New Year New Plan

January 03, 2022•3 min read

Yep, it is that time again. It is a new year, so many are setting their new year’s resolutions. The gyms will be packed this week, but in two weeks, the crowds will likely be back to pre-January numbers. Many are not really resolved to make any changes after all.

How about your church? Does your church have a strategic plan for the new year? Benjamin Franklin wisely said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” Having a strategic plan for the church simply means that the leaders have strategically and intentionally designed a roadmap for the year on what goals the church will be working towards so that the church is faithful in its mission of making disciples as it lives into God’s preferred future – its vision.

Once those goals are set, the ministry team leaders set objectives to accomplish those goals. This means that ministries, programs and events are planned and scheduled in alignment with the goals rather than simply because we’ve always done a particular program or it is someone’s pet ministry. We plan ministries because they align with the strategic plan.

Next, the budget is aligned with those objectives. Too often the budget is set and then ministries are planned. This is like the proverbial tail wagging the dog. The assets of the church need to be leveraged to meet the strategic plan. If the budget is not available to support the objectives, the goals will need to be adjusted. But I would caution leaders to really discern before adjusting the goals. If the church has already discerned the vision that God has called the church into and the goals are the steps in living into that vision, what are the faithful steps in finding the assets to realize the vision? If God is calling the church into that future, God will provide a path to make it happen.

Don’t forget about the importance of accountability when it comes to implementing the strategic plan. Without accountability the strategic plan will likely get shelved until the end of the year. When we pull it out in December, we will be disappointed that the goals were not accomplished and wonder what in the world happened. We will likely brush it off and claim that strategic planning doesn’t work. But in reality, without having the pastor accountable to the board/council for the goals and the ministry team leaders accountable to the pastor for the objectives, the strategic plan will not be accomplished. At a minimum, monthly progress reports need to be made and questions asked if the progress is not on track. Adjustments can be made as needed, but just quitting or forgetting about goals or objectives is not an option.

Ideally this strategic ministry planning is conducted in the fall, so it is ready to launch on January 1st of each year. But, if your church has not yet created its strategic plan, it’s not too late. It is much better to have a strategic plan that’s a bit late than it is to have no strategic plan at all! If you need some assistance in creating your church’s strategic ministry plan, check out this resource, Strategy Matters.

“Always plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.”

Richard Cushing

Kay Kotan

Kay’s purpose is to Equip and Empower Leaders of Faith Communities How to Engage in More Effective Ministry. Kay Kotan is the founder of You Unlimited (coaching, consulting and training company) and The Greatest Expedition – a collaboration of more than twenty thought leaders providing resources and insights for a congregational journey to develop new MAPS (ministry action plans) to reach new people in your community. Kay also launched Multipliers’ Movement – a gathering of kingdom multipliers for sharing, equipping, and encouraging. She is a CoachU and Advanced CoachU Graduate, an accredited coach (PCC: Professional Certified Coach) with the ICF, International Coaching Federation, a Certified Path 1 Coach, a TQ (Transitional Intelligence) Certified Coach, and once served on the faculty at Coaching4Clergy. As a passionate lay person, she has a banking background and has been a business owner for more than 25 years. Kotan has served as a church developer for conferences and worked with churches, pastors, conferences, and judicatory leaders across the country for more than a decade. She is most proud to be the wife of Bob for over 30 years and the mother of their adult son, Cameron. Kay is the author of multiple books, workbooks, and resources including Gear Up: Nine Essential Processes for the Optimized Church, Cry From the Pew, Full Schedules, Barren Souls, Being the Church in the Post Pandemic World, and Journey Preparation: Surveying Your Church’s Landscape, as well as the co-author of the books titled: IMPACT!: Reclaiming the Call of Lay Ministry, Small Church Check-Up, Insights on Productivity, Renovate or Die – Ten Ways to Focus Your Church on Mission, Ministry 3.0 and Get Their Name , Ten Prescriptions for a Healthy Church, Necessary Nine – Nine Things Effective Pastors Do Differently, Launching Leaders: Taking Leadership Development to New Heights, Strategy Matters: Your Roadmap to Planning a Strategic Ministry Planning Retreat, Voices of Christmas: A Daily Devotional for Advent and Expanding the Expedition Reach Through Marketplace Multipliers. Mission Possible for the Small Church. Inside Out: Everting Ministry Models for the Postmodern Church, and more. Kotan and her co-author Bradford published their third version of the best-seller, Mission Possible: Simple Structure for Missional Effectiveness. Mrs. Kotan spends her time investing in pastors, laity leaders, congregations, and judicatory leaders through equipping, coaching, and creating resources to help them discover and live into their fullest missional potential of effectiveness and fruitfulness to reach people for Jesus Christ. Through her enthusiasm, truth-telling, and passion, she challenges those who encounter her in both their thinking and their doing.

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