You are the Church

Leadership alignment in a transition like this is key. For many years, we’ve seen this as one of the top factors that prevents churches from making progress. If leaders aren’t aligned, at some point teams will begin working against themselves vying for their own program. Until disciple-making is seen as the only function of the church that everything else supports, adding new programs will be seen as the answer to getting people into the doors of the church building.

For an everyday person to see themselves as a disciple-maker, they have to see examples. Missional Communities contain multiple families who commit to share life, go deep with Christ, and serve the needs of those the Spirit sends them to. Leaders model the way for everyone else to follow. Part of the role of a leader is to be an example to the church of what a disciple-making life looks like. A leader’s family doesn’t do this on their own, but with others. It’s in this context that others come to know Jesus and the leader gets cared for too.

A Missional Community isn’t just another program of the church, but the core expression of who the church was made to be. Making fully-formed disciples requires four things: Life with God, life on life, life in community, and life on mission. These environments eventually become all-encompassing to a believer’s life, so much so that everyday life begins to be seen as the “program” we’re called to engage more deeply in. As people go deeper in relationship with those around them, churches will see their role as equipping people to do more of this.

About 18-24 months into a transition like this, many churches begin to get impatient because they want to see quick results. For an established congregation to begin to see progress, it typically takes 3-5 years to begin to see changes. For congregations that have been around for longer than 20 years, it can take even longer. A commitment for the long haul is what it takes. If not for you personally, this work will be for your children and their children. Stick with it!

Changing the name of what you call a small group is part of the process, but there has to be more. That shift has to be followed by a change in teaching, coaching, and training. Many small groups are gathered around Bible study and self-care. Those are great things and part of the life of a church. However, the reason a group gathers is what they will continue to organize around. Re-organizing for the sake of mission changes everything, because the assumptions of what a group exists for have changed. Do we exist for ourselves, or for outsiders? The implications of this question take time and a lot of work.

It takes time to transition people’s beliefs. Many Christians have lived most of their lives believing that attending church programs is what it means to be a Christian. As programs go away and training and equipping opportunities take their places, some will become afraid and go to other churches that fit their worldview. Though this may be hard to experience, it’s okay. There are ways to make this transition gently. Spend your first year getting people rooted in the gospel using our gospel fluency material. Along the way, discuss the implications of the gospel for everyday life. Don’t rush people too quickly into a new paradigm. It’s about helping people shift their thinking first. Yet, even with this, it’s normal to lose existing church members. Being all right with that will help you focus on your core who are committed to being equipped to being disciples who make disciples.