Evangelism professor Mark Teasdale writes that, while a church building demands respect, too many congregations let upkeep of their facilities become more important than serving God's purposes. Churches need to be open to renting, selling, or redesigning buildings to further God's mission.
Church buildings are more than just brick, mortar, wood, nails, and shingles. They are holy ground. Even though we know “the church” is the people of God, many of us were raised to associate the word church with a building. We “go to church” or we see “a church” on the street corner. We were likely also taught to think of that church building as “God’s house.” A church building demanded respect.
Sometimes we allow our facilities, not God’s purposes, to become the primary beneficiary of our work and resources. Instead, we need to view our buildings as expendable resources God has given us for being in mission.
Church buildings are places where we mark critical passages in our lives. They are where we baptize, confirm, marry, bury, pray for the sick, and celebrate milestones. They are also where we may have felt the presence of God either directly or indirectly or through the care we have received from God’s people. For all these reasons, it is easy for congregations to feel a deep affection for their facilities. They are the physical manifestation of God’s presence, the fortress to which they can return for calm and protection from the outside world, and an architecturally visible reminder in the community that the Christian faith is still alive and well in the neighborhood. It is little wonder that congregations often use pictures of their buildings as prominent features in their marketing and that congregations frequently spend a large portion of their resources on maintaining their buildings.
When buildings hinder mission
For all the benefits of having such a special congregational space, buildings can also be one of the greatest hindrances to congregations being in mission. Time, effort, and money that could be freed for engaging in mission go into sustaining the building. This is especially problematic for smaller congregations that are just making ends meet. The congregation begins to exist for the sake of keeping up the building as a monument to their faithfulness rather than the building being a tool that can be expended in the mission of God.
Sometimes we allow our facilities, not God’s purposes, to become the primary beneficiary of our work and resources. Instead, we need to view our buildings as expendable resources God has given us for being in mission. This is painful for all the reasons we have discussed. It is hard to let go of a church building without feeling like a failure. Yet God’s home is wherever God’s people are. Remember, Jesus said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (Matt 8:20). He also said, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” (Matt 18:20) In other words, Jesus never looked for a physical home on earth; he looked for a people who would gather in his name, and he made his home wherever they were. No building necessary.
Ministry beyond buildings
For this reason, congregations should be willing to move their ministry beyond their buildings, even selling their buildings if the money they derive from the sale will be better provision for staying faithful to God’s mission. As uncomfortable a tactic as this might be, it is preferable to God “shaking” us out of our buildings because our loyalty was focused on them rather than on making disciples.
To take this step, congregations should connect with outside groups to help them assess whether their buildings are holding them back. For those congregations that can keep their buildings, they should commit to not overextending their resources in maintaining their facilities.
Mission, ministry, and mortar
Mike Slaughter, pastor of Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church in Ohio, offers one way of doing this. He recommends placing all congregational expenses into three large categories: mission, ministry, and mortar.
- Mission is everything the congregation does outside itself to obey the Great Commission.
- Ministry is everything the congregation does internally to edify disciples.
- Mortar is everything relating to church property (maintenance, capital expenditures, insurance, and so on).
He challenges congregations to keep their expenditures in mission higher than their expenditures in mortar. By doing this, a congregation avoids making their facilities a hindrance to mission.
We need to ask what we value most in our congregations. If we find something we value equally with our identity as followers of Jesus Christ, we need to repent of that as an idol and either get rid of it or see it only as a tool for God’s mission. We need to see our facilities as an expendable resource for engaging in God’s mission. This means being open to renting, selling, or redesigning our buildings to better provide for the mission God has given us. It also means setting up a budget that gives mission precedence over facilities.
This article is excerpted from Go! How to Become a Great Commission Church (General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, 2017) by Mark Teasdale. Used by permission. The book is available at Cokesbury and Amazon.
Related Resources
- The Case of a Small Church in an Oversized Building by Lewis A. Parks
- Using Your Building Assets by Rosario Picardo
- Building and Funding Your Capital Budget Video Tool Kit
- Tying Facility Needs to Mission by Johnsie W. Cogman
Lewis Center Director F. Douglas Powe suggests strategies that can make it possible for those with significant time constraints to serve as church leaders -- not merely to meet the church's leadership needs but to help the individual know the satisfaction of serving.
“I’d like to get involved, but I just don’t have the time.” How often have you heard this response from a prospective leader? For many, it’s not just an idle excuse. There are likely people in your congregation who work 60-plus hours a week, commute long distances, and juggle a myriad of home and work responsibilities. Here are a few suggestions that may help individuals with significant time constraints serve as church leaders.
The reason to help busy people serve isn’t to meet the church’s leadership needs but to help the person know the satisfaction of serving, and hopefully see faith as means of bringing better balance to their life.
1. Use a remote meeting platform
There are several remote meeting platforms (for example Google Hangouts or GoToMeeting™) that can bring together people in different physical locations. A remote meeting platform permits people to participant without having to show up in person, if they are still at work or just getting home, for example. It is key to find a platform that works for the group and have everyone commit to using it. Keep in mind that good meeting etiquette is even more important with remote meeting technology. For example, having clear guidelines for how individuals will speak can prevent one person from dominating the conversation.
2. Define the commitment
Individuals who are busy often do not mind participating if the commitment is clearly defined. For example, the church needs someone to lead a three-week class on stewardship. The perfect person to do it works 12-hour days during the week. But this person may be willing to lead the class on a Saturday or Sunday — with the clear expectation that it will only be for three weeks and that the church will not tap her for six other commitments.
3. Ask people to commit to at least one thing each year
One idea that was very successful at a congregation I served was to ask everyone to commit to giving some time to the church each year. This is especially important for those who work 60-plus-hour weeks. The ask is for them to commit to at least one thing during the year. Typically, we did this as part of our stewardship campaign.
4. Teach stewardship of time
Saying “I’m too busy to serve” is akin to saying, “I don’t have enough money to give.” Often, it is less an issue of scarcity than of setting priorities. The church can help people regain control of their overly busy lives by teaching that time, just like money, is a gift from God that must be stewarded and used with intention. Encouraging “first fruits” commitments of time can help congregants prioritize service to God and others, rather than seeing church leadership as something extra to squeeze in when all other time commitments are fulfilled.
Ultimately, the reason for helping busy people connect to the church isn’t to meet the church’s need for volunteers or leaders. It’s to help the busy person know the satisfaction of serving, and hopefully see faith as means of bringing better balance to their life, instead of being just another thing on their to-do list.
Related Resources
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The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Donna Claycomb Sokol and L. Roger Owens suggest some excellent questions for use at the end of a study time or meeting.
- Where have we sensed God's Spirit leading us in this conversation?
- Where was there hope and energy?
- Where do we need God's guidance as we move forward in this area of church life?
- For what do we have to give thanks for our time together?
- Did an obvious next step emerge?
Learn strategies to identify and support new leaders and build and maintain effective ministry teams. More Church Leaders | Stronger Church Leaders helps clergy and lay leaders, in churches both large and small, discover a more synergistic and fruitful way of being in ministry together. The tool kit includes engaging videos, handouts, and supplementary materials.
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Managing church finances requires skill, dedication, and know-how, but also the heart of a steward. Protect, Sustain, Grow: Best Practices for Handling Your Church's Money provides practical advice, best practices, and resources for pastors, finance committee members, church treasurers, financial secretaries, and bookkeepers -- all those charged with the sacred trust of protecting, sustaining, and growing the resources God has entrusted to your church. Save with early-bird registration through February 12.
Strong and growing congregations typically have a very high percentage of people who are actively involved in learning, serving, and leading. These 50 tips will help your congregation increase active engagement.
50 Ways to Increase Active Engagement
Strong and growing congregations typically have a very high percentage of people who are actively involved in learning, serving, and leading. These 50 tips will help your congregation increase active engagement.
Motivate
- Lift up lay involvement as Christian ministry, not volunteer work.
- Explain the rationale for church activities. Remind people why what they are doing is important. Connect service opportunities to the larger vision of the church.
- Communicate clearly the expectation of active participation when people join the church.
- Reinforce the expectation of participation regularly from the pulpit.
- Encourage persons to serve where they have gifts and passions. Make spiritual gifts assessments available and make use of the results.
- Help congregants understand the time they give to ministries as an expression of stewardship.
- Teach stewardship of time to counteract “busyness.” Just as with financial stewardship, persons need to make giving time to the church a priority, not an afterthought. Encourage “first fruits” commitments of time.
- Know that those who give the most time to the church also give the most financially.
Communicate
- Prepare a comprehensive listing of ministry opportunities with descriptions and contact
information. Keep it up to date. - Develop job descriptions for key roles. Keep them up to date.
- Create an attractive flyer or “one pager” for each ministry that tells its story and how to get connected.
- Lift up a different ministry in worship each week, celebrating its accomplishments and recognizing participants.
- Tell the story of what your church is doing together in ministry. Document activities with photos and journals. Encourage participants to share their testimony.
- Report the results of your ministries and lift up success stories.
- Have an information center that is a visible connection point for visitors and others who want to learn about ministries. Staff it on Sunday morning.
Organize
- Develop a system or data base for member participation. Record interests, skills, spiritual gifts, leadership roles, etc.
- Develop a leadership team for lay mobilization. In some churches, this takes the place of a traditional nominating committee.
- Start new ministry teams and groups often. Despite their best intentions, ongoing groups have a tendency to become cliquish. Newcomers are far more likely to feel comfortable joining something new.
- Review the schedule and format of church activities and events. Try new approaches that might appeal to those not yet active, for example weekday breakfasts, downtown lunch gatherings, weekend retreats, etc.
- Ask of every ministry: “Does it meet a need?” “Does it make Disciples?”
- Be mindful of the need to sunset ministries or groups that no longer serve their purpose. Don’t invest energy in trying to keep a dying program alive.
- Avoid pet projects that only involve a few people.
Connect
- Relationships are key. Most people serve because they are asked. Personal invitations are the most effective method of getting someone involved.
- Make worship a primary portal for involvement. Have a participation form in the worship bulletin every Sunday listing immediate opportunities to serve.
- Make getting started easy. Create easy entry points — short-term service opportunities requiring a minimal commitment. Allows people to jump in and get their feet wet.
- Have an intentional system that helps all new attendees and members become involved in groups and activities very soon after they start coming to church.
- Interview new members. Have them complete an interest survey.
- Avoid mentor, sponsor, or buddy programs for newcomers. Although commonly used, they are seldom effective.
- Work toward having each church member/attendee involved in at least one small group — Bible study, affinity group, or ministry team.
- Remember that choirs, service teams, and even administrative committees are also “small groups.” Train leaders to make these experiences spirituality formative, rather than exclusivelytask-oriented.
- Emphasize small group participation during Lent. Choose a Lenten study curriculum for use by all small groups in the church. Publicize this study opportunity widely and use the Lenten period to recruit new participants into the small groups.
- Link study group topics to sermon series.
- Assess whether “pen and paper” recruitment methods, such as time and talent surveys or pledge cards, are effective in your congregation or whether a more interactive approach is desirable.
- Use your annual stewardship campaign as a way of generating commitment to activities.
- Have a ministry fair or open house to connect people with groups and ministry teams.
- Organize a “Great Day of Service” and invite people to commit a single day to helping with ministry projects. Showcase your ongoing work. Encourage people to bring friends.
- Provide opportunities for families to be in ministry together, especially parents and children.
- Follow up with church members periodically — especially the less active — to take their pulse and ask, “How are things going?”
- Recognize that sometimes people need a break. Give permission to say “no” when necessary.
- Understand that Christian service occurs through vehicles other than church programs.
Empower people to serve beyond the church.
Equip and Affirm
- Provide training for ministry participants and leaders. Reinforce their role as ministers and servant leaders. Teach them to interpret and communicate their experiences through the lens of discipleship.
- Help leaders and participants appreciate how service in the church differs from responsibilities in secular settings.
- Conduct an annual retreat for leaders.
- Intentionally include newcomers in leadership.
- Reinforce the need for openness in leadership roles with a rotation system.
- Experienced leaders should be encouraged to recruit a co-leader and mentor that person.
- Encourage church members to think of their involvements in the context of their personal spiritual growth. Help them chart a deliberate plan for spiritual growth.
- Move away from the “committee“ mindset, to the more collaborative and interactive “ministry team“ mindset.
- Make time for affirmation and appreciation. Develop a systematic plan to publicly recognize all groups and ministries teams over the course of the year.
- Say “thank you“ often.
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Quotable Leadership
The elephant in the room doesn't go away because you are afraid to face it. The elephant actually gets bigger. (Olu Brown)
Your capital budget isn't just about facilities -- it's about using your facilities to further your church's mission. The Building and Funding Your Capital Budget Video Tool Kit helps you understand what a capital budget is, how to engage the big questions about your church, and how to assess your current situation. No matter your church size, this resource provides clues and wisdom to help your capital budget advance your mission and accomplish God's vision for your congregation.
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Editor: Dr. Ann A. Michel
Copyright © 2004-2017 Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
churchleadership.com/leadingideas
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue North West
Washington, D.C. 20016, United States
Copyright © 2004-2017 Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
churchleadership.com/leadingideas
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue North West
Washington, D.C. 20016, United States
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