Moving Forward: Kondo-ing Your Ministry

by Lisa Allgood, Executive Presbyter

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”                                                                                                –  Hebrews 13:8

I went back recently and watched the sermon our new Stated Clerk, the Reverend Jihyun Oh, delivered at GA.  I thought it was brilliant, and says oh-so-much-more-eloquently what I’ve been saying to churches for some time now.

She started by noting that Marie Kondo’s famous approach to decluttering – hold something and if it gives you joy keep it, if it doesn’t give you joy thank it for the joy that it brought you at one point in time and then let it go so that it brings someone else joy – has a basis in the Shinto tradition.  After all, Kondo is Japanese.  However, Jihyun suggested that we, as Christians in the secular era we live in, should perhaps be adopting some of that approach.

Full disclosure – for someone who is very tidy and in the continual process of downsizing as I get older, I still have a lot of stuff.  And I like my stuff (especially my books, although I’ve never read Kondo’s book).  So, curious, I went to the Marie Kondo website. And (1) was amused that she calls herself a tidying expert but (2) was disappointed to see that she offered stuff for sale and training to create more “tidying expert consultants”.  Oh well.

She does, however, have a 6-rule approach to tidying – which perfectly fits what we ought to be doing with our ministries:

• Rule 1: Commit Yourself to Tidying Up. The KonMari Method™ is not a quick fix for a messy room or a once-in-a-while approach to tidying
• Rule 2: Imagine Your Ideal Lifestyle
• Rule 3: Finish Discarding First
• Rule 4: Tidy by Category, Not by Location
• Rule 5: Follow the Right Order
• Rule 6: Ask Yourself If It Sparks Joy

So what might this look like in our ministries…?

• Rule 1: Commit Yourself to Tidying Up.

The KonMari Method™ is not a quick fix for…

• Too many left-over ministries that other people were once passionate about but who are no longer in the congregation. 
• Ministries that are no longer relevant to the community you are currently serving (as opposed to the one you may have served 20 years ago – or 50 years ago).
• Ministries that no longer help you proclaim the gospel (even if the community has come to rely on them/expect them).
• A building you no longer fill, need, can afford to maintain, or is suited for who you are as a church now. You’re not a non-profit, so that pantry or center or whatever is great – but only if it is also part of your ministry in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is not a once-in-a-while approach to tidying. This is the first step to critically assess what you are doing that works that you can build on, what is no longer serving your church or the community or the Kingdom, and start dreaming about what God is dreaming for you to become to fulfill His dream for His Kingdom. And then doing it again. And again. And again.

• Rule 2: Imagine Your Ideal Lifestyle…

And imagine at the same time your ideal footprint for the community you currently serve. 

• Are there lots of older empty-nesters, and how does that inform your worship structure and music?
• Are there multiple young families, and how does that inform your worship structure and music and times and child care and Sunday school?
• Is your church in a place where there are so many activities for families that a briefer touch on a Friday evening might better serve them?
• How can you move into a vibrant Christ-bearing lifestyle that attracts those people around you – even if it means massive shifts in what you do and how you present church?
• Who do you want to be known for, as a church in the community?  (Notice I didn’t say what – I said Who.  I hope that’s Jesus for you).
• And PS – I’m an older empty-nester who loves a lot of the contemporary Christian music.  So don’t assume based on what you want or think or like.

• Rule 3: Finish Discarding First…

Finish getting rid of what doesn’t work before you start building towards a new way of being church. 

• Otherwise, you very quickly run out of resources/people/money/steam.
• Yes, that takes a lot of emotional energy and a lot of discernment and sometimes some tough conversations with people who cling to a past that is no longer relevant. 
• Yes, it means some people might leave. 
• Yes, it takes courage.
• Yes, it’s painful.
• Do it anyway.  Church is not for us – it’s to glorify our Lord.

• Rule 4: Tidy by Category, Not by Location…

I had to think how this one applies for a while, but it still makes sense.  If bringing Jesus into the context of your community is the goal – with the ultimate goal of living into the co-mission Jesus gave His disciples to make more disciples, a co-mission to which we are still missionally driven – then choosing a place to start makes sense. 

• Start with the worship experience. 
• Then start with study.
• Then start with fellowship.
• Then start with outreach. 

Because each time you tackle another category, you have the ability to learn what works from the people who are now there with you.  If your worship solidly resonates with the community, then build on that – and start next with study. And so on.

• Rule 5: Follow the Right Order…

I would add to this one (besides ditto Rule #4) make sure they work together.

• After you listen, and do a lot of community sensing – that’s sensing the community around you outside the congregation, not inside the congregation. 
• Start with the one part that will make the most impact based on what you’ve learned
• Then, and only then, move on to the one you’ve learned about to make the next biggest impact
• Make sure you’ve tied them all together into a big beautiful Jesus-focused whole. 

Because if they don’t feed off one another, if they aren’t congruent, you will have muddied the vision completely.

• Rule 6: Ask Yourself If It Sparks Joy.

And let’s be honest – since when does a revitalized ministry not bring joy to Him Who holds us all?