The 21st century Church must answer two questions: “Who are we?” and “Where are we?” according to church consultant Dan Garland.
“The local church pastor is the primary change agent, and he must lead the church to discover its strengths and its challenges,” noted Garland, retired director of pastoral ministries for Lifeway Christian Resources. “God calls individuals to [vocational] ministry, and He gives His vision to pastors.”
Garland was presenter at an Intentional Leaders event April 9 at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions facility in Prattville. He recommended attendees consider one thing they can do immediately that would have the greatest impact.
“I can’t tell you what that would be,” he said. “It’s different for each of us. We might learn some new skills, and we might have to unlearn some things that don’t work, but one small change can have a domino effect and benefit the entire church. Choose the ‘best right thing’ for you.”
‘About people’
Garland said change must always focus on the needs of people.
“Ministry is not just sitting in our offices and exegeting Greek verbs,” he asserted. “That’s important, but our ministry is about people, and ministry can be messy because people are messy. It’s been said that a shepherd has the stench of sheep about him, and pastors must spend time with their ‘sheep,’ love them and lead them.”
Garland said pastors should listen to people, hear their stories and work with them in preparing for the future. And leaders must not be stymied by criticism.
“Some people have the spiritual gift of criticism,” he said with a laugh. “Criticism is a safe place for some people because it doesn’t require them to do anything. But pastors must not surrender vision to criticisms.”
Garland admitted change is difficult and the status quo is comfortable, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced congregations and their leaders to look forward rather than to what had been the norm.
“One leader joked to me that ‘if the 80s come back, we’re ready!’”
‘Strategic plan’
Garland recommended what he called a “strategic plan for leading change,” beginning with a sense of urgency. He said this can come from statistical metrics or the realization of the lostness in neighborhoods around local churches.
“Probably 85% of those within a three-to-five-mile radius of your church don’t go to anyone’s church,” Garland noted. “Of course these include some [lapsed] church members, but also many who’ve not come to Christ. We must find a way to reach out to our communities with the gospel.”
Garland suggested pastors enlist a group of 12–20 church members for a six-month process of study and prayer.
“Choose influencers and leaders who have a collaborative spirit,” he suggested. “A pastor could ask his deacons for suggestions in selecting the group. These people will meet monthly, take assignments, keep the congregation informed and recommend meaningful change.”
Garland provided a list of questions the group should consider, including “What statement defines our mission or purpose?” and “What would be lost in our community if we ceased to exist?”
Confusion
Garland noted there is evident confusion about the mission of the church.
“In Kentucky we commissioned the Barna Research Group to do a study, and the most often-cited response about the church’s mission was ‘fellowship.’ Of course fellowship is important, but scripture is clear that our purpose is to disciple — to make people into followers of Jesus.”
State conventions and local associations can provide demographic information, Garland said, and some helpful insight can be garnered from church records and history.
He suggested a simple tool is to give worship attendees a 3″x5″ note card every Sunday for four weeks, asking for age and gender.
“This shows fairly quickly our demographic, and normally we find the church’s average age is 60 because we’re struggling with reaching younger families,” Garland noted.
The next step is to isolate three or four “strategic initiatives” he defined as “what ministries need to be started or expanded to carry out our mission.”
“A common mistake is to try to do too much,” Garland said. “We should prioritize what we think God wants us to do and create a timeline for completion. A common ‘downside’ to planning is failure to execute. We must execute and then celebrate our wins to instill confidence in our members.”
‘Ministry pipeline’
The vision group must keep the church informed throughout the process and help the congregation see possibilities for growth and renewal.
“I call this the ministry pipeline,” Garland said. “This strategic initiative gets others into the pipeline with ownership and focuses our attention on making disciples.”
Garland will return to Prattville April 22–23 to co-direct transitional pastor training, suggesting the “strategic initiatives” program can be effective for both transitional and established pastors.
The next training event in the Intentional Leaders series will be July 23 and focus on the pastor as a person of character and growth.
Garland can be reached at pastordan2013@gmail.com. More information is available from the SBOM office of LeaderCare at 800-264-1225 or leadercareal.org.
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