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Collaboration: New resources for churches in tough
economic times
No one knows how churches will emerge from the
COVID-19 crisis. We’ve never had a time when in-person worship is
shut down for weeks or even months. Thankfully, early reports show
remarkable resilience to social distancing. A Faith Communities
Today study of UMC churches in late-April found that 48%
report increased attendance with online worship, but at the
same time 51% report that giving is down. As social distancing
continues the pressure on congregations is likely to increase. For
some churches new approaches may be critical for the
long-term survival. Collaboration with other churches can free up
financial and people
resources for mission even when the participating churches face
stress, and collaboration can be a way for stronger churches to
revive struggling congregations.
This site started in 2009 to share
research conducted by ChurchFuture for a cluster of churches that
asked ChurchFuture for help in exploring their options. We
discovered about a dozen ways that churches work together, but that
information is scattered and difficult to pull together. We also
discovered almost no ojective data about the outcome of various
forms of collaboration. We were happily surprised, however, at the
creativity we found in congregations throughout the United States.
The site is
based on the experience of
Dave Raymond as a coach and consultant to over 100 congregations and
20 significant collabortions. The site is designed to help you
determine if collaboration is something that your congregation
should consider and then to help you identify the form of
collaboration that will work best in your setting. Check out
www.churchfuture.com for
more information about how ChurchFuture can help in your situation.