Daily Discussion Question: Where is your congregation in the "church life cycle"?
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Jeremy Geerdes
Mar 13, 2009, 7:11:06 AM3/13/09
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For the last few months, the district's newsletter, Parson to Parson, has included with it a publication examining the phases of the church life cycle. The author noted how churches tend to move through an initial phase where everything is new and exciting and ministry is characteristically dynamic and fluid; an institutional phase where identity begins to solidify and ministries begin to codify; a plateauing phase when traditions are recognized and ministry eventually loses its upward momentum in numerical and other growth; and a declining period when everyone looks back to the good ol' days and attendance slides, ultimately resulting in the death of a congregation.
The author makes the point that virtually every church observes a similar pattern over the course of a decade or two, and the churches that survive beyond that must find a way to break the cycle and return to some sort of climbing phase, redefining itself and retooling its ministries to regain relevance in its new cultural surroundings. In order to do that, though, we must have an idea where we are in the progression.
So here's the question: Where is your congregation in the "church life cycle"?
A helpful hint: the district's online statistics system can help you by providing graphs, charts, and even Excel spreadsheets of the monthly averages you reported to Vital Signs all the way back to 2003. Check it out athttp://www.iamndistrict.org/cgi-bin/stats/stats.cgi
Rev. Jeremy R. Geerdes, Pastor
The author makes the point that virtually every church observes a similar pattern over the course of a decade or two, and the churches that survive beyond that must find a way to break the cycle and return to some sort of climbing phase, redefining itself and retooling its ministries to regain relevance in its new cultural surroundings. In order to do that, though, we must have an idea where we are in the progression.
So here's the question: Where is your congregation in the "church life cycle"?
A helpful hint: the district's online statistics system can help you by providing graphs, charts, and even Excel spreadsheets of the monthly averages you reported to Vital Signs all the way back to 2003. Check it out athttp://www.iamndistrict.org/cgi-bin/stats/stats.cgi
Rev. Jeremy R. Geerdes, Pastor
Debra Heights Wesleyan Church
4025 Lower Beaver Rd.
Des Moines, IA 50310
p/f: (515) 279-5212
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