches have had their lamp removed, which Jesus threatened to do in Revelation 2:5. These churches will 58

by Terry Rials

surely die. Sadly, when God’s presence leaves, it is possible to be completely unaware of it. For example, Samson did not realize that the Lord had left him after his hair was cut (Judges 16:20).

Could the church be unaware that His glory has departed?

Shouldn’t we just shut down some of these weak or sick churches that are going to die anyway? Some argue that revitalization is a futile effort because as Bill Easum puts it, “The only solution for spiritually dead congregations is resurrection. You cannot revitalize something that is dead. They must be brought to life again!” You already know that Southern Baptists have no authority over any local church.

Some Baptist leaders suggest that these churches close their doors or give their property away to another church or mission, which is honorable, or find some other way to continue in ministry.

In numerous conversations with pastors, I sense that pastors and churches are seeking permission to die, but we’re on a slippery slope - once we start scuttling churches in trouble, your church may be next.

God can revive, refresh, and renew the church any time He chooses to do so. We are praying that He does just that and soon.

Revival is the extraordinary work of the Holy Spirit producing extraordinary results…the re-entry of Christ’s manifest presence, according to Richard Owen Roberts.

It overthrows the status quo and refreshes His kingdom purposes on earth. Revitalization is the work we do to ensure that the conditions of God are met for revival and in order that the people of God are prepared when the Sovereign God begins to move.

Terry Rials Pastor of Crestview Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. He is Senior Pastor of Crestview Baptist Church (for 21 years), and Church Revitalization Team Leader for Capital Baptist Association. You can contact Terry at terry@cbcokc.org.

Multiplying Churches Training Developing Church Planting Centers in the Local Church

April 30 - May 1, 2015 Immediately Following Exponential 2015

Willow Bend Community Church 2541 Henley Road Lutz, FL 33558 (TAMPA, FL)

$25 Per Person or Two for $30 Register: ReproducingChurches.com

Exponential multiplication of Disciples, Leaders and Churches happens when church leaders are committed to evangelism that results in disciples, disciple making that results in leaders and leadership development that results in church planters who multiply. You will hear from practioners who are leading, developing and multiplying church planting centers.

59

The Biblical Qualification of a Revitalization Leader

Shortly after I began to work in the field in church revitalization, a pastor friend and I went to lunch together to discuss this important work. He asked me one of the most probing questions that I have ever been asked, “Why should anyone listen to you about church revitalization?”

I was not offended by the question because I know my friend’s heart. It was a direct and honest question. I gave him this earnest answer, “Honestly, I am not the best person to lead this effort, but I’m like the guy who sees a child drowning in a pool.

In that situation, you don’t seek out the most qualified lifeguard; you just jump into the pool and save the child.” There are more qualified people out there, to be sure, but here is the need and here I am.

The qualifications to lead something like church revitalization are important – I truly believe that, but it has been said that God qualifies the called, he doesn’t call the qualified.

This aphorism sounds correct to our spiritual ears as we consider how God uses key individuals in scripture.

Think about it, what qualifications did Noah have to build an enormous ark? What qualifications did Moses have to lead God’s people out of bondage in Egypt? What qualifications did the farmer-shepherd Amos have to preach against the wickedness of Israel? What qualifications did the cup-bearer Nehemiah have in leading wall construction? The answer is quite simple – each of these leaders was commissioned by God for a great work that could only be accomplished as he trusted in the Lord.

Please do not hear me say that qualifications are unimportant because they are. Each of the examples just mentioned possessed remarkable qualities of character, skill, wisdom, and faith. As we consider some qual-

60

ities that are found in church revitalizers, see if these qualities are in you or can be developed in you. Here are a few, less-well-known qualities that are found in revitalizers that are substantiated by the revitalization leadership of Nehemiah: Revitalization Leaders possess brokenness over the situation before them. Hanani, Nehemiah’s brother, brought news that Jerusalem was still in distress because the walls were still torn down and the gates were burned with fire. The people there were suffering and apparently nobody was helping them.

This news broke Nehemiah’s heart.

This news should not have been a surprise to Nehemiah; the walls were destroyed and the gates burned some fifty years earlier. Ezra mentions a previous attempt to repair the wall (Ezra 4:12-23). Perhaps, Nehemiah was surprised because he had expected to hear about the wall’s completion, instead he heard of its destruction. The news caused Nehemiah great despair, causing him to weep and mourn for days (Neh 1:4).Revitalization starts with brokenness.

Revitalization Leaders seek God and get their vision from Him. Nehemiah was deeply moved when he heard the sad report about Jerusalem. For many days he mourned and prayed over the situation caused by the people’s sins, including his own. Out of his awareness of the need and his immersion in prayer, Nehemiah developed the conviction that God’s people, now returned to the holy land, must honor God and rebuild the city walls. As the vision formed, Nehemiah realized that he himself had been called to carry it out.

Frequently those who form such a vision will be called by God to fulfill it. His calling came out of his vision!

Awareness of need + Intense Prayer + Conviction + Vision = Calling

Revitalization Leaders need an active, effective and consistent prayer life. Nine individual prayers of Nehemiah are recorded in the book that bears his name. Nehemiah is well known as a man of action.

He got things done – he rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem in only fifty-two days. He is known for cursing those who intermarried (against God’s commands), slapping them and pulling their hair out for it, and making them swear never to do it again. He was a man of action, but do not overlook the quality of his prayer life. He prayed for God’s forgiveness for the sins of Israel, his family, and especially his own sins.

He never prayed for his enemies, but he prayed for God to fight for him when his enemies tried to interfere with his anointed purpose. Nehemiah prayed for success, strength, and that God would remember him for the good that he tried to do.

Revitalization Leaders are completely honest about their situation.

Nehemiah was honest with God about sin, about the corruption of his people, and about their failure to keep God’s commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances. Nehemiah was honest with himself – he allowed his sadness to show to the king and even confessed that he was “…very much afraid” to do so.

Nehemiah was honest with the King and asked permission to go and to rebuild the city, giving King Artaxerxes a definite date that he would return, which he kept. Nehemiah was honest with the people. He told them what a bad situation they were in and how the hand of the Lord had been upon him. Nehemiah was even honest with his enemies (Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem). He reminds them that the God of Heaven would give them success, and that these enemies of God would have no portion, right, or memorial in Jerusalem.

by Terry Rials

In other words, “God will help us to rebuild the wall, and you won’t be invited to the party!”

Revitalization Leaders are patient plodders who understand the importance of timing. Nehemiah never enjoyed much fanfare during his life, nor was he ever accused of having a charismatic personality, but over time, he got big things done. He wasn’t a show pony, he was a plow horse! Nehemiah’s lasting legacy was not the rebuilt walls because the Romans tore them down again and nothing of them remains. His legacy was the hope that he gave to his people and the hope subsequent readers of his namesake book still receive when they use it as a model for revitalization. Perhaps Nehemiah knew Ecclesiastes 5:8, “He who keeps a royal command experiences no trouble, for a wise heart knows the proper time and procedure.”

Revitalization Leaders are passionate people who are completely committed to their Lord, the church, and the revitalization process. What Nehemiah lacked in construction expertise, he made up for in passion.

This passion found expression in two forms. First, we know that Nehemiah traveled 900 miles to lead the people of Jerusalem in the arduous task of rebuilding the walls around the city and repairing its gates. Nehemiah executed his plan was to raise the entire wall simultaneously at forty-five different sites, including ten gates. Nehemiah planned his work, worked his plan, and trusted the results to God. Second, Nehemiah addressed another serious problem, one that his brother reported at the beginning of the book – that the people of Jerusalem were in distress and were a reproach. The word reproach in Hebrew describes spiritual taunting. The enemies of Israel were taunting the people that their God was weak and uncaring, and that

they were a disgrace to the name of their God. When the walls went up, so did the people. Nehemiah stood up to the enemies and the people of Jerusalem were never threatened by their enemies again in the book.

Church revitalizers are hopeful, and not just optimistic; there is a difference. Rabbi Jonathon Sacks says, “Optimism is the belief that things will get better. Hope is the faith that, together, we can make things better.

Optimism is a passive virtue, hope an active one. It takes no courage to be an optimist, but it takes a great deal of courage to have hope.” Nehemiah was a hope dealer! God gave him hope in the midst of despair after hearing the awful news when he discovered that God’s hand was upon him. He gave hope back to the distressed people of Jerusalem as he led them to rebuild their walls.

Church revitalizers inspire more than they motivate. Nehemiah never intended to rebuild the wall as a monument to his own accomplishment, but rather to inspire and lead a dispirited and faithless people to accomplish something great.

Nehemiah inspired them by relating how God had been at work in his own life. He knew the people would follow someone who had been with God. Perhaps the reproach of today’s church will inspire someone to lead the church to greatness once again.

Church revitalizers are able to take extraordinary risks in order to achieve their objectives. Nehemiah had the passion and personal commitment to respond to his life’s calling, despite numerous threats to his well-being. Nehemiah’s life was in jeopardy when he asked leave from the king to rebuild the walls.

During the construction of the wall, Nehemiah endured conflict in the form of mockery, slander, threats, taunts, attacks, ridicule, intimidation,

temptation, attempts at discrediting him, and false accusations against him. Nehemiah refused to be intimidated; he armed the people and kept them working. He even dealt with dissent among his own people, as well as a shortage of food that threatened everything. Nehemiah overcame each of these threats by keeping the objective in view.

The qualifications in Nehemiah that made his work successful centered on his ability to put his trust in the Lord. He allowed his life to be broken in order that it could be used. Nehemiah was a broken man for a broken city. He listened to the heart of his God and resolutely went about his work, inspiring others to join in this noble work. In the same way, churches today need selfless, broken, passionate leaders who love the Lord’s church to take on this great need in our day, so God’s people will no longer be a disgrace.

Terry Rials Pastor of Crestview Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. He is Senior Pastor of Crestview Baptist Church (for 21 years), and Church Revitalization Team Leader for Capital Baptist Association. You can contact Terry at terry@cbcokc.org.

61

Four Convictions About Student Ministry Every church nowadays seems to have so many tools, orb charts, diagrams, and even sca er plots (no really I’ve seen this) that describe how they can have the church of their dreams. And while “some” of that sounds great and has the poten al to make you ask several promp ng ques ons here’s a simple ques on to ask you right now: Is what you are doing right now, what is BEST, or are we just doing….?

You see I have a theory about church; those we target are of the age of 2550 for the majority of our churches, not saying there’s anything wrong with the older crowd because God knows they have more wisdom than half of us, and I’m not saying that we don’t care about young people either, I’m just calling it like it is…. Our average major focus is 20-50’s.

And its because of this I would bring up 4 Convic ons that I have when it comes to your younger genera ons meaning Students/.

1. Out of all the ministries you currently have, Student Ministry (meaning from children’s on up to high school) has the most POTENTIAL than any other ministry in your church. No ce I didn’t say most important, I said POTENTIAL. Why? Because in todays world, mom & dad come to church not because a pastor beated on their door with a bible, instead its mostly out of the curiousity of their children or student. See when kids have fun, get rela onships, and don’t have Jesus force fed down their mouths, it gives THEM the opportunity to choose for themselves. See you have 18 years with many of the students who are in your church’s, so guess what, you have the opportunity to define what cool is, what normal is, what hip is on the front end. And because of that, if you set them up well to start, with you won’t always have to playing catch up each Wednesday or Sunday you meet. My ques on would be though are we really taking care, shepherd-

62

ing, & discipling this genera on of students if all we do is what we’ve always “done?”

2. I believe a healthy student ministry must be FULLY SUPPORTED by the Senior Pastor. See there is a dis nct difference between a Senior Pastor who says there all about students, and a Senior Pastor who actually champions there student ministries.

Now I’m not just talking about vision cas ng on a Sunday for Summer Camp or your latest and brightest idea. I’m talking about how your Lead Pastor shepherds you the student leader or pastor; Has he ever clarified the win for you and your ministry; Do you spend me with each other discussing your dreams and desires for the ministry, and I’ll push in even more…. Are you fully supported financially as well? Lets be honest we all know breaking up the budgets is complicated, but you do need to be supported for more reasons than just to pull of your wild and crazy ideas.

You being supported shows you are trusted & believed in! And lastly, your Senior Pastor needs to realize he is not the student pastor & get over it.

You have been called to this seat as a student pastor for a reason, meaning that your pastor needs to trust that he’s hired the right guy and should now get out of the way and let God work through your heart, vision, & passion. See I believe when you are given “limited control” you can’t truly unleash the crea vity, passion, or heart that God blessed you with in the first place.

3. The right people need to be put in the right places! Please pastors, don’t force someone to do something there not passionate about. For example, we had a guy at the church I previously worked for who was very temperamental and yelled at students a lot. He was a great guy and a great heart, but he just didn’t know how to communicate that heart well so we realeased him from the role he was in and placed him somewhere he could us the gi s God made him

by Drew Cheyney passionate about. Here’s the messy parts of leadership, some mes you have to stop worrying about losing volunteers & shepherd people. You see your leaders need to be In areas where there strengths can flourish, but if they are not, never be afraid to have the conversa on that “this just isn’t working out” and guide & direct them to another area that they can serve effec vely. Why? Ministries will not grow if the right people are not in place!

4. Environments Ma er! Let me say that again: Environments Ma er! You might not be able to have a building like North Points, New Springs, of The Village Church, but that is no excuse for dirty, nasty, and unkept. As student pastors, we need to provide environments that students enjoy; NOT the kind of environment that we blew our budgets on to create, but the kind that doesn’t make them wonder is a cock roach going to come out and eat me during service. So here are 4 things that ma er in this vein: Clean, Safe, Fun, & Simple.

Students are amazing, and when they get it it gives you that extra bit of energy, hope, and passion you need…. BUT, don’t just se le for what you know and hope it works, think outside the box, take risks, and don’t be afraid to push back back when students aren’t being fought for at your loca on.

Want to know how do this, then check out this breakout session at RENOVATE 2014!

Drew serves as the Student Pastor of TrueNorth Church in North Augusta in South Carolina. He has served as Youth Pastor at Mountain Lake Community Church before coming to TrueNorth.

Multiplying Churches Training Developing Church Planting Centers in the Local Church

April 30 - May 1, 2015 Immediately Following Exponential 2015

Willow Bend Community Church 2541 Henley Road Lutz, FL 33558 (TAMPA, FL)

$25 Per Person or Two for $30 Register: ReproducingChurches.com

Exponential multiplication of Disciples, Leaders and Churches happens when church leaders are committed to evangelism that results in disciples, disciple making that results in leaders and leadership development that results in church planters who multiply. You will hear from practioners who are leading, developing and multiplying church planting centers.

63

64