Many traditional churches struggle with not having enough people for their space. Fifteen months ago, I was called to pastor an established church that had seen just over 60% of its attendance decline in the last decade. Combined with the reality of aging infrastructure encompassing nearly 50,000 square feet under roof, the challenge of overcoming the decline is massive.
While your local church may not be facing as big a challenge as I face today, the reality is that the church is facing something. The idea of finding the right pastor or program to rebound from decline is a fallacy that has destroyed the local church and the hopes and dreams of members. Could God use a pastor or program to help reclaim the church? Sure, but the church has short-circuited the spiritual process by missing God and seeing the man. Be a church that focuses on prayer, the Word of God, following his commands, and reconnecting with the Savior.
The Reality of Change
By the mid-’90s, Circuit City was one of the fastest-growing businesses on the market. With over 1,500 stores in several nations, Circuit City was a behemoth that looked unstoppable. Yet, within a decade, they would file for bankruptcy protection. What happened? They allowed their success to short-circuit vision casting, long-range planning, focusing on their customer, and veering from their core values.
Sound familiar? Churches were built bigger in the 1980s and 1990s, focusing on cafeteria-style programming. Churches failed to recognize the value of community relationships, discipleship-making and studying the Word of God.
Circuit City was known for its customer service, but as times got tough, it changed, cutting its workforce, slashing wages, and reducing its employee customer training. It began to drift from its core values and became a shell of its former self. Their competitors surpassed them as they short-circuited what made them unique in the marketplace.
What was your church known for in the past? What lessons from that season of spiritual growth in the past could you learn from today? The idea that there is a silver bullet to turn a declining church around is false. It takes prayer, dedicated steps to establish community partnerships, and a long-term commitment to serve by adapting to the new information you glean quarterly and yearly from church and community members. If God is not in it, it will not work. But, if God is in it, he will see you through it.
What your local church does today sows seeds for its growth or death. The future is seeded by your decision-making today. For instance, in my local church, we are investing long-term into a three-pronged model: compassion, community, and education while maintaining our focus on growing the local spiritual health of members. The steps we are taking today will not see natural fruit for three to five years from now. But no harvest will come tomorrow if we don’t plant today.
This long-term commitment is crucial for the church’s growth and should not be underestimated. In 1988, near the height of Circuit City’s growth era, they had the opportunity to buy an upstart competitor, Best Buy, but rejected a deal, feeling they could move into Best Buy’s market and put them out of business. They were wrong. We must learn from their mistake and commit to the long-term growth of the local church.
Do Not Stop Innovating.
Once Circuit City innovated in its field by developing the superstore and big box store model. Over time, complacency took hold, and they stopped adapting and began rushing store remodels, chasing every fad in the industry, losing their way—and customers. As a church, you can’t do what the church is doing down the street. Still, you can look for models (programs and partnerships) from similar-sized churches in your denomination and communities similar to yours and adapt them to the local context.
The decline of the local church happened not because the gospel was not needed or people were not hungry for the Word of God but because the local church lost its way. Not adapting to the changing demographics of the community. The church has short-circuited its power supply: prayer, fasting, reading the Word, and disciple-making and it needs to reconnect. God has a plan for the local church, but will you trust him? Will you allow yourself to be led by him and not your desires?
In my local context, we have begun to rewire our vision by reconnecting with the power supply, God. It has been challenging; people have withheld tithes, restricted them to specific ministries, or left. But, through it all, God has consistently provided unity through the church board, a vision for the future in most people, and a new crop of believers that have seen our ministry footprint expand and new fruit harvested.
When you tap into God’s power, he provides a fresh vision, encouragement to keep going, and new fruit over time. In the end, the local church has a choice to adapt or short-circuit itself by ignoring the winds of change that have arrived. The local neighborhood church must be open to change and adapt our methods to the needs of our community, always guided by God’s vision for our church.