How Healthy Church Systems Help You Persevere through Tough Situations

Unless this is your very first time reading this blog, you probably know that I’m a firm believer in the power of systems for the health and growth of your church.

In fact , over the years I’ve gained something of a reputation as “the Church Systems guy.”  You can download a Free Copy of my “Healthy Systems, Healthy Church” E-Book by clicking here.

One of the biggest reasons for developing your church’s systems is because, well, life happens.

Bad weather shows up at just the wrong time, unexpected circumstances throw off your schedule and unfortunately loved ones pass away. Healthy systems allow your church to keep moving forward through even the toughest situations.

Here’s a recent email that I received from Maceo Smedley, a Tele-Coaching Participant and the Pastor of Promise Church in Houston, TX and he gave me permission to share with you.

He tells how his church’s systems and preparation allowed God to do some amazing things in spite of what could have been a devastating time, personally:

Nelson,

I wasn’t going to say anything until I heard the prayer for the Pastor whose staff member lost his wife.  Just a little over a week ago my father passed away on January 19, at the age of 58.  He had been in ICU for two week and could never bounce back from his bout with pneumonia.

He was a dedicated member of our church.  His responsibility was putting out our signs every Saturday morning.  Every time someone would join our church due to seeing those signs, I would call him and tell him what a great job he was doing for the Kingdom of God.  I prayed along with my congregation every morning that God would heal him, so they too where devastated by this loss.

Because he was a former educator whose heart went out to troubled youth, his funeral was jam packed.  It gave me joy to see the many people who wanted to come and say “thank you.”  Here is the catch to the story.  His funeral was on Saturday, January 23^rd, and we had a big day scheduled for Sunday, January 24^th.

Because of your willingness to return what you’ve learned, we had our biggest “Big Day” yet with over 150 in attendance which is more than double our average attendance.  Because of the preaching calendar, I was also able to preach one of my best sermons yet instead of trying to figure out what to say while fighting back tears after losing my dad.

We raised more money that Sunday than ever before with one donor giving a third of our Christmas Offering.  Most of all several people came to either give their lives to Christ for the first time or to rededicate their lives.  Thank you so much for unknowingly helping me and my church get through this tough time while we did our best to make the devil mad.

Thank you for your prayers,

Pastor Maceo Smedley
The Promise Church
Houston, TX

We continue to lift up you and your family Maceo – and praise God for all the great things that are going on in your church!

P.S. If you are new to Church Leader Insights or just looking for a refresher when it comes to your church’s systems, Download my “Healthy Systems, Healthy Church” E-Book for FREE ($23.95 Value) by clicking here.

Church Systems and the Concentric Circles

The Purpose Driven Church is one of those “must have” books that every pastor should have on his bookshelf (like all of mine – ha!).

One of the paradigm-shifting concepts that Rick Warren shared with the church leadership world in this book is the “Concentric Circles” that help us visualize how people move step by step from the community into the core of our churches.

I’m often asked how the Five Concentric Circles interplay with the Eight Church Systems that I describe, so I thought I’d take a moment this morning to elaborate.

First of all, the concentric circles do NOT overlay the systems exactly.

That’s actually the way it should be – some systems impact people at a number of levels by their very nature (think of how many of the different levels to the left are affected by your Worship Planning System, for example).

There are, however, a couple of systems that connect very cleanly with the circles.  One clear connection comes with The Evangelism System, which is designed to move people from Community to Crowd.

Another such connection is The Assimilation System, which moves people from Crowd to Congregation. By strict definition, someone becomes part of your congregation when they become a member of your church – the same goal of your assimilation system!

Beyond that, though, the remaining systems overlap numerous circles.

Take the Ministry and Small Groups Systems.  Each of them move people at all levels from Crowd to Core.  The Leadership System mainly fits people in either the Congregation, Committed and Core, while Stewardship interacts with all levels except the Community.

And of course, your Strategy System helps tie it all together in a way that keeps your church growing and healthy.

At the end of the day, there is no neat, “tie it in a bow” way to describe the connection between your church’s systems and the concentric circles, but they are integrally connected.

The systems of your church – when functioning properly – keep people at all levels moving inward along the five circles (and growing closer and closer to God along the way).

If you had to declare it today, which of your church’s eight systems would you say is “strongest” and which is “weakest”?

Now… what can you do between now and next week at this time to improve that system?

P.S. To jump-start the improvement of your church’s systems, you may want to consider The Systems Seminars Package – it’s all seven of my system seminar resources at more than $200.00 off the regular price.

The Systems Seminars Package is available now on CD or as an Immediate Download.

Q & A – Church Systems, Where to Start?

Here’s a recent question I answered from a church planter:

Q: Nelson, thanks so much for all you do. I came across some of your resources recently and have really learned a lot from them.

Our new church has just launched and I’m wanting to start implementing the systems, where do I start?

It’s a little overwhelming and any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

A: Thanks for your kind words and congratulations on launching a new church!

As far as systems go, the first thing I would recommend is for you to download my Free Church Systems 2.0 Report (PDF). Reading that should give you a good primer on church systems and a better “big picture” of how they all work together.

After that, I encourage you to start with your Assimilation System. In many ways it’s one of the easier systems to implement and it yields results quickly (in more people getting plugged in to your church). You’ll want to implement the full Assimilation process before moving on.

Next, move on to Evangelism (my next book Ignite can help with this). The Evangelism System is all about getting people from your community to attend your church for the first time. This flow of new people is essential to the health and growth of your church.

Following Evangelism, you can then move on to the Worship Planning System. This is about how your church plans, executes, evaluates and improves the weekly worship service.

So, basically, strengthen your guest experience, outreach and worship services first. Those three should be your priority for now.

Then, as you grow beyond about 110 average adults in attendance, you can implement Small Groups.

The most important thing for you right now is to get started. By breaking it down in this order you should be able to immediately move forward step by step without allowing yourself to be overwhelmed.

I hope that makes sense.

P.S. Ready to jump start your systems implementation?  Check out my Systems Seminar Package and save more than $325.00!

Free Church Systems Teleminar on Wednesday

In case you missed it, you have one LAST CHANCE to sign-up for my free Church Systems Teleseminar on Wednesday (the Tuesday one is already sold out at 999 people!).  Here’s the info:

Join me for a FREE 75-minute tele-seminar without ever having to leave your office or home! I will teach you all the basics of church systems and how to use them to make your church more effective than ever.

God designed all the parts of the body – both the church body and the physical body – to work together, allowing us to fulfill God’s purposes and plans on this earth. And both of those respective bodies function best through well-developed systems.

This event will fill up, so REGISTER TODAY.  Once registered, you will simply call in to participate. This is a great opportunity to train your entire staff with this free tele-seminar.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009
1:30PM – 2:45PM Eastern
12:30PM – 1:45PM Central
11:30AM – 12:45PM Mountain
10:30AM – 11:45AM Pacific

Here’s what you can expect to learn:

• How healthy church systems honor God
• How to distinguish system problems from people problems (and why your people may not be the problem)
• How well designed systems save you stress, time, energy and money
• The 8 systems of a church (and the vital role that each system plays)
• The relationship between good systems and good people (and how to maximize your church’s effectiveness through each)
• How far church systems can take your church (and what systems can’t do)

Space is limited – REGISTER TODAY!

Tele-seminar participants will need a phone with long distance to participate. Long distance charges do apply.

Click Here to Register Now!

Talk to you on the call,

Nelson

P.S. I’m doing this free seminar, in conjuction with the release of my new Church Systems 2.0 report.  You can download it for free at this link.

FREE Report – Church Systems 2.0 [PDF]

It’s official!  Today is the official release of my brand new Church Systems 2.0 Report!

I’ve taken the church systems basics that I laid out in the original Church Systems Report and completely revised and expanded it.

The Church Systems 2.0 Report includes diagnostic questions and recommended resources, in addition to proven, practical advice to make your church healthier and more effective than ever.

And best of all, it’s a Free PDF Download!

Simply head over to:

www.ChurchLeaderInsights.com/systems2

Fill out the form and we’ll send your FREE REPORT!

P.S. I’m also doing a FREE Church Systems 2.0 Tele-Seminar next Tuesday – for more details and to register, CLICK HERE.

The Power Of Systems In Mobilizing Disciples

I wanted to share this brief article that I wrote recently:

You and I may look different on the outside but beneath our skin we are a function of common machinery. We both have hearts that pump blood, even though we are different blood types. We both have senses that take in the world, though some of yours may be more elevated than some of mine.

In the same way, all churches are made up of a set of common systems, even though we may utilize those systems in slightly different ways based on our individual calls to ministry. The question isn’t whether or not these systems are in place, but whether or not we acknowledge and maximize them.

Even if you are not sure what the eight church systems are, much less how to keep them healthy, they are there, ready to help you achieve God’s purpose for your church – and we all know that part of that purpose is to mobilize disciples.

None of the eight systems of the church would be able to function without people. In fact, I like to say that relationships are the tracks on which systems run. Each system encourages you to fine tune your skills for developing disciples and mobilizing them to carry out the work of the church.

That said, there is one system that focuses specifically on this goal: The Ministry System. The Ministry System asks, “How do we mobilize people for significant ministry in our church?” God wired people to grow as disciples through serving. If you don’t have a system in place that helps your people get plugged in, you will be hurting both yourself and your untapped leaders.

You will never mobilize disciples if you aren’t continually creating disciples and teaching them to have a heart for service. And since all of the eight systems will ultimately be run by volunteers, you need as many dedicated servers as possible.

Your church will thrive – and you will save yourself a lot of stress, time, energy, and money – when you have well-developed systems in place and stocked with people who are motivated in pursuit of a common vision. How do you make that happen? By understanding and strengthening each of the eight systems that operate within your church.

To learn exactly what these systems are and how you can do your part to cooperate with God by maximizing them, check out my free report “Healthy Systems, Healthy Church” at:

http://www.churchleaderinsights.com/resources/church_systems_report.php

God is not haphazard with His church, and neither should we be. Let’s all do our part to develop the eight systems of the church fully so that God can work through them mightily.

I Love Church Planters!

I’m honored to be a part of an incredible lineup of speakers today at the ChurchPlanters.com Conference near Atlanta.  There is something exhilarating about being in a room full of people who are so passionate and driven by God’s call on their lives that they are stepping out to start new churches all over the country.  I love to think about how many lives God will change through the faithfulness of the church planters I am with today!

I’m talking today about one of my favorite topics: the importance of building healthy systems to manage a growing church.  The biggest of all the reasons why I love church planting is because it is effective: church plants reach more people than existing churches.  However, without the right systems in place, even the most passionate and gifted church planter will struggle to lead a growing church.

If you don’t mind, please take a moment to pray for me and all of us at this conference (speakers and attendees).  Thanks!

For more information on church systems, click here to download my FREE “Healthy Systems, Healthy Church” Report.

P.S. I will be leading the LIVE One-Day Launch Conference in the Baltimore area on Tuesday, March 17 (my only one for the year).  Click here to find out more or to Register Now.

Super Bowl Savings on Champion Resources

It’s that time of the year again. When the two top teams from the NFL
compete for the title of Super Bowl Champion!

In keeping with that time-honored tradition, we too wanted to be part of the
Super Bowl fever and create our own mini Super Bowl!

So here it is. We decided to look over our resources that have made the
greatest impact in 2008, and from there have our very own Super Bowl offer
featuring those seminars and resources.

Here they are:

• The Evangelism, Assimilation, Stewardship, Small Groups and
  Strategy Seminars
  
• 10 of our most in demand sermon series (that’s over one year’s worth of sermons)
• Breaking Growth Barriers workshop
• Leadership Skills For A Growing Church
• Time Management For Busy Pastors
  
• PLUS 14 MORE GAME WINNING RESOURCES!

We’ve put all of these “top performers” in one package and we’re making it
available at over 50% off!  This offer is good until midnight Monday.  So,
before your team wins or loses go ahead and place your order here: CLI Super Bowl Package

Now, I know what you might be thinking, “But I already have some of these
resources.”  Well, you could give away 1/2 of the resources, help some other
pastors and still save money.

For more info or to order go to:
CLI Super Bowl Package
or call 800-264-5129 today.

Please review the package and you will agree there are so many great
resources – an incredible price – that will benefit you, your family and
your church!

Happy Super Bowl watching!

Nelson Searcy

P.S. Enjoy the game and make sure that you too have your own personal Super
Bowl plan and goals for 2009!

P.P.S Yes, the game is still a few days away, but we couldn’t wait any
longer to share this great CLI Super Bowl Package with you! Click here for the CLI Super Bowl Package.

Are you a portable church?

Since 2002 we’ve meet in portable locations – nine different locations to be exact. From schools to renovated funeral homes (not recommended) to cinemas to off-broad theaters to concert venues.  I love being portable and I love the benefits of being portable (keeps the entrepreneurial spirit alive, mobilizes more volunteers, keeps you fast and fluid, frees up money for evangelism, etc.).

Recently Bob Franquiz and I sat down and recorded a new resource entitled The Portable Church Challenge. I had hoped to send the CLI family an email about it today and offer it for purchase but there have been some delays in packaging.

But, my delay is your gain – I want to offer you the complete resource as a download at a big savings. But more on that in a minute.

In the new resource, Bob and I discuss

The Portable Church Challenge: 10 Commandments for maximum growth in a portable location is the ideal resource for sustaining growth in a portable facility.

And lead you through:

-    Finding committed servants who take ownership in the church
-    How to cast vision to fund your portable church
-    Learn to keys to hiring gifted staff that thrive in a portable church
-    How to be innovative with the facility you meet in
-    Transforming any environment into a place of worship
-    Understanding what does and doesn’t limit you as a portable church
-    Learning to focus on what matters most
-    And much more!

Building a church is about building people. Don’t let facility keep you from becoming the church God wants you to be!

As I mentioned there is a delay in the CD production but the full 2-hour download with all the supplemental resource is available now.  It will regularly sell for a $67 investment but I want to give it to you as a pre-sale for $20.00 off.  Simply enter this special code: blog112 when you check out. Here’s the link to the download.

The Portable Church Challenge – Complete Resource Download – Save $20.00 – Click Here

Remember, enter this special code before you check out : blog112

This code will expire in one week.

Nelson

How to Conduct a Christmas Offering

Last week I released my latest report entitled “How to Conduct A Christmas Offering.” Its been the fastest downloaded report I’ve offered (over 1000 people in a few days!).  If you haven’t snagged your copy yet, grab it now (its not too late to plan a Christmas Offering) – its FREE:

HOW TO CONDUCT A CHRISTMAS OFFERING FREE REPORT LINK CLICK HERE

If you’ve already downloaded the report (and assuming you found it helpful) will you send this link to a friend or let the pastors in your network or on your blog know about it? I want it to help as many people as possible.

We are rolling out our Christmas Offering this Sunday.  That’s a little early for most churches but it ties in with my message this weekend.  You would be fine to roll out your offering on the Sunday before Thanksgiving or even December 7, depending on the amount you want to raise (start earlier if the amount is more than three or four times your regular weekly offering). Check out the free report for more details on the hows and, more importantly, the why’s.

I’ll try to post some of the documents we are using in our Christmas Offering tomorrow.

And let me be the first to say…Merry Christmas,

Nelson

P.S. I’m sure I didn’t cover everything about Christmas Offerings in the report so if you have any questions, use the Ask Nelson button on the right!