Leading Congregations through Crisis

Gregory Hunt

Description

On July 12, 2009, 23 youth and adult sponsors from First Baptist Church in Shreveport, La., were involved in a tragic bus accident, leaving two dead and others seriously injured. Rev. Gregory Hunt suddenly found himself leading a congregation in crisis. From that grueling experience, Hunt has crafted a book pastors need to read even as they hope they'll never use it. Putting Christ and mission at the book's center, Hunt examines what happens when crisis strikes and how pastors and congregations can prepare for future crises. Ten different types of crises - ranging from violence to natural disasters to internal congregational strife - provide insight into how pastors can lead congregations through harrowing times into a healthy future. A TCP Leadership Series title

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Christianity

Informations

• Publié par: Christian Board of Publication
• Date de parution: 30 juillet 2012
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780827221727
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

More praise forLeading Congregations through Crisis

“The knowledge and experiences Greg shares in this book, although written specifically for congregations, can also be applied in situations with any Christian organization.”

Linda C. Fuller,Cofounder of Habitat for Humanity International and the Fuller Center for Housing

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For more leadership resources, see TheColumbiaPartnership.org ChalicePress.com

LEADING CONGREGATIONS THROUGH CRISIS

GREGORY L. HUNT

Copyright © 2012 by Gregory L. Hunt. All rights reserved. For permission to reuse content, please contact Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 7508400, www.copyright.com. Bible quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from theNewRevisedStandardVersion Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (TLB) are taken fromTheLivingBible, copyright © 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. Cover and interior design: Scribe Inc.

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Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data

Hunt, Gregory Lynn, 1954– Leading congregations through crisis / by Gregory Hunt. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 9780827221703 (alk. paper) 1. Tragic, The—Religious aspects—Christianity. 2. Crisis management—Religious aspects—Christianity. 3. Christian leadership. 4. Pastoral counseling. I. Title. BR115.T73H86 2012 253—dc23 2012010758

Editor’s Foreword

Foreword

Introduction

Contents

Part I: The Anatomy of Congregational Leadership in a Time of Crisis  1 One Minister’s Tales of Crisis  2 Understanding Congregational Crisis  3 Leadership, Management, and Crisis Care: Getting Them Right . . . Together

Part II: Crisis Leadership from Onset to Resolution Congregations in Focus: Wedgwood Baptist Church, Fort Worth, Texas  4 When Crisis Strikes: Dealing with Chaos Congregations in Focus: University Baptist Church, Waco, Texas  5 Managing the Mess: Putting the Congregation on the Road to Recovery Congregations in Focus: New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado  6 Finding a New Normal: Resolving Crisis

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Part III: Special Considerations for Congregational Leaders Congregations in Focus: Crosspointe Meadows Church, Novi, Michigan 90  7 Never Waste a Crisis: Learning from the Trouble That Comes 93 Congregations in Focus: Congregational United Church of Christ, Punta Gorda, Florida 105

 8 Getting in Front of Crisis: Prevention and Preparation Congregations in Focus: Sandy Run Baptist Church, Hampton, South Carolina  9 Faith and Crisis: Experiencing God in the Eye of the Storm 10 Going the Distance: Leading through Crisis without Burning Out Notes Resources for Crisis Leadership

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Editor’s Foreword

Inspiration and Wisdom for TwentyFirstCentury Christian Leaders

You have chosen wisely in deciding to study and learn from a book published in The Columbia Partnership Leadership Series with Chalice Press. We publish for

•฀ Congregational฀leaders฀who฀desire฀to฀serve฀with฀greater฀faithfulness,฀ effectiveness, and innovation. •฀ Christian฀ministers฀who฀seek฀to฀pursue฀and฀sustain฀excellence฀in฀min istry service. •฀ Members฀ of฀ congregations฀ who฀ desire฀ to฀ reach฀ their฀ full฀ kingdom฀ potential. •฀ Christian฀leaders฀who฀desire฀to฀use฀a฀coach฀approach฀in฀their฀ministry. •฀ Denominational฀and฀parachurch฀leaders฀who฀want฀to฀come฀alongside฀ affiliated congregations in a servant leadership role. •฀ Consultants฀ and฀ coaches฀ who฀ desire฀ to฀ increase฀ their฀ learning฀ con cerning the congregations and Christian leaders they serve.

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

TheColumbiaPartnershipLeadershipSeriesis an inspirationand wisdomsharing vehicle of The Columbia Partnership, a community of Christian leaders who are seeking to transform the capacity of the North American church to pursue and sustain vital Christcentered ministry. You can connect with us atwww.TheColumbiaPartnership.org. Primarily serving congregations, denominations, educational institu tions, leadership development programs, and parachurch organizations, the Partnership also seeks to connect with individuals, businesses, and other organizations seeking a Christcentered spiritual focus. We welcome your comments on these books, and we welcome your suggestions for new subject areas and authors we ought to consider.

The Columbia Partnership 332 Valley Springs Road, Columbia, SC 292236934 Voice: 803.622.0923,www.TheColumbiaPartnership.org

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Foreword

What are you going to do when your congregation experiences an unexpected interruption? A crisis. It is not “if.” It is “when.” Do you have a crisis response plan? A crisis prevention plan? (As if you could prevent an unexpected interruption.) My friend Floyd Craig, a religious organization communication consul tant, has always said that the foolish among us do not have a crisis response plan. The wise among us have one, but know it will never work exactly as the plan calls for when a crisis occurs. It is certainly going to take a whole bunch of prayer and action. It is going to take wisdom that can ultimately come only from our God, who sees the future and the consequences of our actions.

The Situation On July 12, 2009, I was deacon of the week for my church in Columbia, South Carolina. I attended both morning worship services, enjoyed lunch out with my wife, and upon returning home for the afternoon I turned on my computer to check my email and social networks. Soon I began to see notices of a bus accident involving a youth group and sponsors from First Baptist Church of Shreveport, Louisiana, where my friend Greg Hunt was pastor. It was surreal. Later I had several contacts with Greg about the situation. I had been engaged by the church a couple of years earlier to consult with them con cerning their future. Many of the people impacted by the tragedy Greg describes in this book were people I had met. Eventually Greg and I began to talk about how unfortunate it is that although multiple congregations go through crises like this, seldom are they fully prepared, if it is possible to be prepared. Further, what happens after a crisis of this nature, and many other types of crises, is crucial to the longterm spiritual and emotional health of the congregational community and many individuals and households connected with the congregation. The six to eighteen months after a crisis are times for essential relief, recovery, and renewal actions. Without healthy responses many people and congregations can be dysfunctional for a lifetime.

The LongTerm Response This book contains what Greg and I began to talk about a few months following the bus accident. We identified possible types of crises. We con ducted a survey to discover the types of crises most frequently experienced

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