I do not believe that a local church must die. I have spent the last two decades fighting to keep churches alive. But the reality is that churches are closing. According to a Lifeway Research report, “A study, which analyzed church data from 34 Protestant denominations and groups, found that 4,500 churches closed in 2019, while about 3,000 new congregations were started. The 34 Protestant denominations account for about 60% of U.S.-based Protestant denominations.”
If the reality is that the church is declining, what are the significant warning signs that your local church might be heading for closure?
When I was a child, I loved going to Kmart. The Kmart Corporation reigned supreme in the retail industry for nearly 40 years. Still, they dramatically began to decline because they lacked missional focus, investment in the technologies and a plan for the future. The warning signs that can be found from the iconic “blue light special” corporation provide hints for the local church. The siren of decline is displayed for many struggling churches, and it’s not too late to turn your church around.
Deviated from the mission.
Every church that has declined has had a mission, but they failed to follow it. Even if a church does not write out their mission statement it is found in Scripture:
“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:19–20).
Jesus advocated the mission to disciple, baptize, and teach the whole community. What a challenge for the local church to fulfill. Sadly, churches that begin to decline deviate from the mission by focusing on inward ministries at the expense of reaching the community.
When you examine a real-life example like the Kmart, you also see where they deviated from their mission of being a low-cost retailer. They bought companies such as bookstores, laundry mats, a sports appraisal store, an office equipment chain, drug stores, lumber stores, and designer clothing brands. While each of these companies touched in a small part on the larger corporate store these side companies took away or even competed with the larger Kmart format.
That cafeteria-style service is seen in churches through a variety of offerings from children’s church to women’s ministries and other programs that at face value, offer value to the overall spiritual health of the church, but are not done well because of a lack of tying it back to the mission of the church. Sometimes, these self-perpetuating groups become so insular that they miss inviting or even greeting outsiders.
If the mission is to win the lost, every program and ministry should connect back to that mission.
Reinvented but did not reinvest.
As a church declines, the leadership traditionally redirects dollars to a short-term focus, not a long-term mindset. With the onset of short-term decision-making, a church delays maintenance-related issues for another day. This, done enough times, will cause the church to end up with no money, poor campus infrastructure, and declining attendance—a triple negative whammy that sinks most churches. Churches must find ways to reinvent themselves and reinvest in today and tomorrow.
Kmart Corporation lost its status as one of the largest retailers when it failed to invest in new technology, due to management inefficiency, and failed to streamline products. Its model, which was innovated in the 1960s and 1970s, became antiquated by the early 1990s. Instead of right-sizing its overall management structure, it downsized stores to maintain the same inefficiencies.
Far too many church budgets, outdated programs and oversized campus footprints have hindered the local church and is not conducive to meeting today’s needs. Churches that rebound are the ones that examine every aspect of the church (programs, people, partnerships) and eliminate items that are holding the church back from connecting with the community. At the same time, a strategic plan should be developed to invest in current and future infrastructure needs.
Lacking a cohesive plan.
A designated plan must be built into the local church’s life every season, building spiritual and relational community connections within and outside the church. As the neighborhood around the church has changed, the church must adapt by connecting in new ways to reach new families. Without a clear plan, the church continues to spiral from problem to problem, spending the remaining efforts in so many false directions that people become frustrated.
Kmart Corporation needed a cohesive plan. In turn, they changed logos, colors and store layouts and sold, opened and remodeled stores, all in an attempt to find the right formula. Without a clear strategy they were adrift and struggled to rebound from decline.
That same pattern is seen time and time again in declining churches. With every pastor or change of church board, the leadership hunted for a new strategy to make Christlike disciples. When this happens, a cohesive plan focusing less on personal wants and desires and more on finding out where God was at work—then serving in those areas in the community.
The reasons churches decline is not the neighborhood changing but the church not adapting to the changing times. The biblical mission of the church still matters. Investing in today and tomorrow is a component that removes instant gratification. For long-term spiritual fulfillment in reaching the lost and following a plan that has been prayerful set in connection with Christ.