PART 1: A DYING GENERATION
Hello again! During my most recent visits to blogger-land, I have been plagued with questions. I want to post them here in my 10-part series (don't freak..only a question per week). Part 1 is a dying generation because in my experience in the Salvaton Army and most recently as a Salvation Army officer, we have found it difficult to attract younger (and even keep those we have in our doors) families. I'm not talking soley about volunteers...we have a solid base of people young and old who flood our phones and offices with service on their mind. We are the center of service in our community. We have made so many connections in our community with youth groups, high school groups, advisory board families, and others who just want to give of their time. I'm talking about those who will come alongside and be discipled (and do the discipling). Those who have a passion for teaching the Word, modeling Christ, and getting involved as leaders in the church. So, again...here is my question..."How do get 'reinforcements' and fellow workers in the vineyard in this overscheduled and sometimes self-absorbed culture?"
posted by Nicole_Marietta @ 2:20 PM
7 comments
7 Comments:
This is one of the questions that drive me. I could write pages on this one.
There are a lot of answers. An obvious one, but sometimes overlooked, is to pray that God will send harvesters into his field.
A second action you can take is to begin developing the people you have. Serve and reach out in the ways that you are presently able. It can be slow at times, but consistently and intentionally training your people for ministry will yield results.
I’m not sure what kind of training you have done or the training your people have gone through. But you could begin by simply surveying (verbally or in writing) the congregation and asking some basic questions like “Do know what spiritual gifts you possess? Have you had any evangelistic training? Are you comfortable witnessing and praying with others? What are you most passionate about?
This one is good, but can catch people off guard: If I had ________________ I would _______________________.
Understanding the unique cultural context as well as the felt needs of the community in which your church is located is also very important. When you identify a new ministry opportunity, you could ask your people if they know others who would be interested in serving in that area of ministry. Just because they are not a member of your church doesn’t mean they can’t serve in ministry.
If I need to be more specific I can be. I can share some examples if it would help.
Blessings,
Bret
P.S. My blog is at Armytalk.blogspot.com
Thanks! I guess I am questioning out of shear frustration. We ask our congregation, what would you like to see happen in your corps? There are always some great answers. We follow up with how can we get there? Again, great answers given. Then we ask, who will help us...we will even have people say they are willing to help. But then the day of commitment comes and we stand alone with our 2 small children wondering what went wrong.
Divisionally there are many opportunities to teach our people.Just this weekend we have 4 potential leaders going to a seminar...but as of this morning I have 2 that backed out and I am waiting for return calls from the other 2. Again, we have many opportunities for service, education, and ministry locally but it really is all outside groups and people who are stepping up.
Hey Captain Nicole!
I just received your comment and thought I would update you on what's going on with me. Well, I'm sure that you heard but a few weeks ago, Asbury had a revival. It was a really unique experience for me personally. To be able to see God at work right in front of me...WOW is all I can say. Classes are going well for the most part. I have 2 tests next week and 2 the week after. I keep busy with work and the classes...and I gotta have some fun in there too.
Let's see...I believe that I've been unoffically accepted to be on a Hands on Missions team. I'm hoping to find out what team soon. This means that I'll be going to Comissioning. Is there any way that I can travel with the corps to get there? I figure that you'll be going because you have family that will be Commissioned.
On a more personal note, God is really starting to break down the communication walls in my family. My brother took a huge step forward recently. We still have a long way to go though. I'm not coming home for Spring Break and will be informing my mother of that soon. Please pray about that upcoming conversation...my mouth has a tendency to say things in a way I don't intend to say them.
The only other newsworthy thing I can think of is that I was in my first car accident about 3 weeks ago. It was a minor accident but it was quite the experience. I had a hard time eating for about a week because I hit my chin off of a head rest (I was in the back of the car) and had a cut on my lip and in my mouth. I have a slight bump on my chin and the cut is still in my mouth even though it's pretty much healed.
I've always wondered why it is that people seem willing to do things but then don't actually go through with it. Is it because of busyness, lack of faith, or something else? I'm sure I'm not helping your questions or frustration any.
Maybe I'll get a chance to stop by in April when I'm home for Easter!
Here are a few more thoughts. (Sorry this is so long)
A church that has lost its mission, become ineffective and satisfied with the status quo has slipped into a culture of complacency. You have to change the culture. A good illustration for doing this is the strategy that AT&T used when they launched their “1- 800- C-A-L-L-A-T-T” campaign. They saturated their target market with commercials so that when their audience would need to make a collect call, the first thought that would come to mind was “1- 800- C-A-L-L-A-T-T.”
Here are some practical steps to changing a church culture:
You could begin by preaching/teaching a series on mission. Help the people understand what God is calling us to. Help them understand their responsibility to the Great Commission and Great Commandment. God wants every follower of Jesus to be involved in ministry. (1 Peter 4:10-11)
Secondly, keep the mission constantly before the people. Mention the mission in every public setting. This could be during a prayer - praying that God will lead us to reach those He is calling us to reach. It could be during the announcements, the call the worship, a sermon illustration, or as you close a meeting you close with a reminder that God calls us to mission. One church had a sign that could only be read as you left the church parking lot. It said, “You are now entering your mission field.”
Thirdly, create a culture of change. If a church has been stagnant for quite some time then it probably hasn’t experienced any significant change (other than CO’s coming and going and they are comfortable with that). Make intentional changes. Move the furniture around in the fellowship hall, move the pulpit to a different location, put the offering in a different place on the program, don’t sing the doxology after the offering (heresy I know) change the program, paint the interior of the building—get the people used to change. Starting new ministries and reaching new people is too much change for people who are not comfortable with change.
Fourthly, get ready for opposition. My one-year old usually awakes from his naps crying. Spiritual babies who have been sleeping for long periods of time will wake up very cranky. It’s all part of moving people forward in spiritual growth and mission. Don’t confuse “loving” people with coddling. There is a difference. We challenge and train our children because we love them. It’s the same way with God’s people he placed in our care.
Don’t know if this is helpful or not. Maybe something here will spark and idea. My e-mail is bretmc@aol.com if you have any questions. Feel free to challenge my ideas.
Blessings,
Bret
I don't want to challenge them, I want to thank you for conforming in our spirit that what we are doing is not insane and will in the end be productive (even if in the present we are frustrated). Sorry my agreement is so long!
Mission focused preaching has been our battle cry since the new year...we are praying that revival will sweep through our congregation when we least expect it.
As per worship, even if we had a spritually "awake" corps we would prepare worship as we do now. Not worrying about style, format, or even...gasp the doxology (I liked that by the way). We make certain God is the focus first, then the word He has for His people. The songs and the rest of the service are formed around these 2 foci.
We are in process of renovating the entire corps building (something that hasn't been done for over 30 years). We are in constant prayer that this will be the renewal that the corps needs (as long as we aren't moved when it's finished and have time to lead the corps into its new beginning).
So I guess that I am asking for constant prayer as Phil and I venture into this exciting but oftentimes frustrating experience of leading God's people.
Amen. Keep up the God work!
Blessings,
Bret
In a somewhat related topic about church growth and how to get more people into the seats, our division, in 3 "test markets" is working on an actual ad campaign for the Corps. Looking at the division as a whole, there are only 3 or 4 corps that, if I was an outsider, I would want to attend.
This is also related to what the Chief posted about personal ads, but on a corporate/church level. How do we promote the Corps, as a worshipping body?
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