Congregational Transformation

Congregational Transformation is a Conference ministry designed to help established churches maintain – and in some cases regain – their vitality and their missional focus. According to Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Jeff Stiggins, “Congregational Transformation is all about inviting people back to remembering what the church is about.”

“We are challenging old habits and attitudes and values that have gotten congregations out of touch with their surroundings,” he said. Congregational Transformation offers a variety of leadership and training programs designed to help congregations re-connect to their mission and their community. They include Natural Church Development, Refocusing and Intervention.

About 120 churches in the Conference are currently going through the three-year refocusing process. Phase One challenges members to undergo a personal transformation by setting spiritual goals and implementing them into their lives. Phase Two invites corporate transformation by having congregations study the demographics and the needs of the community they serve. Phase Three challenges the church to create a vision for ministry by developing goals and creating an action plan.

Churches that enter into Natural Church Development (NCD) undergo a survey that measures the health and character of the church against a set of eight pre-determined factors that are considered “the characteristics of a healthy church.” The congregation then identifies areas that need improvement, and begins to work with an NCD coach to enhance performance. Over time, as the church begins to do well in all eight factors, it will naturally grow and get stronger.

On occasion the Office of Congregational Transformation appoints specially trained pastors as interventionist leaders for churches where congregations are struggling and conflicted. This is an intensive-care strategy for churches that have significant potential but need high skilled, specially trained pastoral leadership in order to realize it.

If the Florida Conference is to be effective in helping existing congregations become fruitful again in their mission for Christ, the Conference needs funds to develop and sustain transformational leaders in every district. Currently, the Conference invests more than $600,000 each year in congregational transformation, including training, salaries and administration. Additional endowment funds are needed to support the Conference’s commitment to utilize best practices in achieving healthy churches by training and deploying specially prepared coaches, facilitators and interventionist pastors in struggling churches throughout the Conference.