No one likes change but a baby. Change takes us out of our comfort zone. It causes us to stretch and grow. Change creates environments that are unpredictable. And few things resist change more than local churches.
However, successful pastors and church leaders know the methods churches use must constantly change. So how do we successfully navigate people during necessary changing times?
For the best resource I have read on churches needing to change, read 40 Leadership Quotes From Leading Change Without Losing It.
Also, Lisa Bettany, former figure skater and co-creator of the Camera+ app, was interviewed in the July/August edition of Fast Company magazine. As Lisa discussed the app’s development, it became clear she was an expert on the subject of change.
The following are four lessons we learn about change from Lisa’s interview. When Lisa says “app”, you think “church”.
- Keep Things Simple – As pastors and church leaders, we often have a default mode of complexity. Change should bring simplicity to ministry rather than complexity. Lisa says, “As a photographer, you think you need lots of knobs and endless things to adjust each image. But we realized people just want to capture moments and share them.”
- Meet The Needs Of Others – Christian leaders’ primary motivations for change should always be to reach more people for Christ and better meet the needs of those they serve. What are the issues they are dealing with? What are their concerns? What questions are they asking? Lisa said, “If you want to break through, think about what people need.”
- Create Things That Are New And Improved – Your community probably doesn’t need another church. It most likely needs a different type or BETTER church. Lisa goes on, “If you’re creating a utility tool, then it has to either push the boundaries of what other apps are doing or introduce something brand new. Or it’s something that’s just better than everything else.”
- Deliver Ministry With Ruthless Excellence – Pastors and church leaders must be ruthless about delivering ministry with excellence. Visitors no longer accept sub par performance in any area of their lives, especially church. Lisa concludes, “Create something that works – and works without bugs.” As Camera+ was developing its app, Lisa discovered “it looked cool, like an actual camera, but that extra step (intermediate screen) annoyed people.”
Keep Things Simple, Meet The Needs Of Others By Creating Things That Are New And Improved, and then Deliver Ministry With Ruthless Excellence.
If you do these four things, you are more likely to effectively lead your church through change.
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