From A Spiral Of Death Towards Church Revitalization: Phase one - Embracing The Process Towards His New Normal: We introduced this basic course during 2020 as we dealt with the COVID-19 Shurt Down. Experts reported the pandemic had set back the church revitalization process in North America three to five years, and almost doubled the projections of church closure as a result. As we began to come out of that era, in 2021 we began implementation of this process.
The basic premise of our platform is that the church that is plateaued, declining, or dying must follow a set process/address certain steps to even think of surviving the decline. We further hold to the belief that though a church might survive without following a process such as this, it will not thrive as we believe God would have to to become!! We also believe that these steps must be taken in an established order. If not, there will be problems with the process that will further hinder the possibility of revitalization.
It is our hope to have a minimum of five (5) churches in our first Phase One Group. The steps as we detail them are as follows:
Step One: The Necessity of Prayer - We have observed that churches want to "hurry and do something," yet fail to pray to discern God's Will for the church. Church revitalization cannot be accomplished without fervent prayer -- individually as church members and leaders; and, corporately as His Church.
Step Two: Biblical Mandates To The Church - Before the process begins, we believe each church must take a prayerful look at the mandates given to the church in God's Word/Jesus' Teaching. At this point, we are emphasizing:
1. Surrendering to the Lordship Of Christ Daily - Luke 9: 23
2. Love God - The Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22)
3. Love People - the second to the Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22)
4. Proclaim Jesus - our command of Christ to proclaim the Gospel (Acts 1: 8)
5. Make Disciples - as His Church - work together to make disciples of all peoples (Matthew 28: 16 - 20)
6. Impact our culture (All the scriptures above)
We must explore these Biblical mandates in the conext of the location of the church where God has placed us.
Step Three: What changes are necessary to more effectively minister to the community we serve. As time changes, so does the community. We must know the community and what they need to effectively minster to them at the point of their need. The level of possibility for the church to change these things is direrly related to a church's survival.
Step Four: Is the church's pastor and leadership capable of communicating the vision to the members. The pastor/church leaders must be able to relay the vision so vividly and effectively that the membership can hardly wait to follow them to that new normal.
Step Five: Leadership's ability to lead the church/what training is needed to assist. This could be a "game changer." It is our counsel that every church leader go through some basic, biblical training to prepare for the new normal that now exists. Any church leader that feels they have been adequately trained for the new normal and all its changes is not ready to lead in the new normal. In essence we believe every person in leadership should be hungry for Bible study and leadership training.
Step Six: What can be done this year to get us ready to reach our goals next year. Now that we have worked through all these steps, we should still begin to take small steps towards reaching the goals.
Step Seven: Implement new plan of action. Here, we move into our two-prong approach - fervent prayer, and fleshing out the church revitalization process each individual church has discerned through their prayer and personal preparation. When the churches get to this point in Phase One, the individual churches will look to determine their timetable for Phase Two.
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Phase Two: From Understanding and equipping to implementation. Phase two is the implementation of the above. The AMS and other TRBA Ministry Team Leaders/members and staff may be involved with this process. This process will NOT begin until the church has concluded a season of prayer and discerned the direction of the church.one, for our current that they can learn with other is foundational to the success of their church revitalization efforts.
It is our hope that a good number of persons in the church have participated in some of the other courses being offered in the CHURCH REVITALIZATION UNIVERSITY - TRBA Campus. The higher percentage that are engaged in spiritual growth, leadership development, and job-specific training the better equipped the church will be to experience church revitalization. The 80/20 and 95/5 rules must be reversed for churches to become the churches God would have us to be to THIS generation.
The basic premise of our platform is that the church that is plateaued, declining, or dying must follow a set process/address certain steps to even think of surviving the decline. We further hold to the belief that though a church might survive without following a process such as this, it will not thrive as we believe God would have to to become!! We also believe that these steps must be taken in an established order. If not, there will be problems with the process that will further hinder the possibility of revitalization.
It is our hope to have a minimum of five (5) churches in our first Phase One Group. The steps as we detail them are as follows:
Step One: The Necessity of Prayer - We have observed that churches want to "hurry and do something," yet fail to pray to discern God's Will for the church. Church revitalization cannot be accomplished without fervent prayer -- individually as church members and leaders; and, corporately as His Church.
Step Two: Biblical Mandates To The Church - Before the process begins, we believe each church must take a prayerful look at the mandates given to the church in God's Word/Jesus' Teaching. At this point, we are emphasizing:
1. Surrendering to the Lordship Of Christ Daily - Luke 9: 23
2. Love God - The Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22)
3. Love People - the second to the Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22)
4. Proclaim Jesus - our command of Christ to proclaim the Gospel (Acts 1: 8)
5. Make Disciples - as His Church - work together to make disciples of all peoples (Matthew 28: 16 - 20)
6. Impact our culture (All the scriptures above)
We must explore these Biblical mandates in the conext of the location of the church where God has placed us.
Step Three: What changes are necessary to more effectively minister to the community we serve. As time changes, so does the community. We must know the community and what they need to effectively minster to them at the point of their need. The level of possibility for the church to change these things is direrly related to a church's survival.
Step Four: Is the church's pastor and leadership capable of communicating the vision to the members. The pastor/church leaders must be able to relay the vision so vividly and effectively that the membership can hardly wait to follow them to that new normal.
Step Five: Leadership's ability to lead the church/what training is needed to assist. This could be a "game changer." It is our counsel that every church leader go through some basic, biblical training to prepare for the new normal that now exists. Any church leader that feels they have been adequately trained for the new normal and all its changes is not ready to lead in the new normal. In essence we believe every person in leadership should be hungry for Bible study and leadership training.
Step Six: What can be done this year to get us ready to reach our goals next year. Now that we have worked through all these steps, we should still begin to take small steps towards reaching the goals.
Step Seven: Implement new plan of action. Here, we move into our two-prong approach - fervent prayer, and fleshing out the church revitalization process each individual church has discerned through their prayer and personal preparation. When the churches get to this point in Phase One, the individual churches will look to determine their timetable for Phase Two.
*********************************************************************************************************************
Phase Two: From Understanding and equipping to implementation. Phase two is the implementation of the above. The AMS and other TRBA Ministry Team Leaders/members and staff may be involved with this process. This process will NOT begin until the church has concluded a season of prayer and discerned the direction of the church.one, for our current that they can learn with other is foundational to the success of their church revitalization efforts.
It is our hope that a good number of persons in the church have participated in some of the other courses being offered in the CHURCH REVITALIZATION UNIVERSITY - TRBA Campus. The higher percentage that are engaged in spiritual growth, leadership development, and job-specific training the better equipped the church will be to experience church revitalization. The 80/20 and 95/5 rules must be reversed for churches to become the churches God would have us to be to THIS generation.