Spiritual Strategic
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Congregational
Redevelopment
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Renewing the Life of a Retirement Congregation Overview Retirement is the stage in a congregation’s life when despair and hope are both present. Hope rests in new opportunities. Despair is evident in how long it has been since the prime of the congregation. Long-term members begin to feel at the end of the Empty Nest stage that their congregation is no longer a good place to invite new people to come for worship, spiritual growth, and fellowship. As a result they become hesitant in their ministry to lost, unchurched, dechurched, and hurting people. Retirement begins to emerge when these same people begin to express excitement about making another major effort to turn around the congregation. They look forward to revitalized and new programs that a newer, younger pastor and perhaps staff ministers, and newer, younger members can start. Retirement is that period when programs and management are dominant. Vision and relationships are no longer dominant. Management is controlling the direction of the congregation. Congregations in Retirement are no longer living out the vision that God has given them for a congregation that ought to be present in a certain place or target group of people. Programs, which were diminished in Empty Nest, revitalize and are again dominant. This is because permission is given and resources are provided for new program emphases. Relationships are now diminished. The natural fellowship of the congregation is wounded. Few core leaders and long-term members invite people to become a part of the congregation. Management, which moved into the driver’s seat during Maturity, is now in firm control of the congregation. Any hope of a return of vision as the driving force is gone, and congregational members and regular attendees begin to realize this, and feel they must empower new programmatic efforts. The key question is whether these new programmatic efforts will be focused on a new emerging future, or on yesterday. An Intervention Framework for Redevelopment at the Retirement Stage The organizational principle or genetic formula for Retirement is vrPM. This is a symbol for when programs and management are dominant, but vision and relationships are no longer dominant. It is the formula for what may appear to be an entrenched, aging congregation that will not move forward without significant effort. The congregation is really not as entrenched as it appears. It has simply been too long since it has experienced the joy of an energizing vision. Therefore, to long-tenured members who are depressed about their congregation, it appears that there is too little hope for a strong, growing future. The difference between the formula for the previous stage, Empty Nest, and the current stage is that now relationships join with vision as no longer being dominant. Programs, which were not dominant in the previous stage, are again dominant along with management. As a result, it is no longer possible to focus directly on revitalizing programs, and then use this as a base for casting new vision. It is necessary to engage in the renewal of relationships to God, one another, and new people in the congregation. This is the process of relationships. The redevelopment formula is vRpm. This means that the primary emphasis needs to be on renewing relationships and then building a basis for new programs. Congregations during the Retirement stage are moving from feelings of depression to feelings of survival. They are afraid that the congregation cannot function as well as it used to. They are scared that the congregation may not be present with vitality and integrity to bury them. To trigger redevelopment, defining reality is necessary for congregations. They must admit that they are in the Retirement stage. Spiritual renewal with the Heavenly Father, and earthly renewal in interpersonal relationships are mandatory as early steps in the intervening in the current situation. It will take longer than many people can wait to get to the point where a new vision can be successfully cast. Renewing the Life of a Retirement Congregation The process theme for congregational intervention during Retirement is renewal. This process involves renewing relationships in a congregation, followed by revitalizing the programs structure of the congregation. Eventually this allows the opportunity for a new vision to captivate the congregation. This new vision will propel it forward to a new, partial life cycle that may have the ability to last seven to nine years. The destination for the renewal effort is Adolescence if change that is discontinuous with the past is attempted. If change that is radical in regard to the past is attempted, then the destination is Childhood. Note on Rate of Change and Transition: The rate of change may be continuous, discontinuous, or radical. Change that is continuous in nature generally deals with natural transition in things, people, and relationships. Change that is discontinuous in nature generally deals with sustainable changes in things that also require definable transitions in people and relationships. Radical change demands transformation of things, people, and relationships. What are the Redevelopment Steps at the Retirement Stage? The strategy is to first diminish the management practices of the congregation that control rather than empower. This can happen by reducing the number of committees, councils, or boards, thus reducing the number of people involved in management activities. Steps to develop and implement decisions can be eliminated, thus streamlining the decision-making process. First, persons who have been in leadership positions so long that they control rather than empower can be moved to new assignments in the congregation. Finally, the management systems need to be reengineered to empower the new sense of vision and spiritual strategic direction. This time frame is three to five years. The desired end result is for the renewed period to last seven to nine years and form a new, partial life cycle. What are the Challenges to Renewing the Life of a Retirement Congregation? Renewing the life of a Retirement congregation is perhaps the biggest challenge of the entire life cycle and stages of congregational development. It is more difficult than a Maturity congregation, an Empty Nest congregation, or an Old Age congregation. Here are some of the challenges: First, it takes longer than many people are willing to accept. The renewal process takes three to five years. Many people expect something significant and lasting to happen within two to three years. It is not possible when the redevelopment process must address relationships first and programs second before vision can be successfully cast. Second, the focus of the permission-giving people may still be on the restoration of past glory rather than risky undertakings that seek to move the congregation forward to a new, partial life cycle. Long-tenured members may not reveal their wish for a return of past glory until major time and effort has been put into a redevelopment effort that they stop supporting. Third, long tenured, permission-giving members have a fear that the change and transition efforts of redevelopment may not be successful. If they are unsuccessful, then they may further weaken the congregation, and not attempting them at all may have been better. Therefore, about 18 to 24 months into the changes initiated by newer, younger leaders, the stakeholders may realize that things are not working the way they thought they would They then seek to stop the change efforts, and—if necessary—get rid of or discourage the leaders of the changes. Fourth, the risk of change and transition that is being taken relates to the organizational health of the congregation. If the change and transition efforts do not work in a manner that seems positive to the permission givers, it is possible that the congregation will have unhealthy conflict at a level that involves a corporate split of the congregation into two or more congregations. | 
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