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Question 1: Mission

What Do We Do?

A few weeks passed and before I knew it I was headed back to see Jeremy again. Last time, I had spent a lot of one-on-one time with him as well as with his staff. This time, however, we were going to dive in headfirst, as a team, to begin the process of moving his church to the Increase stage, the place in which the first church in Acts lived and breathed. My heart was filled with expectation, primarily because the team at South Hills lives to help churches and leaders fulfill their unrealized dreams—to help clear the dust for the pastor and the church, create clarity and direction, and walk them through the process of becoming all that God intends. This is what God has called us to do.

After landing, I grabbed the rental car and headed straight for the church. As I pulled up, everything looked pretty much the same as it had the last time I was there. However, Jeremy happened to be getting out of his car at the same time and I noticed the look of determination in his eyes. I realized then that everything on the outside looked the same, but on the inside it was different. Jeremy’s countenance and confidence had changed. Yes, we were in for an extensive journey. But I could tell he was ready to go to work. He was ready to do whatever it took to move his church from Whirlwind to Increase. As we greeted each other, we headed into the office and found the team already seated in the makeshift conference room and ready to go.

We cut up and made a few jokes for the first few minutes, but I could tell they were more than ready to dive in. I told the team, “Before we begin, please understand that this is a journey. This is something that will take lots of work, some honest discussion and disagreements, and at times we will feel some tension in the room. We need to put aside anything that we have married ourselves to, let our opinions be heard but not demand they be implemented, and mine for the gold this church can become. We are going to get crystal clear on who we are as a church, what we do, and how we get it done. Identify the wins for this church. Get the entire staff, leaders, and volunteers moving in the same direction. Create a winning, life-changing, God-honoring culture that experiences increase. But please understand, this won’t come without honest conversation and hard work.”

Our first exercise as a team was a SWOT analysis. Some of you pastors may have done this before. If it’s been a while since you have done it with your team, you might consider doing it again. It is a great first place to start on your journey to Increase. For those of you who have never done it, let me briefly explain the exercise.

SWOT is an acronym for:

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

It is designed to assist your team in the beginning stages of moving toward Increase. It is created to help your team have honest dialogue with each other. (This might not be normal for your team.) It will provide positive reinforcement of what you are doing right, bring attention to what needs to be changed, and potentially expose some elephants in the room.

Materials needed for this exercise:

check-box15px Large sticky notes (the kind that can be placed on a tripod stand)

check-box15px Small sticky notes given to each person on the team

check-box15px Pens for each person

check-box15px Markers

You will take four large sticky notes and write one word at the top of each. The words are: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats.

STRENGTHS

First have the team write down—on their small sticky notes—one to three words, each describing a strength in the church. They will write one down, walk up to the large sticky note titled “Strengths,” stick their small note to it, and say out loud what they wrote. Each team member will continue to do this as they write down different strengths. Try to have them write down and take forward only one at a time, rather than writing down four or five and taking them up to the front all at once. The goal is to get each team member actively involved in listing all the strengths and walking back and forth to the large sticky note. Try to make it fun, loud, a little bit of a mess as people walk back and forth—not so rigid, but a more creative, organic exercise. You should end up with twenty to thirty (at least) strengths. These could include: music, location, friendly people, little or no debt, nice bathrooms. . . . List absolutely any strength you can think of.

WEAKNESSES

Now do the exact same thing with the large sticky note titled “Weaknesses.” Look for any weaknesses in the church. Please remind your staff to be honest, without being mean. Dishonesty will not only hurt the exercise, but it will hinder your journey. Weaknesses may include: building, location, children’s department, sound, discipleship, follow-up, volunteers, etc.—anything that could be noted as a weakness for the church. You should end up with at least twenty to thirty small sticky notes on the large note.

OPPORTUNITIES

Do the exact same thing again with the large sticky note titled “Opportunities.” Please note, you likely will not have as many small notes as you did with Strengths and Weaknesses. At this point in the exercise, you want to identify opportunities for your church that you may not be taking advantage of. Maybe you live in an area with a high demographic of a certain group, but you are not doing anything to reach them. Maybe you are located next to a high school but have no presence on the campus. Maybe you are financially strong but not utilizing the finances in a way that will advance the church. Maybe you have a great facility that isn’t being maximized. Again, what are the opportunities that you have but are not taking advantage of?

THREATS

Do the same thing again with the large sticky note titled “Threats.” With this one, you are asking the question, “What specific issue can we identify that, if we don’t change or do something about it, will threaten our church’s future?” Some examples might include: addressing the changing demographic, not reaching new people and—possibly in a slow death—not being relevant, having misaligned staff, not having systems and processes in place, being unclear on who we are and who we are not, not being clear on who we are trying to reach. List anything you or the team feel could threaten your health, future, or growth if not addressed or changed.

I took Jeremy and his team through this exercise (which usually lasts for about an hour or so), and they did a great job. They were honest and transparent, and the exercise accomplished its primary function: everyone worked together in being realistic about where they were as a church and where they needed to go. (Pastors: again, if you have not taken your team through this exercise, I highly suggest you do.)

As we wrapped up the exercise, I wrote on the whiteboard the seven crucial areas we needed to discuss, create, and implement. These are the same seven that will lead you to Increase. The same seven that we find as we search the scriptures in the book of Acts.

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Now that Jeremy and the team had gotten honest during the SWOT exercise, we were ready to address the first and probably most important unavoidable question: “What do we do?”

Jeremy interrupted immediately and told me the same thing I have heard from countless pastors and leaders across the nation: “Chris, we know what we are all about. We have a mission statement.”

I reminded him gently that he had already shared his mission statement with me and that I, through my one-on-one interviews with his staff, had asked each team member about the mission statement. A couple of the staff recited it, others recollected some sort of statement, others attempted to recite it but failed, and some were honest enough to say, “I have no idea.”

I have found this to be the norm among churches. Some sort of mission statement was at one time somehow crafted, but very few remember it and most of the team aren’t living it out. Truth be told, there is no clear-cut strategy to forming one. But our team has worked with enough pastors and churches over the years to realize there is a sort of typical approach to creating a mission statement, and it goes something like this:

You’re left with a mission statement that is empty, fruitless, and most-often forgotten. This is not what I mean by a mission statement, and it sure doesn’t have the same power and clarity of Jesus’s mission. Now I know the overall concept of mission statements has been taught and written about in more messages, conferences, and books than any single person could possibly calculate. With that said, I am still amazed at how very few churches have a crystal clear picture of what God has uniquely called them to do. They have not been able to answer the number one unavoidable question: “What do we do?” What is this church all about? What is the thing that will keep us working harder than we knew we could because we are so consumed with our unique God-given mission? It is clear to everyone who works or volunteers. We know exactly why we do what we do and we put all our hands to this one plow. A mission statement is not something to simply craft for the sake of saying, “We did it.”

A mission statement

drives the church and its leaders;

guides our decision-making process;

determines where we spend our money, who we hire, what we start, and what we stop;

provides a clear picture;

answers the “what” question;

shapes our strategy;

is brief yet broad; and

is a statement of what the ministry should be doing.

But please understand that a mission statement in and of itself will not grow your church, just like a tool in a mechanic’s hand won’t fix a car. Unless the tool is utilized, it accomplishes nothing.

Some of America’s most influential and thriving churches have created mission statements. Here are just a few examples from well-known churches and pastors:

Saddleback (Rick Warren)

To provide a place where the depressed, the hurting and hopeless can come and find help. To be a place of family, community and hope.

Mariners (Kenton Beshore)

Inspire people to follow Jesus and fearlessly change the world.

Southeast Christian (Dave Stone)

Connecting people to Jesus and one another.

North Coast Church (Larry Osborne)

Making disciples in a healthy church environment.

Central Christian (Jud Wilhite)

We exist to introduce people to Jesus and help them follow Him.

Eastside Christian (Gene Appel)

Our mission is to transform our homes, community and world by pursuing God, building community and unleashing compassion, one neighborhood at a time.

12Stone (Kevin Myers)

12Stone is called to reach the lost, serve the least, and raise up leaders.

If you know anything about these churches and their leaders, I think you would agree with me that each mission statement is much more than a statement. It serves as the focal point of their ministry. It drives everything they do. They have answered the number-one unavoidable question that every pastor must ask: “What do we do?”

I shared this information with Jeremy and the team. They needed to understand that what they were about to create was more than just a cool-sounding statement; it was going to be the compass for their church. It might be only one sentence, but it’s the sentence that drives everything we do and everything we don’t do. Just as I was finishing up this portion with Jeremy and his team, one of them raised his hand and said, “I think I get it. This statement has to be what we put our entire effort into. You said it shapes the strategy, but it also serves as a scoreboard, correct?”

“Absolutely,” I said. “You are exactly right. It dictates our strategy, but it is also the way we keep score. It serves as the foundation to how we will determine a win for this church.”

He looked at me and said, “It may be short, but it is so important.” He was smiling from ear to ear. “Can we get started?”

I laughed a little and said, “Thought you’d never ask.”

I went to the whiteboard and explained that there are a few things to understand before developing a mission statement and answering the question, “What do we do?” I wrote them on the board:

Mission is near-sighted and far-sighted.

I always teach that a mission statement is both near-sighted and far-sighted. It’s near-sighted because it represents the heart of the pastor. It’s far-sighted because it represents the heart of God. That’s why you can have thousands of churches, who all believe in Jesus and want to reach people for him, with different DNA and styles. Each church, at the core, represents the heart of God—but it also represents the heart of the pastor, who has his own unique style, personality, and passions.

The process should not be rushed.

You do not want to rush this process. Several strategy sessions, over a period of a few weeks or maybe even months, may be needed before you arrive at what God has called you to do. But don’t rush it. Remember: this is the foundation on which everything else will be built. Keep each strategy meeting two to four hours in length. You can help expedite this process of developing a mission statement—and maybe even answer a few more of the seven unavoidable questions every leader must answer—in a two- or three-day retreat.

Choose the right people and the right size for your strategy group.

You don’t want a large group getting involved with this process. Keep the same people in the group from beginning to end, working the same process. I suggest somewhere between four and eight. They need to be people who love the church, know how to lead, are creative, won’t get their feelings easily hurt, and desperately desire for the church to grow. Typically this will be your key leaders and staff that you invite to join you in the process.

Look to others for ideas—to learn from, not to copy.

It’s okay to review the mission statements I have listed or even some you have found on your own; this may help spark something in you. But just make sure to not simply cut and paste. Remember: your mission statement needs to be from the heart of God and the heart of the pastor (your pastor, not someone else’s).

Let me take you through some simple steps to help you on the road to creating your own mission statement. Of course, because these steps are in a book, they do not give you the full picture of the energy, passion, and painful joy that come from actually being in the room when a mission statement is crafted. We do this with so many of our affiliates and the churches we work with, and it is an absolute blast. But this can at least get you moving in the right direction and hopefully help you create the same energetic process that we are privileged to share with churches around the nation.

Sidenote: At every session:

Provide a whiteboard and/or large sticky notes, small individual sticky notes, markers, and pens

Put cell phones on “do not disturb”

Keep it fun

Keep it organic

No team member should be wearing their feelings on their sleeve

Be honest but not mean

Answering the Mission Question, “What Do We Do?”

Exercise

GOD’S HEART—PASTOR’S HEART

On a board, write down these two phrases with a line between them: “God’s Heart” and “Pastor’s Heart.” First, you want to spend some time letting the team either write on the board or write on their small sticky notes and then place them on the board (similar to the SWOT exercise) what they feel the heart of God is for the local church. What does God want to see the local church doing and being? Everyone should contribute at least one or two statements to the “God’s Heart” side.

Next, you want to do the same thing with the other side of the board, “Pastor’s Heart.” Except here, the pastor does not get to participate. Allow the team to answer the questions, “What is the heart of our pastor? What does he speak about most often? What is his passion?” Each team member should write down at least one or two statements under “Pastor’s Heart.” This plays an important part in the process because it’s the pastor who God has called to lead the church, and how God has uniquely wired the pastor will play a role in the specific mission of the church. It’s the heart of God working inside the passion and heart of the pastor that makes a special and unique calling.

You now want to identify some common threads. What are the three to five things that seem to be somewhat similar under both “God’s Heart” and “Pastor’s Heart”? Maybe the words won’t be exact, but they generally convey the same message. Really talk through why, as a team, you feel they represent the heart of God and why they represent the heart of the pastor.

When we started South Hills, there were a few things under “God’s Heart” and “Pastor’s Heart” that were the same, but the one that shone through the brightest was a heart for those who were far from God. We know it’s the heart of God because he gave up his only Son for this primary reason. We know it’s the heart of God because he leaves the ninety-nine to find the one. We know it’s the heart of God because it was the final command given by Jesus while on this earth. That’s the “God’s Heart” side. The heart of the pastor shines through as well. For myself as a person, not just a pastor, I absolutely love helping people experience Jesus for the first time. In our church, I am always bringing friends I have invested in: people from the gym, the grocery store, or the bank whom I have met, built a relationship with, and then brought to church. It’s the common thread between my heart and God’s heart. So because I am the founding pastor, this part of my heart shows up in our mission statement.

This is the kind of thing you are looking for with the two lists you have created about God’s heart and your pastor’s heart. You are looking for the common threads. These words may not show up in your mission statement, but they must serve as a guide to the essence of the mission statement. Write down these phrases and keep them in your working document.

Exercise

DISCOVER WHAT WORKS

This is similar to the SWOT analysis, but much narrower. You need to discover what naturally works for you and your church. What seems to get the greatest results? You are looking to see if the greatest results are tied at all to the pastor’s heart that you articulated in the previous exercise.

For instance, at our church we have always been about reaching the unchurched and have done an overall good job fulfilling that call. This has been a result of my own heart as the founding pastor. It’s what I love to do and what I live to do: help people connect with Jesus. I love the thrill of building a relationship with someone at the gym or in the neighborhood and then, over time, sharing about Jesus, inviting them to church, and, of course, watching the person cross the line of faith.

Since I grew up in Southern California, I have been to Disneyland several times. When I was a kid my parents would take me there. As a teenager I would sometimes go there with my friends or with a youth group. Before my wife and I were married, and even in the first couple years of our marriage, we would go there from time to time. Although I love Disneyland, after going there countless times, the happiest place on earth lost a little of its happiness for me. Now fast-forward a bit to when my wife and I were in our late twenties and we had two children, ages three and four. My wife started talking to me about taking the kids to Disneyland. I was thinking two things: (1) how expensive it is, and (2) how many times I had been to Disneyland and really didn’t want to go. My wife was persistent in reminding me that the kids had never experienced it and just because we were used to it and had seen it numerous times didn’t mean they shouldn’t get to go. So we set the date, saved $10,000 for tickets to get in (a little sarcasm there, but not much), and we were ready to take our kids for their very first experience at Disneyland.

I remember walking into the entrance of Disneyland and watching my kids’ eyes light up. Some of the characters were out greeting families as they came in and my kids were so excited. We rode some of the rides, ate cotton candy, my daughter got a picture with Snow White, and we even got some Mickey ears. It was the absolute best day I have ever had at Disneyland. Not because it was my first time seeing it, but because I got to see it through the eyes of someone who had never seen it before. The same is true when walking with someone who is new to their spiritual journey. Watching a person see Jesus for the first time and discover him for themselves is like watching a child see the bigness of Disneyland for the very first time. There’s nothing like it to keep your faith energized.

I recommend making a list on the whiteboard and adding it to your working document. You are answering the question, “What gets us the greatest results?”

Exercise

DISCUSS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

This is not about discussing what kind of person lives in your community (older, younger, specific race, economic climate, etc.), though I do believe that this is very helpful when considering your approach. What I am referring to here is the true target audience of your church. The straightforward question is, “Are you going to be primarily focused on discipling the already convinced, or are you going to make your primary target the unchurched?” This is a huge question and cannot be overlooked. This question will direct the kind of mission statement you develop.

The difficulty of this question lies deep inside a biblical conviction. We all know that we should be reaching those far from Jesus. To say that we are not goes against any biblical rationale. However, in most churches, the style of ministry, the method of communication, and the approach to services all scream the message, “We are designed more for the churched than the unchurched.” This is birthed from years of doing church the same way. As a result of doing church the same way, we find ourselves much more comfortable doing a church service for the churched than pushing ourselves past our comfort zone to actually consider a different method that might create a greater inclusiveness for those far from God.

You must decide what your church is going to be about. What is the target audience? Are we primarily going to focus on the churched, or are we going to adjust and change so that the unchurched could find a home with us? Whoever you decide is your target audience, whatever you’re willing to change, whatever you’re not willing to change, will determine the wording of your mission statement and the flow of your strategy. Discuss this among your team, pray for God’s guidance, and discover his heart on the matter. Don’t brush by this conversation quickly; make sure you take the necessary time to arrive at whatever conclusion God leads you to.

Exercise

WORDSMITH

Now take the words and phrases from the “God’s Heart / Pastor’s Heart” exercise, the list of things you are doing right and that are getting the greatest results, and the prayerful decision about the kind of target audience you will reach, and begin merging them together. Start putting together phrases that seem to match up from the three exercises. Phrases might look like:

“make Jesus known”

“help people find their purpose”

“move people along in their spiritual journey”

“care for those in need”

“reach the unreached”

“create a place that . . .”

You are looking for phrases that best sum up the lists you have already worked on. From here, you will begin to wordsmith a one-sentence mission that describes what you feel and believe your church needs to be all about. It is the one thing that you are going to spend your life doing. All staffing, resources, and programs will be developed and considered in light of your mission.

A few final things to remember as you create your mission statement and answer the question, “What do we do?” First, take your time and make sure to get it right. Second, make sure you are honest during the process, especially with the third exercise. Third, arrive at a statement that has been bathed in prayer and reflects the true heart of God. Finally, make sure this statement answers the question, “What do we do?” Remember: this is a statement that will drive it all, so it’s important to get it right.