small churches Archives - Rebekah Simon-Peter Coaching and Consulting Inc.

Do Small Churches Need to Embrace Technology?

by Rebekah Simon-Peter | Oct 26, 2021

Do small churches need to embrace technology? If so, how much? With the whole world moving online, small churches shouldn’t be left behind. But many small churches are rural congregations with aging members. How do you help them make the leap?

In this article I am going to share the top three ways your small church can embrace technology. Your congregation is important to your community, and your message is more relevant than ever before. Embracing technology, without breaking the bank, or overloading your people, is important.

Small Church Technology: Avoid Too Much Too Fast

As you embrace technology, or add more tech, avoid making this one mistake: doing too much too fast. Small churches tend to be late adopters. They won’t be the first on the technology bandwagon. But they needn’t be the last. Avoid doing too much too fast or you’ll hit a wall of resistance. Instead, start with what is most needed and go from there.

I suggest you start with these three steps for small churches to embrace technology.

Step One: Get Up to Date

The first step in embracing technology is to make sure your basic tech is working and functional. For instance, does your small church have a working phone with an up-to-date phone message? Does the congregation own and use a computer? Is email set up?

I arrived at a small rural congregation in August of 1999 to find that the church was off the grid. The photocopier was on the fritz, the voicemail was disabled, the computer was iffy, and they had no email account.

Within the first month of my tenure, I ensured the basic technology was up and working. By the time December 31, 1999 came around, we were online enough to be worried by the Y2K scare. Several years later, the congregation was gifted a screen and overhead projection system. I was concerned that the older generation wouldn’t like it. But they surprised me: they loved how large the words were; the enhanced visibility made singing louder and easier.

When it comes to technology, start with the basics before you expand. And I mean basics: a telephone, a photocopier, a computer, and an email account are basic. For many congregations the basics also include an overhead projection system. Of course, if you don’t have indoor plumbing or electricity, you might want to start there!

Step Two: Get Connected to the Outside World

The second step in embracing technology is to get connected to the outside world. After you’ve got the basics, expand to include a Facebook page, or a website. If you don’t have your own website, make sure your congregation is noted on regional or denominational websites with correct worship times and days, address, and pastor or congregational leader.

By the time I left the rural congregation I served, some seven years later, the congregation also had a working website. Although Facebook didn’t exist at the time, when it came into being, I’m hopeful someone saw to it that a Facebook page was established.

pastor embraces technology

Step Three: Hybrid Worship

Make the move to bring your worship online. You can do it with Facebook Live. That’s as simple as using a smartphone to capture what happens in worship. When you do this, be sure to address the people who are watching, worshiping, and participating with you online. Even if they watch later, they are still part of your congregation. Be sure to greet them. Include them in the message, the prayers, and the offering. Likely you’ll find your worship growing as you expand the ways people can participate.

Small Church Technology Do’s and Don’ts

Do make progress. You can go farther than you think you can. By incorporating technology and the accepting the learning curve that comes with it, you may be surprised how quickly you learn how to use the tools that are most helpful and necessary for your congregation.

Don’t assume that older people don’t want to embrace technology. Many of them are meeting with kids and grandkids on weekly Zoom meetings, FaceTime visits, and the like. Also, don’t assume that every young person is constantly on their smartphone, or even has a smartphone.

Do use the technology you invest in for multiple purposes. A webcam is a great tool that can be used to record, livestream, or take worship to Zoom. This will allow greater participation for members that aren’t comfortable returning to church or can’t attend in person every week.

Don’t make tech decisions based solely on cost. Money that goes toward getting or upgrading outdated technology is money well spent. The benefits of buying quality equipment that will allow you to reach a larger community is unmatched.

Think of embracing technology as a journey, not an event. Technology isn’t going away. You can’t master it. None of us can. But you also don’t have to resist the flow of it.

When it comes to technology, the point isn’t to be trendy. Rather it’s to be connected in all the ways that are possible. Just as the Bible reminds us that even feet can be beautiful as they carry the good news, so too can new technologies. They enable us to carry good news in fresh ways.

Not sure how to handle the technology reformation or other ways of moving people forward? Reach out here to stay connected. You don’t have to do it alone.

The 5 P’s of Sustainability for Small Churches

by Rebekah Simon-Peter | Oct 18, 2021

Small churches are the heartbeat of their communities and neighborhoods. The oft-preferred site of weddings and funerals, they offer spiritual community and support to people in transition. They are extremely important institutions in small towns—as essential as the gas station, grocery store, bank, hospital, and post office.

But small churches have an inherent problem. They are small. The question is, how do you know when your small church is sustainable, or if it’s time to call it quits? In this article I will reveal the 5 P’s of small church sustainability. Plus a word of encouragement if you want to learn more.

Small Church Problems

The pandemic has been particularly challenging for small churches, because the needs they fill have been in greater demand than ever, even as resources have been similarly pinched. In many cases, small churches have become even smaller. Have they reached the tipping point where it’s too late for them to be sustainable?

The Most Dangerous Myth for Small Church Sustainability

Before I share the 5 P’s of small church sustainability, I need to warn you about one myth. This myth, if you fall prey to it, can be the deal breaker for congregational sustainability. This is the myth that in order to be sustainable, small churches have to be all things to all people. This idea is based on the megachurch model that one congregation can provide programming for every life stage, while addressing every physical, social, and spiritual need.

This myth is not only wrong it is dangerously wrong.

When small churches emulate the megachurch model, they set themselves up for failure. It’s almost physically impossible for small churches to meet every need of each life stage. Especially if their back-to-church numbers are smaller than their pre-pandemic numbers. The key to small church sustainability is to make sure you have the 5 P’s of sustainability in place. Then, to choose a few things to do well.

Small Churches Fight to Stay Alive

Ever since the industrial revolution of the 1800s, not to mention the Walmart revolution that put mom and pop stores out of business in the 1990’s, small communities have been economically challenged, making it harder than ever for small churches to survive and thrive.

I’ve been studying this phenomenon for the last 25 years. While small towns are now making a comeback, churches have to be careful about how they position themselves to best serve their communities.

In my work with Creating a Culture of Renewal participants I have worked with pastors of churches as small as 6, and as large as 600. Most of our congregations tend toward the smaller in size. Through our work with church leaders, I have compiled the 5 P’s of small church sustainability.

The 5 P’s of Small Church Sustainability

People

The most important feature of a small congregation is its people. There are three factors to consider when evaluating how many people make for a sustainable congregation. First, churches with less than twenty committed members or participants will have a hard time staying afloat or being in ministry to others. Second, congregations need at least three generations—not counting the pastor and the parsonage family—to be sustainable. Third, consider the culture of the people. Are people closed off or caring?

Prayer

After people, the second most important factor is prayer. Without a spiritual foundation, your church is not sustainable, no matter the size or the budget. In addition to a prayer chain, do you begin meetings with prayer, pray for guidance during decision-making time, and then follow the guidance? Prayer is the key to cooperation with God, as well as to sorting through the many choices that are before you. Your congregation must be firmly grounded in prayer to succeed.

Provision

Sustainable small churches support themselves financially. Often through a combination of tithing, memorial gifts, endowments, special funds, and fundraisers. Beware a few pitfalls. First, big givers should contribute no more than 25% of the congregation’s budget for long-term sustainability. Your large givers will eventually move or die. Second, endowments should not fund more than 25% of the church budget. Endowments relieve the urgency for attenders to become givers, or to give sacrificially. Third, don’t rely on in-person giving only; this dynamic undermines sustainability. Instead encourage people to set up automatic withdrawals to the church or other forms of online giving.

Partnerships

Churches with people, prayer, and provision need to form community partnerships to ensure sustainability. As you transition out of the pandemic, create ways for your building to become multi-use. Some common ways are to rent space to a pre-school, a local non-profit, and/or one or more 12-step groups. But first, don’t forget to clean out the closets, re-configure storage space, and let go of items that have fallen out of use. This will create more space for your partners.

Presence

Now that you have people, prayer, provision and partnership, it’s time to amplify your community presence. Establish and keep up a Facebook page as well as a website. But if the website can’t be maintained, better not to have it. Don’t forget small town newspapers, radio stations, and grocery store bulletin boards. The more you show up in the community, the more people will know where to turn when they need you.

Is Your Small Church Sustainable?

Now that you’ve evaluated your congregation on the 5 P’s of Small Church Sustainability, take heart. No matter your score, cultivating sustainability is an ongoing process. Learn how to develop your ability to grow and thrive through Creating a Culture of Renewal.