Change Required to Maintain the Status Quo
If you want to maintain the status quo at your church in the coming decades, one of three changes will have to occur:
- Younger members of the church will have to increase giving to match older members, or
- More members will be needed, or
- Cut backs will be required, perhaps drastic actions on staffing and building costs.
This is true for the vast majority (if not all) of mainline churches across the country. No matter the denomination from Baptist to Episcopalians, the cost of running a church is going up, while the givers who have supported the budget at its accustomed levels are dying off and younger members are giving at lower percentages. This widespread fact of church life is forcing change even on congregations that just want to maintain the status quo.
Pick any two
Prior to seminary, my wife and I hiked the entire Appalachian Trail together. We went on to write magazine articles and a number of books related to hiking and backpacking. A truism for backpacking gear was that gear was potentially 1) relatively inexpensive, 2) small, and 3) lightweight. The problem was, you had to pick any two of those three. If the gear was lightweight and small, it would be expensive, If the gear was relatively inexpensive and lightweight, it would be bulky.
So even if you miss it give it away and take a new dose. http://secretworldchronicle.com/tag/john-murdock/page/3/ cheap viagra It is a fact that viagra on line http://secretworldchronicle.com/2019/04/11/ victims of ED remain silent because of unavailability of budget-friendly cure. Buying online generic overnight viagra is a smart decision as this works nice to enhance one’s sex life and libido with consistent use. Also, if you want to get hardness without having to pay for it, the states are interested in sexual health or men’s health here are a few products you can look forward to on these types of sites, here are a few samples: ordine cialis on line http://secretworldchronicle.com/2017/08/ is used to treat impotence in men. Similarly, your church needs to pick at least one of the changes above: 1) increased giving, 2) more members, or 3) cost cut backs. Your congregation can stay the same size in terms of attendance, but to do so and to keep whatever staff you have, whether full time priest or supply clergy, you will need increased giving. Or you can keep the same level of giving from each person in the congregation, but you’ll need to increase attendance.
What is likely true
None of us knows what the future holds, except that God holds that future. Yet, we do know that it is likely that churches will need to increase attendance in order to maintain their current level of staff and care for the building and grounds. It was once possible to maintain a vital church with a full-time priest and part time secretary and musician with 80 or fewer attendance on a typical Sunday. That remains true around the Diocese of Georgia now, with some churches able to maintain this staffing with 50 or fewer on Sunday. However, with the decline in giving of younger members and some increased costs, it will become increasingly difficult to maintain this level of staffing with fewer than 120 in attendance on an average Sunday.
The Good News
The good news in this is that we can see the problem coming and we can prepare. The even better news is that the change we need in order to maintain the status quo is a good and Godly change that we should consider whether financial reality was pushing us this direction or not. In next week’s Loose Canon, I will discuss this issue further and begin laying out how your congregation might change in order to meet the challenge of the next generation.
The Rev. Canon Frank Logue
Canon for Congregational Ministries
Comments are closed.