The FIVE Critical Areas Of CHANGE

As I talk to many of you and interact with leaders who lead leaders, there are six areas that seem to resonate with all of us when we think of our challenges.

They are:

• CHANGE
• CONFLICT
• LEADERSHIP
• RESOURCES
• AGING/SUCCESSION
• SYSTEMS

Now these aren’t listed in priority order because the level of importance changes based on your situation. However, the idea of CHANGE is a part of every area of challenge we face and if CHANGE is not expected, accepted, welcomed and properly managed it can be a huge source of stress and struggle. 

Recently while reading The Unstuck Church by Tony Morgan, I ran across five areas that may be great starting points for you to establish a level of trust and unity that can endure CHANGE. While we may not agree on every attribute of a healthy church or even on the main objectives of ministry; I think we can agree that these five areas are critical. You must define them, articulate them and be sure everyone connected to you knows what they are.
 

• Doctrine. Every church should establish a statement of faith that confirms their theological underpinning. 
• Mission. There should be one sentence defining why the church exists. 
• Vision. There should be agreement on what the church is planning and praying it will be in the future. 
• Strategy. Leadership must have agreement on how that vision will be accomplished. 
• ​Values. Because values shape the culture, the team must agree on the values they embrace.

Stephen M.R. Covey makes one thing crystal clear in his book, The Speed of Trust. When trust is high, CHANGE is faster and less expensive. When trust is low, CHANGE is slow and costly!” 

So get started improving the trust levels in your church and consequently equip everyone to manage CHANGE by answering our Leading Questions and following the Next Steps.

LEADING QUESTIONS

1. How long ago did you develop the five elements listed above?
2. When is the last time you read through them?
3. What percentage of the teams who make decisions are familiar with what these five are?
4. When is the last time you reviewed the elements above with your leadership teams?

NEXT STEPS

1. Make sure you have written out all five areas above.
2. Make plans to communicate them on every level.
3. Develop a calendar for ongoing communication of these important descriptors of the ministry God has called you to. 

Love you and praying for you!