As a church leader, you have essential responsibilities. Not only do you need to preach and guide your congregation, but you also ensure that the church runs smoothly.

Not everything you try in 2023 will succeed. That’s okay. In fact, it’s important to have some failures under your belt. Especially if it means that you jumped in and tried things, but still missed the mark.

Remember Newton’s first law of motion: Objects in motion tend to stay in motion whereas objects at rest tend to stay at rest. Once you get your congregation in motion, you’ll have a better chance of steering them in a positive direction, even if your first efforts don’t result in total success.

Because the truth is that without the freedom to fail, you are less likely to succeed. If failure is unacceptable, then you won’t risk much. Risk, as an act of faith, is required for success, especially for church leaders.

To get you started on that forward momentum, I offer these five ways to “fail forward”.

#1 Have a Clear Vision

Why is a clear vision important enough to risk failure? Because personal and organizational renewal begins with vision. In fact, this is one of the foundational principles we teach in Creating a Culture of Renewal®.

Churches flounder when they don’t have a strong sense of what they’re being called to do. Crafting a clear vision is important work for church leaders. Vision focuses your efforts and guides you and your congregation together into the future.

To get a clear vision of what your church is being called to do, tap into Jesus’ big dream: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” With Jesus’ dream in mind, ask God to show you and your people how you can make a difference in the community such that it would be a sign of the Kingdom.  These steps can guide you in making sure your vision is focused outward instead of inward.

#2 Keep Up with Technology

Technology is here to stay. Using it well can help your church engage current members more effectively as well as reach new audiences. If you started to use technology during the pandemic to livestream services and offer online giving, keep it up. If you haven’t started yet, now is the time. It’s worth trying, even if you fail. I can’t tell you how many times I have goofed up doing a Facebook Live. I keep going because it’s worth failing at in order to eventually succeed. The truth is that people expect more tech options now, not less.

One way to keep up with technology is to surround yourself with those who know more than you do. Learn from them how to bridge the gap between religious traditions and digital innovation. Although you may not like the negative influences of technology—like incivility and sensationalism—it’s even worse to turn a blind eye to its influence. Better to try harnessing it for good, and failing, than not trying at all.

#3 Increase Your Leadership Skillset

As a leader, it’s crucial to keep on learning. One way to increase your skillset is by attending conferences or seminars on church leadership topics such as team building or conflict resolution. Another way to increase your skillset is by reading books and blogs related to church leadership topics. You’ll learn how others approach the problems you face and discover emerging best practices.

People and times change. How you interact with those you lead has to also change. What worked 10 or 20 years ago may not work today.  If you are not keeping up with ever-evolving ideas and trends, then you are not intentionally growing as a leader.

Reverse mentoring is an excellent way to sharpen your skills. Reverse mentoring involves learning from younger generations. Find someone in your congregation who represents a younger age demographic and ask them if they will mentor you. Not only will you blow their mind, but chances are good you’ll learn new things you did not know before.

Can you know everything there is to know as a leader? No. But trying and failing forward is the right direction to head.

#4 Develop Financially Sound Strategies

Churches need to be financially sound to succeed in the long run. Effective church leaders work to develop strategies to help their churches remain economically stable. This could include developing pledge campaigns, setting aside funds for unexpected expenses, or investing in equipment or technology upgrades when necessary.

One of the trends that will be coming to mainline churches in the coming years is diversifying your income sources to make ends meet. There are many ways to do this. Look into grants, endowments, crowdfunding campaigns, innovative fundraising efforts, and creating community partnerships, which I write about in Forging a New Path. Think of 2023 as the year to feel more comfortable engaging in financial conversations, and to create an economically stable church.

While you might not meet all of your financial goals in 2023, paying attention now will sharpen your ability to meet those goals in the future. Put your best efforts forward here. Even if you fail.

#5 Focus on Member Engagement

Engaging members is critical when it comes to leading a thriving church. Focus on engaging your members more effectively through the basics: Bible studies, prayer initiatives, and community service projects. These basics provide the foundation upon which member engagement moves the church into transformational experiences.

Historically, the church’s educational process has been rooted in knowledge retention. Yet Biblical literacy is spotty among members. Think  about ways to make education experiential in 2023.

For instance, there’s a growing trend of churches launching “lab” experiences to encourage members to explore their faith and to cultivate spiritual growth. Use your creativity to develop ways to engage church members in meaningful conversations and activities that foster spiritual growth and connection.

Again, you may not fully succeed. But moving in this direction will ensure that if you fail, you are failing forward.

Your Next Step

Next, choose one of the above five ways to fail forward in 2023, and get going!  This is going to be a pivotal year for the church. Your willingness to risk, whether you succeed or fail, will bring needed energy and faith to your congregation.

No matter which path you choose, though, you don’t have to go it alone. In fact, joining a community of learners is one of the best ways to ensure that failures can morph into successes. Grow in skill and confidence as together we learn 3 Steps to Engage Conflict Productively. I’ll be with you on the journey.

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com. All Rights Reserved.