Turning Around

by Dr. Max Brand                                                                                                                      Vol. V, No. 2, April 1992

Flying to Newport News, Virginia, for an interview with Ivy Farms Baptist Church as their prospective pastor, my wife and I came with many concerns. The research prior to coming to the initial meetings and the look into the future revealed both concerns and promise. As our plane touched down, my thoughts were on discussions with other ministers about the great difficulty of turning around a declining church. Three major obstacles had to be overcome at Ivy Farms before growth could occur: internal division, long term decline, and a leadership vacuum.

Division within the congregation was a pressing problem. In 1989 the church experienced a devastating split. Attendance plummeted from 150 to 75, with most younger members leaving. However, there was a ray of hope in that those who remained were not bitter. Even in the right, being bitter destroys witness.

Long term decline of attendance hampered the church. In 1972 the church reached its peak with over 300 in attendance, but from that point on the church declined. The problem went basically unnoticed until a crisis point was reached.

There was a major leadership vacuum in the church. The founding{ pastor, Rev. Franklin Hall, is an outstanding leader to whom the congregation responded enthusiastically. The following pastors were not well matched with the congregation and were unable to lead effectively.

Arriving at the church, some of our fears were relieved when we found the people kind and the facilities in excellent repair. Another plus was the absence of bitterness towards those who had left during the split the previous year. After much prayer, the church extended a unanimous call for me to serve as their pastor, and it was accepted.

Realizing early on the church needed its focus changed from the events of the recent past toward their future, a church growth committee was conceived. Having written the materials as part of my doctoral project, a portion of the task was already completed.

Enlistment of leadership was necessary for any initiatives to receive the needed support for implementation. After discussing the idea with key leadership, the appropriate committees were approached, and finally the church voted for formation of the church growth committee. Letters were sent out and a sign-up sheet was placed in the foyer. The pastor then personally enlisted the membership with signatures of leaders being first on the enlistment register.

The committee studied how churches across the country are growing. Half the time was spent with the pastor presenting the information, followed by a break for refreshments, concluding with discussions in large and small groups. Near the end of the training it became evident that the church desired a full-time minister of education and a full-time minister of music. But there was a serious problem: based on the budget and current receipts, the church could afford neither. After much prayer, meetings were arranged with key members of the church. The desires of the church were discussed and the views of those contacted stated.

Each family was told plainly that to call experienced seminary graduates would cost approximately $30,000 each, plus moving expenses. We were not interested in training people on the way to school. The assertion of each member was, "We believe this is what God desires, but we cannot afford it." My reply was, "If you double tithe, we can." The response of all was, "When do we start?!" After receiving strong, positive answers from each leading family in the congregation, all appropriate committees discussed the issue with the same response. When the measure came before the church, it was approved unanimously.

For one month afterward the people prayed concerning the amount of their financial commitment. Each Sunday a different family gave a testimony concerning their commitment. On the fourth Sunday pledge cards were distributed and tabulated. Enough was pledged over the budget to call both staff members. One staff member arrived in one month, the second seven months later. Each was warmly received by the congregation.

The results at Ivy Farms speak for themselves. By focussing on the future of the church rather than the problems of the past, a declining church has had two years of sustained growth. Sunday School has increased from 75 to 161 in average attendance, 100% growth. Worship has increased even more substantially from 75 to 174 average attendance. Over seventy new members have been added to the fellowship, almost 20 of them by baptism. Those joining have been about one-third young adults and one-third senior adults, with the remainder distributed throughout the rest of the age spectrum. The growth of Ivy farms came as a result of people outside the church being reached for Jesus. Most of those who left the church did not return, although the church did make a concerted effort to reach those who had left.

The conclusion is that a declining church can turn around and grow. Three things are needed: First, growth in a church only comes as people respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said He "would build His church." Second, the members need to become excited about Jesus. In most churches the problem is not commitment, rather the joy of their salvation needs restoration. Third, patient leadership.

Most pastors want to see the church grow and the gospel properly presented. However, we pastors tend to fall into one of three categories. One, we try to push people into doing what they ought to do, which usually only produces strife. Two, we are afraid of upsetting the church. Therefore, we let the people lead. This fails because the church has called the pastor to lead. Thus nothing happens.

Three, we pray seeking the mind of God for the church. After His direction becomes clear, seek out spiritual people within the congregation for what the Lord has placed upon their hearts. By listening to people who have lived for the Lord for years, the vision God has given will become clearer and the time of implementation becomes apparent. Looking back over these two years, my fellow ministers were right. It is difficult to turn around a declining church. In the case of Ivy Farms, Jesus blessed as a result of the people getting excited about Jesus, then following proper leadership in accomplishing the goals of reaching people with the gospel and growing the church. Now Jesus is pleased with Ivy Farms church.

[Dr. Max Brand is pastor of Ivy Farms Baptist Church in Newport News. He is a graduate of Houston Baptist University and Southwestern Seminary. Ivy Farms contributes over 14% of undesignated receipts to the Cooperative Program and this year gave over $15,000 to the Lottie Moon Mission Offering.]