Changing Church Leadership

How is the Church changing?

How is churchleadership changing?

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Age in 2005

pe

rce

nta

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under 15

monthly

Post-Christendom?

9% monthly

26% De Churched

65% Non Churched

76% of New Christians Come from 26% De-Churched

finding faith today 1992

This section of the population is older and decreasing over time

Church attendance 2005

Infant Baptism C of E 2007

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1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

percentage of births by year

‘‘The reality is that mainstream The reality is that mainstream culture no longer brings people culture no longer brings people to the church door. We can no to the church door. We can no

longer longer assume that we can assume that we can

automatically automatically reproduce ourselves, because reproduce ourselves, because the pool of people who regard the pool of people who regard

church aschurch asrelevant or important is relevant or important is

decreasing decreasing with every generation’with every generation’

Mission shaped church report p11Mission shaped church report p11

“ “ this majority (66%) presents a major this majority (66%) presents a major challenge to churches. Most of them are challenge to churches. Most of them are

unreceptive and closed unreceptive and closed to attending church; churchgoing isto attending church; churchgoing is

simply not on their agenda.”simply not on their agenda.”

How have we defined a ‘searcher’?

► Someone who has had cause to reconsider their core values, or think about the big issues like ‘the meaning of life’, in the last year

2000 interviews with a nationally representative sample of UK adults, conducted 24-27th April 09

Are People Searching and why?

► 73% of people are searching►All ages, male and female, all but the

lowest of social grades

► 70% of people are searching because of either the credit crunch, concern about personal finances or job insecurity

Australian Gen Y – like Britain?

Floating 46 %

‘new spiritual’ 23%

Religious 17%

Non believing

14%

Rationalist humanist

Includes neo pagans and followers or frequent participants in the esoteric/occult

Moral relativism, pick ‘n’ mix, truth in all religions but not just one, something ‘out there’ occult and paranormal experienced

BUT open rather than committed or seeing as important

“ we understood mission oneway and organised life to accomplish it. We have awakened to find out the mission moved on us. To keep focusing on mission, wehave to turn the furniturearound and face a differentdirection. We may even have to move into another room.”

Loren Mead. Loren Mead. The Once and Future Church,1992 The Once and Future Church,1992 Alban InstitiuteAlban Institiute

Hungry for us to be a Church that connects

with every personand every community.’

+ Stephen Cottrell

Our call to evangelise the whole countryor decline into a sect

1.Missional leadership is the key

2.Most models repackage old paradigms

3.Discontinuous change is the norm

4.Congregations still matter

5.Leaders need new capacities & frameworks

6.A church is a unique organisation

Alan Roxburgh. The Missional Leader

What does a leader for the open seas look like?

“a person with a detailed knowledgeof an area of water, who goes on to

a ship to direct it safely.”

Spectrum of pioneeringSpectrum of pioneering

PioneerStarter

PioneerSustainer

SustainerPioneer

SustainerDeveloper

“ re-infect the world with worship.”•People’s homes

•On the street

•At work

•The calendar

‘It’s so important to remember that what we counted as an appropriate response to God inone generation and culture will be very different in another.’ Abbot Stuart Burns

Imagination“ “ ImaginationImagination is more important than is more important than

knowledge, knowledge is limited.”knowledge, knowledge is limited.”

Albert EinsteinAlbert Einstein

‘ people who open up major new possibilities with God.’

“listen to the space opened up by Jesus Christ.”

Rowan Williams

Able to listen and discern

‘ if Christian mission is about, “seeing whatGod is doing and joining in”…. then

discernment & the cultivating of an environmentwhich enables discernment are the leadership

capacities most needed at this time.’

Graham Cray, The Discerning Leader Grove Book 2010

“We cannot solve problems by using the same kind of thinking

we used when we created them.”

Albert Einstein

Three pieces of adviceabout imagination

1.Forget everything you know

2.Remember everything you know

3.Re-arrange everything you know

Exploring Creativity and Innovation

• CREATIVITY – The ability to develop new ideas and discover new ways of looking at problems and opportunities

• INNOVATION – The ability to apply creative solutions to problems and opportunities to enhance or enrich peoples lives

• Creativity is THINKING • Innovation is DOING

“Creativity is no more than looking at the same thing as everyone else

and thinking something different.”

Albert Szent-Gyorgi

EvaluateEvaluate

•Who is the mission for?

•Who is the mission by?

•Who is the mission with?

YOU CAN’T PREDICT THE YOU CAN’T PREDICT THE OUTCOMEOUTCOME

• DETAILED PLANNING WILL BE LESS DETAILED PLANNING WILL BE LESS EFFECTIVEEFFECTIVE

• MORE A MATTER OF DISCERNMENTMORE A MATTER OF DISCERNMENT• SEE WHAT GOD GROWSSEE WHAT GOD GROWS

– New church members?New church members?– A small group?A small group?– A project?A project?– A church?A church?

StickinessStickiness‘faith is a community experience not

an individual one.’

EvangelistEvangelist

‘How can we serve the peoplewith whom we have contact in such a way that the gospel is

intriguing, challenging andappealing.’

+Stephen Cottrell

‘do the work of an evangelist.’

•envision•encourage•equip•example

Church formingChurch formingand nurturingand nurturing

• ‘…do not try to call them back to where they were, and do not try to call them to where you are, beautiful as that place may seem to you. You must have the courage to go with them to a place that neither you nor they have been before.’

Vincent Donovan

•Reorientation- look out

•Reconnection- walls down

•Recreation- sent out

Some selected models