By Mary C. Frances, Executive Director and Senior Consultant
For decades, the Church has prioritized preservation over mission. We have maintained buildings, protected budgets, and clung to familiar programs. But preservation is not the Gospel call. The Gospel is a call to resurrection—and resurrection requires, to put it bluntly, death. In today’s rapidly shifting cultural landscape, churches that are unwilling to take risks are not playing it safe; they are slowly dying. Conversely, churches that embrace holy disruption are discovering vitality they never imagined possible.
Consider the recent surge in ICE activity in the Twin Cities. While some institutions remained silent, many churches took a significant risk. They opened their doors as sanctuary spaces, provided emergency funds for families facing deportation, and stood publicly with vulnerable populations. These congregations knew they might alienate members, draw unwanted political attention, or face legal pushback. Yet they acted anyway. In doing so, they rediscovered what it means to be the Church—not a civic club, but the Body of Christ incarnate in a broken world. Risk-taking restored their faith and their witness.
We see a quieter but equally powerful example in rural America. A declining country church recognized that Sunday School had dwindled to three children. Instead of ordering a new curriculum or rearranging the classroom chairs, they took a different risk. Members visited every family in the school district—not to recruit, but to listen. “What do your kids need? What would make them want to come?” The answers surprised them. Families wanted flexible timing, non-traditional formats, and input on the content. The church invited everyone to a community meeting and together co-designed the new Sunday School. The result? Attendance grew, but more importantly, the church transformed from a provider of programs to a partner with its community. That shift required vulnerability, and vulnerability required risk.
Many congregations want to change but do not know where to start. This is where tools like the Congregational Vitality Assessment from FaithX become invaluable. The CVA does not measure attendance or budget size. It measures adaptive capacity—the congregation’s readiness to take risks and embrace change. By identifying specific areas of strength and resistance, the assessment gives churches permission to experiment. It validates that health is not about being the biggest; it is about being the most responsive to the Spirit’s leading.
The Church has always grown at the edges, not the center. Paul did not plant churches by playing it safe; he traveled into hostile cities, challenged cultural norms, and relied on the hospitality of strangers; he took risks. Today’s challenges—political polarization, declining participation, cultural irrelevance—require the same boldness, the same kind of risk-taking.
A healthy church does not simply survive. It risks comfort for the sake of love. It risks reputation for the sake of justice. It risks failure for the sake of resurrection. The world does not need safer churches. It needs braver ones.
Ready for your congregation to take the CVA? Have questions? Email us at info@faithx.net.
