Approaching Transition

About five years into my city ministry, we embarked on a great transition. There were three things we did, which basically moved the Church forward from old-style Congregationalism:

• About polity, we broadened our Congregationalism. We increased the participation of the members, in every way.
• About faith, we broadened our theological position. We potentially included a broader company of evangelical believers.
• About worship, we introduced a blended worship. We gently modernised our worship, while not rocking the boat.

Records show that this was a major turning point for the Church. Finances greatly improved, congregations significantly increased, and the Church became much younger and more diverse. However, it was traumatic, and we momentarily lost about 10% of the congregation before we saw a strong influx -- far stronger than the 10% we lost. OBSERVATION: All along, we worked patiently and transparently. And we worked in faith -- the outcome of such a shift is unknown until one sees it. What this blog post affirms is: this worked.