With all that is going on around us you need to know how disruption will impact your church. I have been seeing a lot written lately about the word disruption to describe the days we live in. Disruption is defined as, “disturbance or problems that interrupt an event, activity, or process.” We are living in a fast changing world and those changes are causing disruption.
Change is happening all around us. Some changes are immediate and clearly seen while others creep up on us unawares. Yet make no mistake change has happened, is happening and will continue to happen. Change has always been that way. What has changed about change? The speed of change. It is happening so fast it is causing disruption to every aspect of our lives.
In 1970 Alvin Toffler wrote a bestselling book entitled, “Future Shock.” Toffler coined the term future shock to mean, “too much change in too little time.” If the changes in 1970 seemed to be fast pace I wonder what he would have thought about today’s changes?
We are seeing disruption in about every area of society. If you doubt that just spend some time on Twitter or Facebook. At times I feel we have lost our minds! We certainly have lost civility. It is not simply in politics that we are facing disruption. We are undergoing a demographic disruption in terms of age and ethnicity not only in society but in the church. The aging of the typical church for instance is creating great disruption. Whole denominations are in the midst of change that is producing incredible disruption. Then there is the digital disruption of how we do everything from commerce to connecting with our friends and even our church.
Disruption is one of the key reasons giving to the average church continues to be in decline. When giving continues to decline, and it is, then we are in disruption. So, as a guy that focuses on increasing giving here is a question I keep asking…
What does the disruption in giving mean for your church? Here are some key thoughts…
- If you keep doing what you have always done you will not get what you always got. What I mean by this is, what worked in the past will not necessarily work in the present nor the future.
- Our methods MUST change and change NOW! Our theology doesn’t need to change but our methodology must change. This includes making the giving process as easy and seamless as possible. If I can pay my light bill online I should be able to give online!
- It will be harder to be fully funded. People view the church differently than in times past. It used to be that churches were held in the highest esteem by Americans. Polls are showing that American’s confidence in organized religion is at an all-time low. One result of this is that by 2050 Americans are projected to be giving only 1% of their disposable income to the Church! We must tell our story of life change helping people see the value of what we do thus better enabling them to WANT to give.
- We need to take action sooner rather than later. A few years ago I came up with this mantra…
The church that survives into the future is the church that plans today for tomorrow.
Are you planning today for tomorrow? If not get ready for even more disruption.
Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach