God Isn’t Finished Writing Your Church’s Story

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. – Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV

Depending on where you’re living, the leaves are changing, the daylight is getting shorter and the landscape that was lush and green just a few weeks ago is putting on its winter clothes.

And if you’re pastoring a smaller church, you may be tempted to think, “We don’t have the people we used to have.” “Our neighborhood is changing – the young families have moved away.” “Maybe our best days are behind us.”

But a changing season is not necessarily a dying season. And even if you’re going through a difficult chapter in your church’s history, God is still writing the story.

As I’m sitting here writing this, I’m thinking how much I’ve been reading, writing and preaching on Abraham in the last month or so. It has become a recurring encouragement to me. God called Abraham to leave what was familiar to begin something brand new that would change the world. The future God had planned for Abraham meant that he would have to leave the land of familiar “to the land I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1).

In the text I picked for this article, God is warning Israel not to become so fascinated with what He had done, that they missed what He was doing.

For the disciples, the crucifixion looked like an ending. But the resurrection changed everything. Pentecost began a chapter we are still writing today!

God’s faithfulness yesterday gives us hope and confidence for tomorrow—it should never make us prisoners of yesterday.

To Everything Turn, Turn, Turn

Solomon wrote:

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens – Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV

If you’re a small church pastor or leader, you are already aware of how the seasons in your community change and how they drive the actions and events of your neighbors. Planting season, harvest season, school starts, school’s out for summer, fall festivals, even pumpkin lattes are all set to the changing seasons in an agrarian community. And churches have seasons also.

There are seasons of growth, stability, pruning, transition, loss, building and renewal. The challenge many of us face is what do we do in the season we find ourselves in at the moment. And often we make the mistake of assuming that because this current season doesn’t look like the previous season, we must be doing something wrong. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Instead of yearning for the good ole’ days, consider how God might be preparing your congregation to become the church your community needs right now.

Precious Memories

Church history and memories are important. They matter. Events, pastors, Vacation Bible Schools of the past matter. I’m not telling you to pass them off as if they are not part of who you are. Remember you are standing on the shoulders of generations of believers whose prayers and faithfulness helped make your church what it is today.

The danger comes when our precious memories of the past become our definition of what God must do next. Honor the past, but don’t worship it.

Faith remembers what God did yesterday but still expects Him to do something new tomorrow. Nostalgia will keep you stuck in the past. And as I always say, “No faith is required when you’re comfortable.”

Sometimes churches remain stuck because comfort feels safer than the unknown future.

Open My Eyes That I May See

There’s a reason the windshield of a car is bigger than the rearview mirror. We need a clear view of where we are going while keeping the past in its proper perspective. Maybe your church doesn’t have the thriving youth group it used to have, but maybe you have six kids who desperately need adults who know them by name.

Maybe some of the ministries you’ve done for years because you’ve always “done it that way”, need to be celebrated and retired. Maybe you don’t have the resources you once had. All the more reason to become intentional and exceptionally good at the one mission your church does better than any other in the community.

Maybe the pews aren’t as full on Sunday as they used to be—but your building could be filled with community activity the rest of the week.

I firmly believe that God has intentionally knit the body of Christ that meets in your sanctuary to do something for the Kingdom and His glory. You may not have enough people to recreate the ministries of yesteryear, but you have exactly what you need to fulfill God’s ministry for tomorrow.

Renewal often begins the moment a church stops pining for what they used to have and starts asking, “God, what have You put in front of us now?”

He Leadeth Me

As you sit at your desk and read this article, I may have caught you in a moment of discouragement. What I’ve written may have even ruffled your feathers a bit. But let me encourage you with just a few more thoughts. Your church’s next chapter may not mean it becomes a big church, but it could mean you begin making a big difference in your community.

Your next chapter may mean you become a healthier church, making disciples one relationship at a time. You may find that instead of focusing on the comfort of those currently inside, you have a lot more community engagement. Your church could be focused on a clearer mission than ever before.

When your church figures out what God has gifted them to do right now, they can begin to live into the future God has in store. Maybe you need to give yourself permission to stop trying to do everything and focus on the one thing God has prepared your church to do.

He’s Still Working On Me

Don’t put a period where God put a comma. He’s still writing the story of your church. Too many churches have already written their own ending: “We’re too old.” “We’re too small.” “We don’t have enough money.” “People don’t come to church anymore.” “The good ole’ days are gone.” But what if God isn’t writing an ending? What if He’s simply turning the page?

This is just a new season. You may have to let go of the familiar in order to reach the land God is leading you to. It will take courage. The methods that served your church in the last chapter may not be the methods God uses in the next one. This next chapter will almost certainly require change. But the same God who was leading your church in the past is the same God that is leading it into its future.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. – Isaiah 43:19 NIV

Pastors, don’t spend so much time rereading your church’s old chapters that you miss what God is writing on the next page. Turn to the next chapter. Trust that the One writing the chapter already knows the ending. Your church’s story isn’t finished yet—morning by morning, new mercies I see.

What “new thing” do you see God doing in your church right now? Share it with me in the comments and join the conversation. Your story might inspire another church to live into its future.

If this article has been a blessing to you, please take a moment to share it with another pastor or church leader who needs to hear – God isn’t finished with your church yet!

And if you need help discerning what your One Excellent Mission is, reach out to me for a complimentary 30-minute conversation on how your church can find a new way forward.