Photo by Joran Quinten on Unsplash
by Steve Matthews, Senior Missional Consultant, FaithX
Ecclesiastes 3:1-4
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance…
The Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina are beautiful, and I am very grateful to call this place home. One of the things I love about living here is the fact that we get to experience four distinct seasons, and springtime is my favorite season. The colors of the flowers, the greening of trees and grasses, the clear, blue sky… doesn’t everything seem just a little more hopeful in the spring?
As the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, not every season is spring. In church as in nature there are seasons of bourgeoning life as well as seasons of decline. In church redevelopment, we often offer the Two Loops Model of Living Systems, we are reminded that in every living system, something is always something being birthed, and something is always dying. The photo above is a great example of this. While the once tall tree in the picture is now decaying on the forest floor, it is also serving as a nutrition rich source for the mushrooms growing and spreading.
In church we like to focus on life and not think about death. While many of us have a theology of resurrection, we avoid any conversation suggesting our church might have an ending – a death. It’s almost as if we don’t trust a resurrection theology when it comes to God’s work in this place – our church! Yet many churches across the country are experiencing a decline in attendance and vitality. Sometimes, this shows up as persistent fatigue, resistance, and sometimes as a desire to try harder to rekindle a vitality affectionately remembered from years ago. These are all understandable responses, but are they the most faithful and life-giving ways to embrace reality?
In the Two Loops Model, every stage of life is honored. In the diagram below we see that organizational life emerges and grows on the first loop, and it also eventually declines toward hospice and compost. Meanwhile, all along the way, there is new life emerging on the second loop. In this part of the life cycle, new ministries and expressions of faith are looking for the wisdom, experience, and nurturance of those faith communities who have preceded them.
I find this model inspiring for churches in decline. It invites faith communities experiencing decline to notice, name, and nurture the lessons they have learned, to consider what to hold on to, what to let go of, and what to give away. It encourages communities to assess their space and their legacy in a way that honors not only the community that is gathered now, but also honors those who have so faithfully nurtured life and ministry within that church for previous generations.
Communities who look at their realities lovingly and honestly through this lens, often find new energy for innovation. While this new awareness may not “save” them, they often find new partners, new uses for their space, and hopeful and faithful ways to pass on their legacy to communities who share their values and have more energy and resources to take God’s mission into the future.
Where is your faith community on this life cycle? What “time” is it for your church? What are the gifts and opportunities available to you, even if you find yourself experiencing some sense of institutional hospice? At FaithX, we have demographic tools to help you discern your context with fresh eyes, and we offer informed consulting to help you consider the possibilities of faithful ministry moving forward. Feel free to contact us with your questions and reflections. Also, just for kicks, you might enjoy this video courtesy of the Ed Sullivan and The Byrds.
