Case Study

Who?

Grinnell Christian Church
Weekend attendance of 550.
5 full-time staff members
10 elders

Where?

Grinnell, Iowa – a community of 10,000.

What?

A Teaching and Consulting relationship

Background

Over a thirty-four year period, the senior pastor of Grinnell Christian Church, helped grow the congregation from 150 to 550 regular attenders. When I got involved with the church, the church leadership was preparing for him to turn sixty-five and phase out of the role of senior pastor and move in to the position of pastor with senior adults. Their decision to involve me began when they heard me speak about a Biblical view of aging during a weekend visit to their church in the fall of 2008. At that time, several men serving on the elder board spoke to me about the number of retirement communities and assisted living facilities in the community and their thoughts about the pastor reaching out to these people.
The chairman of the elders asked me to help them lay out a direction for the ministry and we corresponded via e-mail until a face-to-face meeting was scheduled.

Groundwork

The elders and their wives, the senior pastor and his wife and I met in Grinnell. After having dinner at a restaurant, we gathered at the church for a vision-casting presentation followed by discussion and closing with a suggested plan for launching the ministry. At the meeting, I presented the three different groups of older adults: the frail elderly, the senior adult, and the new old. I explained the unique characteristics of each group and their specific needs and then we discussed the various challenges and opportunities for ministry within each group. You can read more about the three groups here.
As the discussion continued, the group began to focus in on who they wanted to reach. They walked into the room thinking the ministry would be targeted towards visiting the frail elderly and planning some events for the senior adults in the church, but a paradigm shift began to occur as we talked. The leaders started to recognize that the new old were adults entering their fifties, sixties and seventies, who were capable of investing their lives in significant ministry. The other two groups of older adults would not be ignored, but the foundation of the ministry would need to be built on serving and connecting – through this many more adults would be served. I wrote about this eye-opening experience in my book, Baby Boomers and Beyond. Here is what I said:
This meeting resulted in the elders and the senior pastor agreeing on the responsibilities of his new role. Some of the elders came in to the meeting thinking he would primarily spend his time visiting the elderly and planning some social events while the pastor was hoping his role would be more leadership oriented. The time I spent helping them target who they wanted to reach and the goals they wanted to accomplish through the ministry helped get everyone on the same page.

Strategy

Three months after the leadership and vision meeting, the senior pastor officially retired from his role as the lead pastor of the church. He moved easily in to the role of Encore Pastor and aggressively began meeting with adults in their fifties, sixties, seventies and eighties. He and his wife hosted 9 different groups in their home, which they called, Kitchen Table talks. Over a 6 month period, over 100 adults met with them and engaged in conversation about this new ministry, called Encore. Through these meetings, plans were formed as to the kinds of activities and service projects that would best launch the ministry.
During this time the pastor made a visit to another church
Result
Reflection and Suggestions
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