Church Membership Renewal, A New Trend

Podcast Episode #112

Recently on the blog, I wrote about the emerging trend of annual renewal of church membership. While most churches are not ready for such a change, many are moving forward with this trend and have seen—in many cases—positive results. The churches who execute this process well often see growth in giving, attendance, ministry, and missions. So today on the podcast, we look at this trend and explain why it’s working for so many churches.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

Church membership renewal goes contrary to where most churches are headed.
Most churches do not change well.
Incremental change is necessary to lead big changes in the church.
Younger churches accept change easier than established churches because the historical barriers just don’t exist.
It takes most pastors at least five years to build enough trust in a church in order to make significant changes.
Accountability is key, more than anything else, on the issue of follow-up.

The 10 aspects of annual church membership renewal we covered were:

The early signs are that this practice can be a healthy move for a church.
Proceed with great caution. Most churches are not ready for annual membership renewal.
Incrementalism is necessary in most churches.
Membership classes are key.
Do not proceed with this process until you have seen it in other churches.
Communication is vital.
Younger churches tend to handle this change better than older churches.
Longer-tenured pastors are typically more able to lead this change.
Expect opposition. Annual membership presents significant change in most churches.
Follow-up is crucial.

Episode Sponsor

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