How to Effectively Communicate Change To Your Church

What do you want to change? Whether you’re new to your ministry role or have been serving for decades, I bet there is something that you want to change. 

Change is hard. People often don’t like change. Leading change is one of the most formidable challenges in leadership. And yet, leadership is all about change. To be a leader is to guide people from “here” to “there. But how do you do that when people don’t like change?

I’ve heard it said that, “Leadership is the art of disappointing people at a rate they can stand.” I’ve heard this quote attributed to John Ortberg and a few others. I’m not sure who originally said these words, but I believe they are true because leadership requires leading people through change which, in turn, involves disappointing people.

So, for those of us who feel called to lead a ministry through a season of needed change, how exactly do you do that?  

In my experience, there is a way to do this that builds trust and leads to progress, but there is also a way that is counterproductive. It’s all about how you communicate change. You see, you might have an incredible vision for the future and the change you want to implement might be the best thing for your church or ministry, but if you communicate this change in the wrong way, it will be resisted and possibly even rejected. 

So, let’s talk about how to effectively communicate change. 

Change Requires Buy-In

Not even a dictator can implement change without buy-in. Any important change you want to lead through in your ministry will require buy-in from key stakeholders. An obvious example is your church’s elders—or whatever title you give to the governing board in your church.  But also, your volunteers. If people are unwilling to buy-in to your vision and refuse to volunteer, well you have a problem. 

Whatever the change you hope to implement, if key stakeholders are not bought in, you will encounter significant challenges in leading through change. 

You must get buy-in from key stakeholders, whoever they may be. So, here is your first step in communicating significant change: Identify your key stakeholders. Make a list. 

Not Everyone Finds Out at the Same Time

Once you have identified key stakeholders, you need to tell them about the change you hope to implement, but not all at the same time.  In fact, certain groups of stakeholders should find out earlier than others. 

If you do this in the wrong order, you will ruffle feathers, dishonor leaders and generate mistrust. If you do this in the right order, you will communicate value, build trust and generate momentum. 

So, think through who should hear about your planned change first.  Take your list of key stakeholders and put it in prioritized order.  

Personal Conversations are Always Better 

An email isn’t going to get the job done with key stakeholders. Once you have identified and prioritized key stakeholders, the people and groups of people at the top of your list will require a personal conversation. 

You might be thinking, “I don’t have time for that.”  The truth is that if you skip this important step, you will spend a lot more time repairing relationships and cleaning up the mess. If you don’t have time for personal conversations, you don’t have time to lead change because leading change requires time, patience, and strategic personal communication. 

By pursuing personal conversations with key stakeholders, you will build trust, forge a coalition and generate momentum. 

People Need Time to Process Change

Back to that quote I shared at the beginning of this post.   “Leadership is the art of disappointing people at a rate they can stand.” 

The thing about change is that it often involves grief. A few years ago, I moved my family to a bigger house in a better neighborhood. We were a family of 5 living in a 3 bedroom house with no basement. Our new house was a better fit for our family on so many levels. And yet, after moving, my kids often complained about missing our old house. At first I was annoyed, but then I remembered that change always involves grief. We had 12 years of memories in that old house. Our old house was comfortable and known. 

That is how leading through change often works. There is grief. And, it’s important to remember that you have been processing the idea of this change for a long time and the people you are attempting to lead are forced to come to terms with change much more quickly. 

All this means is that people need time to process. People need to be shepherded through change. Patience and kindness will go a long way as you attempt to lead through change. 

Wrap Up

Whatever it is that you want to change in your ministry or church, how you lead through that change is just as important as the change you hope to implement. Leading through change requires effective and clear communication. I hope this post has been helpful in shaping how you go about communicating change.