The response to my last post has been a little loud.
Some people were grateful.
Some were uncomfortable.
Some were frustrated.
Some flat did not like what I had to say.
And frankly all of those answers are good.
Because if we’re honest, we don’t need more agreement. We need movement.
So let’s move the conversation forward.
If this really is a stewardship crisis… then what do we actually do about it?
Not in theory. Not some vague encouragement.
But in real, tangible, actionable ways that help churches take faithful next steps.
First. Let’s Be Clear About What This Is Not
This is not about:
- Forcing churches to close
- Strong-arming congregations into mergers
- Shaming smaller churches
- Or acting like bigger automatically means better
That’s not the goal. The goal is faithfulness.
And faithfulness requires intentional stewardship of people, pastors, buildings, and the mission.
The Shift We Need
We have to move from:
Reactive → Intentional
Isolated → Supported
Preservation → Mission
Right now, too many congregations are left to figure this out alone. So they stall. Or they avoid hard conversations. Or they default to “just keep going.”
Not because they don’t care, but because they don’t know what else to do.
That’s where we need to change (or modify) the system.
What If We Actually Supported Churches Through This?
Not just with funding. Not just with prayers. Although we definitely need to be continually praying! But with real, hands-on, structured support.
I’m the kind of person who doesn’t just say there’s a problem and not offer a potential solution. So here’s a crack at what this could look like:
1. Deploy Real Transition Teams
Imagine if congregations didn’t have to navigate this alone.
Instead, trained teams made up of experienced pastors, lay leaders, and district support staff could step in to help churches. They would
- Assess current health and mission alignment
- Facilitate honest conversations (the ones no one wants to lead)
- Walk leadership through options: revitalization, partnership, merger, or even closure
- Keep the focus on Gospel impact not just institutional survival
This is not about outsiders dictating decisions. This is about guides helping congregations discern faithfully.
2. Normalize and Resource Church-to-Church Partnerships
Not every church needs to close. Let me say that very clearly so the people in the back don’t get their undies in a bunch.
Not every church needs to close!
But many shouldn’t stay isolated.
We should be actively encouraging:
- Shared staffing models (one pastor or commissioned worker serving multiple congregations)
- Ministry partnerships between neighboring churches
- Campus-style expansions where one healthy church adopts another location
- Leadership pipelines shared across congregations
We don’t need fewer churches. We need more connected churches.
3. Create a “Best Practices” Playbook for Hard Conversations
Right now, every church facing decline feels like they’re the first ones to ever go through it. News flash friends! They’re not.
So why aren’t we equipping them better?
We need a clear, accessible resource that walks congregations through:
- How to recognize when change is necessary
- How to lead a healthy congregational conversation
- What a faithful merger process actually looks like
- How to navigate closure with dignity, care, and Gospel clarity
- Legal, financial, and property considerations
- How to care for members emotionally and spiritually through transition
Not more theory. Real steps. Real timelines. Real examples.
4. Activate Existing Synod and District Resources
We don’t necessarily need to build something new. We need to better deploy what we already have.
There are leaders at the district and synod levels with wisdom, experience, and capacity. But too often, their role is reactive instead of proactive. They are spending far too much time behind desks when they could be sitting with pastors and church leaders. They could be listening. Encouraging and connecting right there in the communities that are struggling.
What if:
- Every struggling congregation had a clear, accessible pathway to support
- District leaders regularly initiated conversations instead of waiting for crisis
- Resources were streamlined and digitized instead of scattered and still in binders in some basement
- Churches knew exactly who to call and what help would actually look like
Support shouldn’t feel distant or bureaucratic.
It should feel present, personal, and practical.
5. Fund Strategy, Not Just Survival
Money isn’t the primary issue, but how we use it matters.
Instead of defaulting to, “Let’s help them stay open a little longer…”
What if we prioritized:
- Funding for transition teams
- Grants for merger or relaunch processes
- Support for leadership coaching during major change
- Investment in church plants or revitalization efforts tied to legacy churches
Not bailout money. Mission-focused investment.
6. Tell Better Stories
Right now, closures and mergers feel like failure. So churches avoid them.
But what if we told different stories? Stories of:
- Two churches coming together and reaching more people than either could alone
- A legacy congregation blessing a new church plant in their community
- A faithful closure that led to Kingdom impact beyond what anyone expected
We need to redefine what success looks like. Because the Gospel isn’t measured in how long something stays open.
It’s measured in lives reached.
This Is About Courage Together
No single church should have to carry this weight alone. And no congregation should feel like their only options are: “Stay the same” or “shut down.”
There is a better way. But this better way requires:
- Courage from congregational leaders
- Initiative from district leadership
- Collaboration across local congregations
- And a shared commitment to the mission over the model
Final Thought
If we really believe the Church exists to reach people with the Gospel, then we have to be willing to structure ourselves around that mission.
Not around comfort.
Not around history.
Not around buildings.
Around people who don’t yet know Jesus.
We don’t need to panic.
We don’t need to force outcomes.
But we do need to act like stewards.
Because the mission is too important not to.
Next week, I want to take a deeper dive into a few of these pathways. We’ll look at what they actually look like on the ground, and how churches can begin taking first steps.
