This week I am being dispatched by Injoy Stewardship Solutions (ISS) to attend the 2014 Orange Conference. In an effort to grow in my skills to better add value to pastors and church leaders, I will be live blogging throughout.
The first breakout session was conducted by the brilliant Carey Nieuwhof, Lead Pastor of Connexus Community Church in Ontario, Canada. Carey’s session was entitled Five Traits Of Future Churches. The following are 60 leadership quotes I captured during the session:
- The church in the future will not look like the church of 1995.
- We’re living in an era of rapid, rapid change.
- Our method is going to have to change radically because the leadership world I was born into is different than when I am leading now.
- Everything is changing.
- The church I worked so hard to build but my kids who grew up in it have a right to remake it in their own generation.
- “Change is not an option but how you respond to it is.” – Reggie Joiner
- “To reach people no one else is reaching, we need to do things no one else is doing.” – Craig Groeschel
- Growing up I loved the message but not the method.
- The emerging church never did emerge.
- Nobody in any community is reaching thousands for Christ using a missional model.
- Future-oriented leaders position their church to make an impact tomorrow.
- Future churches commit to the message but are flexible with the method.
- Almost everyone agrees with mission. The battles are over method.
- One of the task of leaders is the ability to separate the method for the mission.
- Clearly distinguish between mission, vision and strategy. Mission and vision are inherently uniting. Strategy is inherently diving.
- Create simple steps, not random programs.
- Use mission and vision to create unity around strategy.
- We don’t evaluate particularly well. We spend all our time on preparation, not evaluation. Your congregation spends all their time evaluating, not preparing.
- Why don’t you figure out what people are saying and get better at it.
- Isn’t it more hurtful to lie and say it was great when it wasn’t.
- Will you display flexibility with the method (even the ones you introduced)?
- Future churches give people a place to BELONG before they BELIEVE.
- Reaching unchurched people begins with ministry, not theology.
- Jesus started with ministry. People who are nothing like Jesus is who Jesus hung out with.
- The Pharisees started with theology. Jesus started with ministry.
- If you expect unchurched people to show up morally pure, good luck. Christians aren’t even showing up morally pure.
- Belong. Believe. Become. Just come hang out with us.
- We have expected people to believe before they belong. When you fit in, you belong.
- Those who belong often start to believe. Everyone who believes can become someone new.
- Know the difference between salvation issues and sanctification issues.
- If Jesus was looking for perfectly qualified people he would have picked the Pharisees. He picked the opposite.
- Future churches value online relationships as real relationships.
- I connect with more people online than I ever would during the week.
- How will you respond if the majority of the population decides to never set foot in a building on Sunday morning for a shred experience? It has arrived.
- In Canada, 93% of people will not be in church this Sunday.
- We’re in the Wild West about what happens online. Nobody really knows the rules.
- Every unchurched person in your community is online.
- Most people use social media like a billboard. It gets pretty boring. What if you actually had a conversation.
- How many people go to your church’s website. Zero. There’s nothing for them. We bought ChristmasInBarre.com. We wanted unchurched people who were looking to celebrate Christmas with their families to find us.
- What if a person going through a divorce in your community googled Divorce Help and found your church?
- There are four principle platforms we are going to use – Facebook because everyone in our church is on Facebook. Twitter because our community leaders are on Twitter. Pinterest – moms own Pinterest. Instagram because if you’re under 30 that’s what you use.
- Future churches embrace quicker, lighter, smaller footprints.
- There are a lot of churches who have the people but no real estate. There are a lot of churches who have a lot of real estate but no people.
- Quicker equals speed. The speed of future growth is impacted by the speed of decision-making. If you as a leadership team can’t make an important decision in 24 hours you’re too slow.
- Lighter means fewer resources. Lower cost venues mean higher growth.
- Portable will become a permanent part of the future.
- The goal is not to build buildings. It is to reach people.
- You can raise a family in a tent but everything takes longer.
- Smaller equals size. A greater number of smaller venues can ultimately accommodate more people.
- The next generation prefers small over big.
- People don’t drive for an hour to go to church. Christians drive an hour to go to church.
- Future churches encourage experimentation.
- The greatest threat to your future success is your current success.
- 85% of Google’s revenue comes from online advertising. They know this will not be the revenue in the future.
- Consolidation always happens before a major shift in history. There was never a better horse and buggy than the ones right before the car came along.
- Are we getting bigger and better churches because something better is coming down the pike?
- Devote 10% of your time and budget than may not work out. Online church is one for us.
- Reward the effort but evaluate the result.
- Don’t allow what’s good to block the potential of what has the potential to be great.
- Are you prepared to risk failure to ensure future success?
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