16 Options Rather than Close for a Small Church
God's Ministry Will Go On!
Since leaving the daily joy/grind of full-time pastoral ministry in 2020, I’ve guest preached in many different congregations. Four of those congregations had less than 20 people in worship.
In every case, the worshipers tell me, the outsider, how they miss the glory days. It is hard to keep, keeping on in a dying church.
Lifeway Research, a Southern Baptist research organization, did a thorough research study in 2014 and 2019 about the opening and closing of churches. In 2019, 4,500 churches closed across 34 Protestant denominations.
Autopsy of a Deceased Church
In two of my four interim pastorates, I had the board, plus anyone interested, read Thom Rainier’s short book Autopsy of a Deceased Church: 12 Ways to Keep Yours Alive. The book helps church people see what they hold onto to their church’s detriment, and gives good ideas about how a church might be able to find renewal.1
Photo by Miguel Montejano. Used by Permission.
What New Options for a Dying Church?
So when the worshipping congregation gets so small that they can’t support a part-time pastor, pay for the upkeep of the building, or both, is closing the only option?
In 2013-2014, I served on a team that guided a conflicted church into a new future. In our 8 months working with them we generated a list of options besides the usual two:
Keep shrinking and die
Intentionally close the church
Sunday, as a different church met with a denominational leader outlining some options, I was reminded of that list we generated back in 2014.
16 Options Instead of Closing the Small Church
The first option is to give yourself two more months of worship and schedule a celebration Sunday to thank the Lord for the years of ministry and then go ahead and close the church with worship and a potluck. Invite a favorite pastor back to celebrate the years of ministry. Go out on a high note of celebration.
1. Keep Everything the Same
Keep everything the same. Churches hate change. Stay the course. Finance people can do a projection of how long the church can continue until the money runs out. Plan the party for that last Sunday.
2. Church Partnership with 2-3 Pastors
The congregation can work to build a team of 3-4 small churches that will share 2-3 ordained pastors. These pastors can bring their specific skills to bear. They will preach the same sermon at the different congregations as they rotate around.2
I would bring my gifts for youth ministry, leadership development, and mission. The other pastors would bring pastoral care gifts, preaching gifts, worship creativity, and administration, etc.
3. Part-Time Pastor
The congregation can seek a pastor to serve part-time with a scale back of pastoral responsibilities from what the last pastor did (it is difficult to find people to do this). A finance projection is necessary so the pastor knows how long finances will sustain this.
4. Lease the Building, Share the Space
The congregation could continue by leasing building space and securing a pastor to be paid for “pulpit supply” only. This option would allow the congregation to continue for several months but would not be a long-term solution.
5. Lease the Building, Worship Somewhere New
The congregation could lease the entire building, allowing the new tenants to renovate the space to their needs. The congregation uses the income to worship and minister somewhere new on the lease revenue.
6. Sell the Building, Worship Somewhere New
The congregation could sell the building and lease or purchase space at a different location. This option might allow the congregation to continue in ministry.*
WE CAN’T SELL THE CHURCH!!!
Mid-Note: Although “the people are the church, not the building and property,” many congregational members have strong emotional ties to the building. Any decision regarding the building can be difficult for the congregation.
Board Leaders will have to decide if the congregation can survive any hold-outs who “refuse” to vote to leave the building. This can result in a straight-up church closing rather than continuing as a congregation in another location. Sometimes the congregation moves forward without the building and those “hold-outs.”
Photo by Dids. Used by Permission.
7. Nest in Another Congregation, Sell the Building
Nesting is when your congregation finds another stronger church that will let you do your ministry in their building. You could move worship to Sundays at 5 p.m., meeting in a larger church’s chapel (youth room, sanctuary, choir room, social hall). A large church might share pastoral leadership with you.
Put everything in writing so both churches know who is doing what, what costs are shared and paid, and who does set up and clean up.3
8. Nest in Another Congregation, Lease the Building
This model may work for your congregations. The main downside is the continued desire to “go back” and return to the building and its glory days.
9. Sell the Building, Use the Money for Good
Your congregation could spend a few months reading and researching the missions or new ministries or even new congregations to give the sale money of the church building. Your last Sunday would be a celebration of the glory days of your congregation and the dreams you have as you give the money away. Fertilizer for God’s new growth.’
10. Stay a Congregation, Float to Other Churches
The congregation could float to different churches and worship together at their services after selling the building. A Detroit Presbytery in the NorthEast suburbs sold its building and floated for 4-10 years. They had a supply pastor who served with them in worship while being a full-time hospital chaplain.
11. Become a New Congregation
You could find 2-3 other small churches, sell all of your buildings, and buy/lease a new church to form a new stronger congregation together. Begin with a new name, and let God grow something new, different, and genuine out of the 2-3 past congregations.
12. Merge with a Stronger Congregation
In 2014, on the team that generated much of this list, we helped the small conflicted congregation merge with a next town over a stronger church. They sold their building using the money to fund 3 years of their pastoral leader to continue as an Associate Pastor to the stronger congregations pastor. The congregations merged into one new beautiful congregation.
13. Give Your Building to a Thriving Church
Instead of selling or leasing your building, you could straight up give it to a thriving church that needs more space. My intern church during seminary bought its building4 for little money from a thriving Pentecostal church that built a larger church down by the freeway interchange.
I joined this Chicago Presbytery new church development church, five years into their life. What a fantastic gift to learn as a middle seminarian at McCormick Theological Seminary.
14. Give the Building to a Non-Profit
What a gift to the neighborhood, to give the building to a senior center, a daycare, or to another non-profit that is improving the quality of life of your community.
15. Give the Building to Your Denomination
An inner-city Detroit congregation’s building became a ministry of the Presbyterian Women of Detroit, and later the Presbytery of Detroit itself. Today The Second Mile Center is an important point of care for their neighborhood.
16. Dream Bigger & Search Out Good Ideas
The 16th option is the one my team did not develop. God is so much bigger. What other option can your congregation brainstorm?
In Conclusion
At the APCE (Association of Partners in Christian Education) 2023 conference, one of the plenary speakers observed that none of the Apostle Paul’s churches are still around today. Why do we act like God doesn’t do anything new?
Your congregation may be at a crossroads, but Jesus is still Lord. Gather together, consider these options, seek more, and THEN move forward in faith.
Renewal is a fraught word. Most of us believe renewal does happen, but our loving God allows churches to die and finish their journey a lot. Praying more will not “save” your church. Churches finish their journey and close. God grows new churches. Some survey data says 32% of new churches close within 4 years, though I cannot find the citation.
This is the model presented Sunday to the small church by the PC(USA) Committee on Ministry by a local retired pastor.
Make sure you clarify the use of Nursery spaces, as this has been a whopper for churches I’ve served that have hosted a nesting congregation. My big church had a Taiwanese congregation nesting in the Chapel Sunday afternoons. It served both congregations successfully for over a decade.
You could give your building away or sell it under the market like that Pentecostal church did.