The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
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The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
When What Used to Work, Doesnt (And What to Do About It)
What if the very strategies that once fueled your ministry's success are now holding you back? In this episode of the Healthy Church Staff Podcast, Todd Rhoades confronts the unsettling reality many church leaders face: recognizing that outdated methods no longer connect with today's congregation. Drawing from his nearly 35 years of ministry experience, Todd walks you through the process of embracing change, listening to your congregation, and evaluating whether your current programs still align with your mission and values.
You'll gain valuable insights on how to navigate the inevitable transitions that come with ever-changing community needs and preferences. Todd emphasizes the importance of being open to new ideas and not being afraid to let go of what no longer works. This episode offers practical advice and encouragement to help you adapt and thrive, ensuring your ministry remains impactful and relevant in a rapidly evolving world.
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Hey there, my name is Todd Rhodes and you're listening to the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. Today we're tackling a reality that if you've been in ministry for very long at all, you're going to face it sooner or later, and it's the frustrating realization that what used to work in ministry, it just doesn't work anymore. The feeling of programs that once drew crowds now sit empty. The sermons that used to inspire now fall flat. The outreach strategies that used to connect with the community now feel totally out of touch. It's like your ministry playbook has suddenly become outdated and you're left scrambling for a new game plan. I've heard this so much in the last five years. It's not even funny. What used to work doesn't anymore. But here's the thing this isn't a sign of failure. It's actually a natural part of the ministry life cycle.
Speaker 1:What we've experienced in the last five years, since what has shown a lot of cracks that were there before and it's made we've had probably 25 years of change. In the past five years, everything the world is always just normally constantly changing. But because of what we've been through, change is just look at the news cycle. My goodness it is. It's a crazy world and things are constantly changing, and they're changing faster than ever. So there are needs and interests and preferences of your church and community that have changed, and what worked a decade ago or even a few years ago and what we're finding now and this is scary, what even worked a few months ago, may not be effective today. So how do you respond? What in the world do you do when your ministry hits that plateau where it starts to decline, and how do you adapt and evolve to meet the changing needs of your church and community? Well, I wish I had all the answers Again. Boy, I would write a book or run for president or something if I had all the answers. I don't, but I've got some suggestions here, hopefully that will be helpful to you. I've been in ministry for man. It's been almost 35 years. It's just absolutely I feel like an old man. I'm not and I don't feel like that way, but I do sometimes. But here's some things that I've discovered over the years that hopefully will be helpful to you.
Speaker 1:First of all, embrace change. Resist the temptation to cling to the past or to cling to what's comfortable. Change is inevitable and it can be an opportunity for growth and renewal. And you know what You're changing as well, not just the things that work around you. You're changing as well. Not just the things that work around you, but you're changing as well. The older you get some of us I think I'm more open to change now than I was 20, 30 years ago. Other people, when they get older, they resist change. Like you, you've met those people. How much they resist change. But if you can embrace change and just understand the change is going to happen and you can't stop it, that's the first step to moving through this. All right. So that's number one.
Speaker 1:Second, listen to your people. You have gone through your ministry and you just felt what your congregation needs. But as fast as things are changing, don't assume what your congregation needs. You need to talk to them. Maybe a survey, maybe listen to their feedback. What are their concerns? What are their hopes, what are their dreams? What is changing in their lives? What do they need that's different than what they needed a few years ago?
Speaker 1:Listen to your people that's huge and then evaluate your methods. Take a critical look at your current programs and your strategies and your approaches. Are they still relevant? Are they effective? I think every church maybe not every church, but a lot of churches probably have one or two or 20 programs that they do just because they've always done them, and they might not be relevant anymore, they might not be effective anymore. So maybe and they might not even I've seen this as well they might not even be aligned with your church's mission and values anymore. Evaluate your methods. Take a look at what you're currently doing, all those programs and if there are some that need to go away, that's okay. You can start something new to replace them that's going to actually work. Okay.
Speaker 1:Number four Once you've done that, then you can start to have a little bit of fun. At least, not everybody thinks this is fun, but I think this is fun. You get to experiment and innovate. Now, don't be afraid to try new things. Experiment with different formats and styles and approaches to see what resonates in your church. Now, some churches absolutely are stellar at this. Other churches, quite frankly, are stellar at this. Other churches, quite frankly, stink at this. Some churches have this culture that you'll be punished if you try new things.
Speaker 1:I've always been almost off the scale the other way. I love to try new things and if they don't work, most of the time you can make a mistake and you can sit back and just go huh, that didn't work. I know not to do that, so I can mark that off my list and try something different the next time. But experiment and innovate, particularly if your church doesn't thrive in this. Take it slowly, but that's how you get to do away with the things that are no longer effective and start new things that are effective.
Speaker 1:Learn from others. Look at what other churches are doing, both within outside your denomination, your tribe, maybe read some books and conferences. Just look to see what's on the horizon, what other innovations that other churches are doing, to maybe give you a fresh idea, a fresh insight as to what might work where you are. And then I feel like this almost should be just unsaid, because we constantly start there, but at least we should. But seek God's guidance, prayerfully, seek God's direction for your ministry and ask him to reveal some of these new strategies and open doors of ministry and to give you the wisdom to lead your church into the future. So ministry is not about maintaining the status quo. It really is should be anyway about adapting and evolving and responding to the needs of the people. So here's your bottom line when what used to work doesn't anymore, maybe your first tendency is to give up, but it is not a sign to give up. It's a sign to lean in, to listen, to learn to embrace the challenge of change and adapting your strategies, connecting to your people, seeking God's guidance. It can really lead your church into a new season of growth and vitality as you move forward. So if as always if you need any support or guidance as you navigate the challenges of your ministry, don't reach out to me.
Speaker 1:I'm one of the co-founders over at chemistrystaffingcom. You can check us out over there, but we'd love to connect with you. Podcast at chemistrystaffingcom is my email. I'm here to help you, however I can, and particularly if you want to talk about if you're frustrated. You're just like God. Oh my goodness, I don't know what to do. This used to work five years ago, but it doesn't work now. What do you think? I'd love to have a conversation with you, so reach out Again. My address podcast at chemistrystaffingcom. I hope you will join us again right here for the healthy church staff podcast every monday through friday. So if you're listening to this on thursday, the day that it came out, join us tomorrow and we'll be back on friday. Have a great day.
