Change, conflict, growth

Several months ago a pastor search committee for a small, rural church told me they wanted a pastor who would grow the church.  I had never done this before, but when they said that I responded, "Are you sure about that?"  They looked at me a little stunned as if I should not be asking that question so I continued, "If you could grow this church by doing what you've been doing you would already be growing.  So, what you are telling me is that you want a pastor who will come in here and begin to change everything you have been doing.  Is that what you really want?"  They looked at one another and began to smile.  One of them spoke up and said, "Maybe we need to rethink this."

Another church contacted me five or six years ago asking me to meet with their newly formed Church Growth Committee and talk to them about how they could grow their church without making anybody mad.  I told the caller that I would save myself a trip and them a meeting by telling them right now that what they wanted to do was impossible.  Once again I explained that if they could grow by doing what they've been doing they would already be growing.  If they were serious about growing their church they would have to make some changes, and some of those changes were going to upset some people and create problems.

As Shannon O'Dell explains in his book Transforming Church in Rural America, "If we are to fulfill our vision, we have no other choice.  It's change, conflict, growth; change, conflict, growth; and you have to walk through that process...we must go through change and then conflict in order to see growth."  This is not easy for a small, rural church that puts so much emphasis on being a family church.  The assumption is that families avoid conflict so anything that creates conflict is avoided.

There are a couple of things wrong with that assumption.  One, is that families do not avoid conflict.  Some families are known for conflict.  (As are some churches!)  But, even in the healthiest families there are going to be conflicts because families are made up of people who do not always agree.

The second thing that is wrong with that assumption is the belief that all conflict is bad.  We want to avoid conflict because conflict is bad, but not all conflict is bad.  Conflict is needed if the church is to move forward.  The way conflict is sometimes handled is bad, but the conflict itself isn't necessarily bad.  Too many churches are stuck because they try so hard to avoid conflict that they won't do anything new if even one person is opposed, and there will usually be at least one that prefers the status quo.

Change, conflict, growth.  These are the steps that must be taken if growth is the desired end result.  Growth can have many facets so it's important to begin with the desired growth and work backwards.  In what ways does the church want to experience growth?  Does it want to see an increase in worship attendance?  Does it want to see larger numbers involved in discipleship programs?  Does it want to see increased financial giving?  Does it want to develop new ministries either for the existing congregation or the community?   There are countless additional areas in which a church can grow, but the point is that the desired area of growth must be identified.  Once that is done the leaders can begin to work backwards.

What would have to change in order to make it possible to experience growth in your desired areas?  For most smaller churches, when they talk about growth they are referring to numerical growth.  So what has to change in order to make that happen?  Do you need to adjust the times of your worship services that would make it possible for more people to attend?  Does the format of the worship need to change to better appeal to unchurched people in your community?  Does the church need training in hospitality to make a better impression on first-time guests?  Does the church need a better image in the community?  I've had some churches admit to me that they have a horrible reputation in their communities because of past events that occurred in their churches.  Those churches are unlikely to see any numerical growth until they overcome the poor images people have of them.  Does your pastor need different skills sets?  Again, the list goes on and on, but you must identify the issues that are preventing your church from growing and begin to address those issues.

However, be assured that when you address even some of the worst issues that may exist in your church there may well be some people who want to preserve those issues.  That is where the conflict will occur, but until you overcome the conflict and change the things that are preventing growth from occurring, your church will never grow.

Change, conflict, growth.  It is a pattern that will exist in any church serious about growing.  O'Dell's book is a good resource to help the smaller church enter into that pattern whether the church is in a rural area of not.