Building the Church for the 21st Century

This article summarizes a two-day conversation between Bill Easum and members of the Prince of Peace staff in July, 1996. We are thankful for this learning time and hopeful these reflections from our experience may be helpful to you.

What will the 21st century look like?

We have a tendency to assume the future will be a slight variation of the present. Maybe there will be a few more bells and whistles, maybe we can travel farther and faster, but it’s hard to imagine life too much different than it is here and now. But those forecasting the future continue to remind us that the 21st century will be anything but a continuation of the present.

What does it all mean for the leaders and the future of the church? Will we be able to see the changes coming? So many questions and not a lot of answers. Answers won’t necessarily guide us into the future, but the right set of questions just might!

Bill Easum is a futurist. He is a man who has left his comfort zone (hard for many of us to do) and lives in a time that is not yet here. Bill will tell you he doesn’t have the answers to the future, but he is searching, asking around, looking for signs of what the 21st century might be like and then working with church leaders to prepare the church for what’s ahead. It’s a calling not many would choose but most of us will be forced to accept later if not sooner. As a pioneer in the “Information Age,” Bill uses a lap top computer and the inter-net as easily and effectively as the scriptures...his tools of persuasion challenging us to risk an honest look into the future today. A few road signs of the future:

• The future has little room for lone wolves. People going it alone, even if they have been successful in the past, will not ride the wave of leadership for the future.

• Large and small churches will “survive.” Churches are closing their doors at an alarming rate each day for a variety of reasons, but the church of the future tends to be on either end of the poles. Large churches offer multiple options for people and have a variety of resources. A small church, on the other hand, even the home-based model, offers for many the intimacy and connectedness that draws them to “church” in the first place...and at a lower budget/staffing cost situation. Technology serves both ends of the spectrum, making information accessible across the board.

• Courage and passion are two key words for the leader of the future church. A new frontier is being marked, and leadership is up for grabs. Those who step forward will preach and exemplify heightened standards and challenge their followers to commitment as well. It’s a call to be a Christian, similar to the one that went out in the first Century. It’s a life-style commitment.

• Society is “beyond” redemption. Left alone, society cannot save itself. This sad commentary, ironically, is good news for churches. Churches offer a counterculture centered in grace and offering a message of hope.

So where does that leave the church? What about Christianity in the 21st century? The standards by which Christians will live and be known in the 21st century are changing. Being a Christian means living differently; in two words—Christians must be authentic and radical! Churches, and more importantly the people of the church, will need to live what they say!

Currently, growing churches are those that are challenging their people to increased commitment. Increased commitment translates into a stronger church. In our paradoxical world the culture runs from absolutes, yet churches are calling people to believe in the ultimate truth and people are rising to the occasion. It is possible to be open to diversity while still being clear about one’s own identity and purpose. Churches must be strong enough, whatever their size, to be a counter-cultural support from cradle to grave.

A parallel issue is that certified clergy are no longer defining leadership. The “professional” clergy role is being usurped by the movement to recapture the priesthood of all believers. Church leaders must still be trained, but in many cases the churches themselves will play a primary role in equipping their own leadership.

Churches that engage in training leaders will then be called to transform society. The church of the 21st century will intentionally send people into society. The mission fields are our neighborhoods, our schools and our communities. We are not living in a “post-Christian” era, but a “pre-Christian” era, according to Easum.

Four key areas affect the church model for the pre-Christian era: technology, generation X, teaming, and training disciples.

Technology has changed everything. The majority of us trained in professional ministry today grew up without access to, much less reliance upon, computers of any kind. Now we are able to shop, bank, educate, be educated, send and receive mail, and conduct meetings all from our portable computers. Technology connects the world and all its knowledge together in one system. Unfortunately, some of us have remained satisfied with our “old, conventional” systems and are among the last to get on board. Information is power and now that power is available worldwide to any one with a computer. Take a look at a few statistics:

•“By 1995 personal computers were in 37 percent of American households. In that year more money was spent on PCs than TV sets.” (The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 1996.)

•“In 1995 the Internet handled more mail than the 177 billion pieces that went through the U.S. Postal Service.” (Todd Copilevitz, “The E-Mail/Snail Mail Debate,” Dallas Morning News, April 28th, 1996.)

•“The annual rate of growth for the World Wide Web traffic is 341,000 percent. Approximately 159 countries are reachable by electronic mail.” (The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 1996.)

Technology has changed the way information is distributed, increased the pace it’s transmitted and made information accessible to all the world simultaneously. (For the first time, a confirmand living in Saudi Arabia is completing his Prince of Peace confirmation requirements on the Internet!)

What’s key? Sharing information!

Our people, leaders and staff, will continually need education; some may need to be retrained. Knowing it today doesn’t mean you’ve got it figured out for tomorrow. It’s an ongoing issue. “The biggest challenge today is not getting an education, it’s keeping one...Today it takes only three to five years for 50 percent of our skills to become outdated.” (Price Pritchett’s MindShift, p.39)

Generation X impacts all of us. For the first time in history, music is our global language. Youth and young adults have grown up with “Discmans,” weaving music into all aspects of life, and MTV, combining visual images with music. Generation X has lived through the break downs of the traditional family and many other institutions. The attitudes and values of this generation are part of our shared society. They can no longer be ignored as “our radical youth,” for they are moving into our work force, parenting our children and changing America by who they are and what they stand for.

Generation X has called us to articulate what we believe. Yes, they want the right to disagree, but they’ll challenge double standards. Music is their language and has influenced not only what is said, but how it’s communicated. Generation Xers are not caught in “traditional” anything, they see no problem in changing the ways things are done, and hence, welcome the opportunity to change the world.

Define your mission and become a mission-driven church. Ask yourself the hard questions. Decide what is essential to your ministry and name the nonessentials? Ask yourself if you have the courage and the commitment to the mission to align everything around it, letting go of the programs that don’t reflect that mission. Learn from Generation X about living through change!

Teaming is central to ministry in the church of the future. With fewer resources, down-sized personnel positions, and more to be done, the goal of teaming is “to get as much ministry accomplished with the most minds involved in the least amount of time,” as Bill Easum puts it. Although the trend toward teams will escalate, the numbers of teams will not necessarily multiply, because teams naturally self-destruct when their mission is accomplished.

Working in teams can be energizing for some, confusing for others, and generally add much chaos to the system. It’s just plain difficult. The trust issue is crucial to the success of team based ministry and must cultivated intentionally over time.

According to Easum, there are two reasons why 85% of teams fail: 1. the failure of senior pastors to manage the vision and 2. the myth that a well-oiled team doesn’t need a strong leader. Team based work groups are not about consensus, but rather about recasting the vision and moving ahead together for the common good. What’s key? System!

It is imperative that ministry be organized around the mission and vision of the church. “The team-based mind set is more important than how the church is organized or how often teams meet.” How you are “organized” and how you “function” may need to be different! Keep asking the question, does our system for operating and accomplishing ministry help us to achieve our vision and accomplish our mission? Discipling

Discipling is not a new idea. By reading just a few New Testament verses, we can see what Jesus had in mind for his leaders. Discipleship pushes us to go deeper, to be passionate about what we are doing, and to be clear about why we are involved. Jesus also teaches us that leaders need to recast the vision often. On the average, team members lose the vision every seven days.

If membership is the gateway to participation, then discipleship is the gateway to leadership. Jesus’ disciples were not being equipped to keep the word to themselves. They were pushed to share it with others, multiplying themselves and growing the church. What’s key? Vision!

In order to engage and transform the church, we need to challenge leaders with a vision that is large enough and worthy of their passion. We need to see a future worth the effort and commitment, be continually reminded of it, and then do the critical work of giving it away. Where do we go from here?

These four cultural issues translate into ministry issues in several ways:

•First, can it be said any clearer?—Churches need a clear, concise vision and a leader to articulate that vision.

At Prince of Peace, we have a mission statement (welcome, equip, send) that drives us toward our vision. Those two statements are guiding our way into the new church. The hope is that both the senior pastor and all ministry leaders are firmly focused on the vision and are able to incorporate the mission into every ministry team, event, program or outreach that occurs.

•Second, the senior pastor must be surrounded by gifted, committed leadership.

At this point it doesn’t matter where the congregation is; it matters greatly where the leaders are! It is the job of the leadership to lead, modeling expectations and pushing the boundaries! Yes, there are expectations for leadership (See the Marks of a Disciple article by Pastor Foss.)

Likewise, it is the role of staff to engage people in ministry and to work themselves out of jobs. They are to multiply themselves and equip others, and if they don’t see that as their primary focus, they are hindering the growth and accomplishment of ministry. People in staff positions are to be shepherding the shepherds. Two key questions can help focus your staff:

1. How many people are engaged in ministry?

2. How many jobs have you worked yourself out of?

Congregations can only grow if clergy and staff are in relationships with the people in the pews. It is important to align staff positions around those relationships. They need to really get to know them, which changes the ministry focus from program based to people based. It’s using Jesus’ model of 3(core) —12(ministry team) — 70(congregation).

•Third, building strong teams starts with identifying the gifts of the leaders and then working trust and flexibility into the team.

Bill Easum identified seven layers necessary to build trust in teams. (Bill is writing an article around dealing with the issue of trust for NetResults to be published soon.)

#1 - Team members are passionate about the vision (theology).

#2 - They understand their role (knowledge).

#3 - They are committed to the process (method).

#4 - They are comfortable with change (may need to retool or retrain).

#5 - They are structured to foster trust (retreats, community building, communication).

#6 - They meet in groups (small group Bible studies, team meetings).

#7 -They have affinity in their groups (respect, recast vision).

Some of these issues can be learned or relearned and others are based on personal commitment. Ask yourself the hard questions about your organization. Am I in line with the vision and the mission statement? Do we share the same values? Can I be fed living in this culture?

Flexibility is a major component of team-based ministry. Teams come into focus around major projects, calling for patience, willingness to adapt, and the ability to see the big picture. Team members need to be self-differentiated, knowing what is work-related and what’s not. If team members are passionate about the ministry and able to discover what particular gifts they contribute to the team, flexibility is a by-product. There are many ways to work a team system, but all of them take time and a commitment.

•Finally, every church has the choice of what it’s leverage points will be.

What and whom will you target? Who will you invite? What will you “look” like in the future? To use Bill’s words, “Do you have the courage and commitment to the mission statement to align everything around your leverage points?” Will you look carefully at the road signs to the future and move from being a program-based church (which we have been) to a mission-oriented church? Action Taken

Bill Easum’s challenges came at a critical time for Prince of Peace. His words were taken to heart, reaffirming many of the strategies already in process and calling us to move even farther on others. We are far from finished with the transformation we are attempting and often frustrated and confused, but the Spirit has continued to guide us and bring teachers into our midst. Bill was one of those teachers and in the few months since his visit, several initiatives have been put in place. Five are listed below:

1. The leadership (staff and council) has reaffirmed the vision, mission statement and strategic objectives arrived at through a recent comprehensive visioning process. These statements and objectives will guide our future ministry.

2. Each staff person and council member was asked to personally adopt the “Marks of a Disciple” and to demonstrate what might be a new level of passion in his or her faith walk.

3. As a staff, we have recommitted to staff education and teaming. We’ve added a monthly growth time for the whole staff and are developing a staff “library” of resources specifically targeting our professional and spiritual needs. Acknowledging we are agents of change, we are more aware of social changes around us and taking the process of change seriously. One resource we are using is the Change Handbook listed in the tool kit on the next page.

4. We have reaffirmed a commitment to give ministry away and to grow leaders for the future of Prince of Peace. This year we decided not to open any classes in a section of church school until every class had a leader, while at the same time giving more time, attention and effort to equipping the leadership already in place. While this could have been disastrous, it was just the opposite. With larger numbers of students, we had fewer teaching vacancies than ever before.

5. We addressed the crucial leverage points around Generation X, the technology issue, and discipling our people (giving ministry away.) We are in the process of learning and discovering what ministering to, by, and with Generation X means for Prince of Peace. We are moving ahead on an improved technology plan with new computers, Inter-net access and a website.

But the most exciting piece is the development of our FaithWalk series, growth opportunities designed to help people grow the marks of a disciple for themselves. All of these initiatives are in the beginning stages, but at least they are off the ground. We are being driven by our mission toward a vision that is more and more visible. Clearly, the best is yet to come!

*A Church that's building a church for the 21st Century—Ginghamburg United Methodist, Ginghamburg, Ohio—Pastor Michael Slater. They’re doing it!