Church Mergers Process

 

Get a clear perspective and clarify the future for a new ministry, together.

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Out of the blue we got a call from a church asking us to adopt them.

"Unstuck helped teams of leaders from both churches work through all the details and put together a plan on how best to become a multisite church."

Zach Thompson

Calvary Lutheran Church

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A church merger tends to be successful when both congregations understand who leads and who follows.

That results in healthy congregations, increased engagement, volunteers, financial sustainability and multiplied impact-more of all of it in the months and years that follow than even when the merger first takes place.

We help churches of all sizes navigate the sensitivities of merging ministries.

 

You'll find that this is a spiritual process of coming together as one church to clarify where God's called you to go and how you're going to get there, together.

Assess whether or not merging is the right next step
Identify what decisions need to be made as you merge
Clarify the vision-where the newly merged ministry is headed in the next season
Make a plan for an effective, aligned staff structure
Prepare to lead an effective multisite church, if the merger will result in your becoming one church in two locations
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Making Church Mergers Work

"We built this process based on the proven principles from Better Together: Making Church Mergers Work, the book I co-authored with Warren Bird. Our team has the experience to guide you through the process and help you navigate the opportunities and challenges of a church merger successfully."

Jim Tomberlin

Multisite & Merger Strategist

Our Church Merger Process

At the end of this process, you have a comprehensive, customized plan, and the structure and systems to help you execute. You're responsible for putting the plan into action, but we help provide accountability and coaching for your senior leaders along the way.

Merger Readiness Assessment

The win in this phase is for both church teams to gain clarity about the steps needed to move forward with the merger and definitively decide to move forward or not, as well as define how you will merge.

Plan for the Future

The win for this phase is to clarify the future for the newly merged ministry. You will revisit some of the critical components of merging churches (like doctrine, culture, and governance), affirm areas of unity, and identify any additional areas that need more work. You will clarify your mission field, discipleship pathway and key strategies to help you reach your community, as well as build action plans and systems to accomplish your vision in the coming year.

Structure the Team

With a newly merged ministry it's critical that your staff team is organized in a way that helps you meet your ministry goals. The win is that you structure your staff to accomplish the vision. With an effective structure, you position your ministry team to execute at its highest potential.

Action Phase

In this phase you put the plan into action. The win is that you develop the rhythms to execute the plan and start taking the steps that will lead your church to experience sustained health as your ministry footprint grows. You get coaching for your executive leaders as you implement your plans.

During this process, we focus on guiding you through these aspects of merging churches.

Assessing critical components of church merger compatibility
Navigating sensitive conversations for ministry areas that will be absorbed, redistributed or eliminated
Analyzing metrics for health and opportunities
Clarifying the vision for the newly merged church, including whether the merger will create a multisite church or not
Clarifying mission field, discipleship pathway and core strategies
Building action plans & systems to accomplish your vision
Clarifying decision rights in the new ministry
Identifying staffing gaps, and assessing leadership capacity and potential of staff
Determining how merging staff will be integrated onto your team
Creating a structure to help you achieve your vision
Clarifying a 2-Year roadmap for strategic planning

Here are ten crucial merger conversations we can help you navigate.

Out of the blue we got a call from a church asking us to adopt them.

"Unstuck helped teams of leaders from both churches work through all the details and put together a plan on how best to become a multisite church."

Zach Thompson

Calvary Lutheran Church

Play Video

We bring the strength of the Unstuck Process to church mergers, helping your team find clarity around these critical components of merging churches.

We help you define the strategic plan, structure and systems for a successful merger and a healthy ministry well into the future. We've guided churches to successfully navigate the key conversations, find alignment, and launch with unity and health.

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Merging churches need help clarifying the future for the new ministry.