Vitality and Renewal In Cascades Life Cycles of a Congregation

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What Are We After? Numbers? More Money? Security?Power?Prestige?

What Are We After? POTENTIAL!

POTENTIAL! *Keeps the challenge before us.

What Are We After? POTENTIAL! *Allows for individuality of size, mission and expression

What Are We After? POTENTIAL! *God needs all shapes, sizes, and styles for the Kingdom of God to impact the world

What Are We After? So… What is God’s potential for your congregation? What is your potential impact in the Kingdom of God?

Are you Ready? This may be the number one question that needs to be answered before a transformation profess can begin.

Urgency Readiness This is the presence of feeling positive urgency to do something different in the congregation. There exists a strong commitment to take action and do something that will empower the future of the congregation

Spiritual Readiness This is the conviction that the best future is God’s future for the congregation. It must involve spiritual discernment of the direction in which God is pulling the congregation and a willingness to engage deeply in this discernment process

Leadership Readiness This is the presence of capable pastoral leadership, people of passion, and people of position in a congregation to form an enduring visionary leadership community who provide broad-based leadership for continual congregational transformation

Strategic Readiness This is the state of having knowledge and the willingness to act in strategic ways that will increase the faithfulness, effectiveness and innovation of the congregation in areas where intentional action is needed to live into God’s future story for the congregation.

Financial Readiness This is the ability to reallocate or generate new income to fund the transition and change actions that lead to transformation. Too many congreagtions do not think about this until late in their preparation for transition and change. This needs to be addressed earlier.

Generative Dialogue Issues Visionary Leadership (V) Relationship Experiences (R) Programmatic Emphasis (P) Accountable Management (M)

Visionary Leadership A strong, clear and passionate sense of our identity (who we are), our core values (what we believe or highly value), our vision (where we are heading), and our spiritual strategic journey as a congregation (how we are getting there) Generative Dialogue Issues

Relationship Experience We do well at attracting people into a Christ-centric faith journey (evangelism) and at helping people who are connected with our congregation to be on an intentional and maturing Christ-centered faith journey (discipleship development) and developing a willingness for people to get involved both within and beyond the congregations (lay mobilization) Generative Dialogue Issues

Programmatic Emphases Our congregation has outstanding programs, ministries and activities for which we are well known throughout our congregation and our community. Our programs, ministries and activities seem to be growing in numbers and quality. Our programs are meeting real, identified, spiritual and emotional needs of people.

Accountable Management Our congregation has excellent, flexible management systems (teams, committees, councils, boards) that empower the future direction of our congregation rather than seeking to control the future direction. Decision making is open and responsive to congregational input. The management systems are supportive of the visionary leadership. Generative Dialogue Issues

The Life Stages of a Church VRPM One can determine the life stage of a church by simply rating the above 4 generative dialogue issues of congregational life.

The Life Cycle and Stages of Congregational Development BirthVrpm InfancyVRpm ChildhoodVrPm AdolescenceVRPm AdulthoodVRPM MaturityvRPM Empty NestvRpM RetirementvrPM Old AgevrpM Deathm

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Rates of Change Continuous Doing same or similar things in same or similar way with same or similar leadership—incremental and long term Discontinuous Doing new and different things with new a different methodologies for new and different target groups with new and different leadership Radical Starting with a clean slate - basically from zero

The Life Cycle and Stages of Congregational Development MaturityRevisioningContinuous6-18 months Empty NestRevitalizationContinuous18-36 months RevitalizationDiscontinuous18-36 months RetirementRenewalDiscontinuous3-5 years RenewalRadical3-5 years Old AgeReinventDiscontinuous18-36 month ReinventRadical18-36 months DeathResurrectionRadical6-18 months

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Vitality and Renewal In Cascades Life Cycles of a Congregation