The Back-End of Risk & How to Grow a Pair [1 of 2]
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Steven Furtick wrote an article (that his assistant published) about risk-taking. He simply stated that, as churches grow, they incur more liabilities (assets, salaries, reputation, etc). Therefore, risk becomes more and more…risky.
My questions is this: what happens when a church has been lulled into a riskless culture of safety and security? How does a church survive within that mindset? How does a church get out of it?
Our church is in this exact situation. Here’s how it went. Maybe your church experienced this also?
We launched about 10 years ago and taking risks was a natural part of our DNA as is the case with every church plant. (Planting a church is a risk in itself.) As we grew, liabilities like salaries, mortgages, people, and a reputation began fighting against a culture of risk-taking. Before too long, risk was a four-letter word and safety became king. We accomplished our goal of safety, but we also landed squarely in the category of plateaued after our peak in 2002-2003.
Our stall was the result of many factors, no doubt. But, one of the big factors was our risklessness. The phrase, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” is more than just true. It’s Biblical (parable of the good steward). Now, five years later, we’re at a crossroads of either needing to grow to pay bills (not the best reason, but completely valid) or selling our property and regrouping.
Our challenge is now completely different. Instead of facing the challenge of maintaining a risk-taking culture, we have to recreate of that culture. I’ll post early next week about how we plan to do it and what we plan for it to look like.
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Finally finished with the new theme.
Great thoughts. I need to hear that.
brian’s last blog post..If a knucklehead has a blog and says something, should anybody listen?