Phase 3: Refocusing Ministry

Ewald Unruh

Having served as pastor of a number of churches, I often sensed the need to unify the congregation around a particular ministry focus. We would write a mission statement, but we soon realized such a statement was not very useful unless it was deliberately used to direct the decision-making of the church.

In those days, I often admired what God was doing through various churches worldwide, and I saw other churches that would try to adopt or at least adapt the methods of the successful churches. I certainly believe we can learn much from others. However, what churches often miss is the need to determine a strategy consistent with their own personality and community.

More recently, I have had the opportunity to observe many of our Canadian MB churches and also have been given responsibility to encourage and be a resource to some of them. I have reasons to be optimistic in some situations and reasons to be concerned in others.

We know that it is only healthy churches that will consistently and faithfully be Great Commandment and Great Commission churches. The desire to see Mennonite Brethren churches be healthy is the motivation that drew Conference leaders to explore the ReFocusing Network System. When we pictured Christ's desire for the church, we saw healthy, revitalized, growing churches constantly seeking to be culturally relevant and faithful expressions of Christ in their communities.

Local churches are living organisms. They have been designed by God to grow and reproduce. When churches cease to experience the natural results of being a living organism (i.e., more and better disciples), refocusing is required.

From planning to action

Many churches have initiated what we might call a strategic planning process (e.g., defining a mission or vision statement, setting goals and implementing strategies). However, often these have failed to produce the changes desired. Mission statements often end up in files that are seldom or never opened. The larger reason, though, is that change is a process. Planning is not the end; it is the beginning. Churches sometimes become consumed with developing the plan, but little effort is given to actually implementing it. That is because to increase effectiveness, change is required.

Phase 3 of the ReFocusing Network System is designed so that the plan is actually implemented, that change actually takes place. As in Phase 1 and 2, networks provide the resources, coaching and accountability necessary for the accomplishing of the goal. Ministry leaders and pastoral staff attend network meetings that correspond to their area of ministry. The ReFocusing Ministry Network links together leaders from the local churches with the final goal of transforming the communities in which they minister.

Refocused Ministry

To prepare for entering Phase 2 (Refocusing Churches), pastors have key church members complete the Ministry Assessment Questionnaire. However, they don't actually work through the eight essential elements of a healthy church in Phase 2. That is saved for Phase 3. The reason is that Phase 2 is required to set up a climate for change. It doesn't pay to spend time working through issues of church health before determining what kind of church you want to be. Hence the work on ministry milestones, vision and values, models and the 5 year ministry plan.

Once completed, however, the church is poised to move. But where? There are so many areas to work on in the church. Like the plate juggling artists, pastors and church leaders have a lot of plates to keep in the air. This is true whether they are leaders of small churches or large ones. In small churches there may be a lot of hands-on work in committees and personal supervision of a wide range of activities. In the large church it's a lot of programming activity to juggle.

The Refocusing Ministry Network helps church leaders understand the nature of 8 essential elements of a healthy church. These aren't programs or committees. They are aspects of health that pertain to every church of any size. They empower leaders to put the 5 year plan into action in very specific areas.

The problem with most plans is that they aren't comprehensive enough. They also tend to be program based (ie, "In the next 5 years we will start this or that program). And sometimes leaders have a nagging feeling that the flurry of activity that follows strategic planning is somehow misplaced and won't accomplish the goals envisioned by the board. These flaws scuttle most long-range planning. If, however, a church plans along the lines of the eight essential elements, and determines what action it will take for each element, the plan becomes comprehensive. No critical area is missed. In addition, the Ministry Assessment Questionnaire clearly shows where the church is stronger and weaker in each essential element. This allows leaders to focus action on 2 or 3 elements immediately, instead of implementing hit-and-miss changes that drain precious energy. In fact, leaders set up for Phase 3 by bringing their five year Ministry Plan worked out in Phase 2, plus their eight essential elements tabulated results.

Since Phase 3 is also based on a sharing Network, pastors can check with each other to see how they are faring. They can resource each other with ideas. They can give each other perspective. They are free to do so because they have broken down interpersonal barriers through the Focusing Leaders Network. They can do so relatively intelligently because they have been through the Focusing Church Network together.

A church does not exist for its own sake or only to meet the needs of its current attenders. A refocused church will be ready and able to reach the unchurched, start new cell groups and even launch new congregations. Once a church has moved through the Refocusing process, it can also receive help in determining its readiness to daughter a new church. Resources have also been developed for this process (the Church Planting Parent Church Network).

The executive staff, along with the Executive Board, envision an integrated plan where healthy churches in the Canadian MB Conference will be poised to launch strong new churches. New church plants are still the best way to reach Canada, particularly in our growing urban areas. We want to do our part.

Ewald Unruh is Evangelism Director for the Canadian MB Conference.

Essential Elements of a Healthy Church

* Visionary leadership--leadership is committed to motivating and empowering the church to accomplish a God-given future direction (vision). * Passionate Spirituality--believers have a vibrant personal walk with and ministry for Christ.

* Gifts Mobilization--attenders are empowered to become involved in ministry that is in accordance with their spiritual gifts, abilities and passion.

* Disciple-making Groups--a system of small groups is in place where individuals find support, growth and challenge, and where newcomers are added so that the groups grow and multiply.

* Celebrative Worship--the church has a worship service experience that, regardless of style, is inspiring, glorifying to the eternal, sovereign God and relevant to the everyday needs of those who attend.

* Relational Evangelism--the gospel is preached through words, but also through building relationships that seek to present the whole gospel to the whole person.

* Caring Relationships--the church is characterized by caring, loving actions, where the personal needs of attenders are cared for.

* Functional Structures--programs and ministries within the church are constantly evaluated to ensure that they help the church accomplish its vision.

As you can see, these eight essential elements have little to do with age, size or location of the church.

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