| Transforming Congregations Questions To Consider
By Rev. Kendall M. Taylor, Executive Director,
Office of Congregational Transformation (OCT)
 I
have been delighted at the interest in transformation I have found in
people all over the conference. I know it is something much easier to
talk and dream about than do. And the interest may wane as folks
discover the cost in hard work required to transform. But there seems
to be a clear perception that business as usual will produce its own
set of difficulties. Hence, there is interest in finding another way.
The next gathering of the Conference Table will
be held at First United Methodist Church, Sarasota. I have the
privilege of presenting some of our learnings to date and some of the
issues that are central to the process of transformation for
congregations. After this brief presentation attendees will be invited
to ask questions, share concerns, make suggestions and, in general,
enter into the creative process of defining the work of OCT and
methods we employ.
Here are some of the issues I believe are
pivotal for our congregations.
- What system(s) of transformation
shall we use? There are several readily available.
- How shall we define what a healthy
church looks and behaves like? There are definitions already
circulating. Do we use one of them? Do we make our own? Do we pick
and choose?
- Shall we use coaches to help
congregations transform? Who will be transformation coaches? Who
will train them? What paradigm shall we use for coaching?
- What instruments shall we use to
assess congregational health? There are several options.
Along the way we may choose multiple answers to
some of the questions. I have some tentative answers, but I need to
hear from the “consumer,” the congregations. I hope you will be
there to help discern our next steps.
Please keep the transformation process in your
prayers. Its success depends on our discernment of God’s will and
our obedience to it!
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