Integrative Growth

Engaging Stakeholders to Create a Bold Strategic Plan

Key Challenges

When the beloved pastor of Lynnhurst Congregational UCC became ill, parishioners were faced with the task of finding a new leader. Like most congregations, Lynnhurst had experienced a gradual decline in membership and funding that matched national trends toward decreased church attendance.

While church council members knew they had been fortunate to have a leader strong and charismatic enough to staunch that decline, they wanted to face the future with a bold optimism: they wanted to explore whether their membership could grow, despite national trends to the contrary. In fact, given the shrinking pool of pastor-applicants capable of leading a church, board members were convinced that a bold commitment to growth was their only chance to attract another high-quality leader.

Church processes dictated that, in order to solicit applications for a new pastor, a document must be submitted defining a congregation