Spotlight on Certified Renewalist, Courtney Stotler

Revitalizing a church community is often seen as the responsibility of pastors, but Courtney Stotler’s story challenges this notion. Courtney, the administrative council chair, is an example of what can happen when laity leaders are willing to step up and engage in new levels of leadership. In this week’s blog, I will spotlight Courtney’s 4 key principles for laity-led church revitalization.

Courtney noted, “I felt things had become ‘stagnant’ and were plateauing – even maybe declining.  I felt that surely a 3-year program would teach us how to revive things, and how to do so in a lasting way.  I was also interested personally in growing as a leader.  I am a lay person with a full-time job outside of the church, and I serve as a leader of the organization that I work for.  I thought that it would be great to grow my leadership skills for work, in addition to the church.”

By following four key principles, Courtney was able to help the church rebound and cultivate a culture of growth. As her story demonstrates, laity-led revitalization is possible for any church community. Presented below are the four critical principles distilled from her transformative journey.

Principle 1: Laity Can Be Leaders, Too

Courtney started her journey in Creating a Culture of Renewal^® along with her pastor and a fellow lay member. She already knew that she was a goal-oriented person with strong ambitions. Through the Everything DiSC^® Workplace profile, Courtney learned she is a strong “iD” style and that her priorities are results, actions, and enthusiasm. Her leadership style is energetic, fast-paced, quick to act, and can be controlling. She came to realize that one of her biggest fears was a lack of control.

In her first year, Courtney learned a lot about DiSC^® and people reading, which she found fascinating. Courtney reflects, “Learning about the Platinum Rule, and putting it into practice, was powerful.  I learned that my active, fast-paced style could be overwhelming and off-putting to other styles.  I could see how this was actually hindering me from getting the results that I wanted.”

During her second year, Courtney continued to learn more about communication and leadership styles. The Everything DiSC^® Work of Leaders profile showed her the best practices of remaining open, prioritizing the big picture when driving a vision, practicing active listening, and taking the time to test assumptions.  Through mentoring another participant, she also grew in her leadership skills and strengthened her ability to hold others accountable.

Courtney continued to hone the skills that she learned during her third year in Creating a Culture of Renewal^®.  By practicing alignment and gaining buy-in, Courtney was able to utilize structured messaging, explain rationale, and exchange perspectives. She also grew in her ability to structure a plan, address problems, and learn the value of offering consistent praise.

Takeaway: Recognize and embrace your leadership potential. Access available programs and training to equip yourself with the necessary leadership skills within your church community.

Principle 2: Shared Vision Isn’t Just a Pastor’s Job

Courtney understood this. “My pastor, buddy, and I worked together with the Visioning Team to create an overarching vision.”

Their dream was of a community whose body, mind, heart, and spirit are fed through the love of Christ. It involved not just their church members, but the flourishing of the whole community.  It assumed that the whole community could be ‘fed’, expanding their reach from inside to outside the church walls, while unifying and bringing people together.

Courtney collaborated with the Visioning Team to study her congregation’s culture and took a hard look at worship, comfort vs. challenge ministries, differences between generations, and the shadow mission. They asked three questions:  1) what brings us great joy; 2) what resources does our church have to share; and 3) what are people in our community hungry for?  By taking time to test assumptions, and inviting key community leaders from outside the church to join us in the discussion, Courtney and the Visioning Team co-crafted the dream of their congregation.

Takeaway: Laity play a vital role in shaping the church’s future. By working with fellow members and clergy, you can build a shared vision that encompasses the entire community’s aspirations.

Principle 3: Individual Initiatives Can Align with the Church’s Broader Vision

In the process of crafting a church-community vision, Courtney established her own vision.“My vision,” writes Courtney, “is to ‘Fill the Gap’ – an equal chance for success for all local students through mentoring and support of graduating seniors that are first-generation college students.” Her community is racially diverse with many families living below the poverty level.  In addition, many students graduating from the local high school are first-generation college students.  Statistically, only 20% of first-generation college students complete their degrees. She knew that a college degree has the power to end the cycle of poverty in a family forever.  An adult with a college degree earns nearly $1.2 million more over a lifetime than their counterpart with only a high school diploma.

Courtney was able to cast this vision with her Visioning Team, as well as the whole congregation through a weekly newsletter.  She met with several key people inside and outside the church which brought additional perspectives and helpful feedback. By testing assumptions with school board members, school counselors, and social workers, new ideas and revisions were made.  There was some push back, but Courtney was able to exchange perspectives, address problems, and draw boundaries where necessary.  “I even cast my vision with our Youth Sunday School class – and got some great and unexpected feedback!”

As a result of this work of building alignment, unexpected people became engaged and participated in various ways, including young adults, older adults, and people that had been first-generation college students themselves.

Takeaway: Consider how your distinctive skills and passions can contribute to your church’s vision. Your endeavors have the potential to create a remarkable impact.

Principle 4: Execution of a Vision Brings Miracles

In Courtney’s church, active participation has grown.  Worship attendance is increasing, 2 confirmands are finishing confirmation classes, a children’s choir has started, plans are underway for Summer Sunday School, and the congregation’s dream was co-created with input of over 25 members. The Quality of relationships has improved. There are active prayer and covenant groups, opportunities for children and youth to participate in activities of the church, online worship for greater participation, and community stakeholders attending church activities and partnering in ministry.  Giving continues to grow.  They paid 100% of their apportionments for the year already and received a grant for Freedom School.  Worship has become more intergenerational.  New ways to facilitate prayer requests are being developed, to expand reach and utilize new technologies.  New ministries are forming, and existing ones are expanding.  And the pastor and the congregation were named “Citizen of the Year” by the local school district for the work they have done and the work they have planned to support the community.

Takeaway: When you bring a new vision to life, miracles show up in every area of congregational life. It’s worth the risks involved.

Courtney Stotler’s experience in the Creating a Culture of Renewal^® program breaks the stereotype that only pastors can lead church revitalization. Her journey shows how laity can effectively contribute by embracing leadership, participating in vision-building, aligning individual initiatives, and the miracles that come. These four principles can inspire and guide other lay members looking to play a vital role in their church’s revitalization.

To master and apply these skills in your community, I cordially invite you to join me for an upcoming seminar titled “How Christian Ministries are Achieving Success: An Introduction to Creating a Culture of Renewal®.” This seminar offers a hands-on opportunity to delve deeper into these principles and practice implementing them within your church community. Join me as we embark on a transformative journey to revive our churches.

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