Mike Bonem
Pastors love to use illustrations from movies. But what about leadership lessons from movie theaters? If you owned a chain of movie theaters, how would you feel about your investment? I heard a news story about CinemaCon, which is a large conference for movie theater owners. The reporter described the decline in ticket sales that began before the pandemic and wondered how theaters would recover. But what struck me were interviews with participants at the conference, who expressed great optimism about the future and acted as if they were one blockbuster movie away from a return to the good old days. I kept thinking, “Don’t they know the world has fundamentally changed?”
Then I began to wonder about the similarities with churches. If there was a large convention for pastors called “CongregationCon,” what would a reporter say? Consider these parallels in the landscape for movie theaters and churches:
- Just like movie theaters, church attendance was declining before the pandemic, and current attendance is significantly below pre-pandemic levels.
- People have a wide range of options for entertainment, and they became more accustomed to those options during the pandemic. People who are looking to fill the “God-shaped void” in their lives are also presented with many options for doing so.
- Movie theaters are tied to their physical facilities, just like many churches.
- Regardless of the optimism expressed by CinemaCon participants, the future is very uncertain for movie theaters. While I am absolutely confident that the big “C” Church will prevail, the way that plays out for individual congregations is not at all clear.
Despite these realities, I am not pessimistic about the future landscape for ministry. We should, however, avoid the head-in-the-sand thinking I heard from the theater executives. Rather than waiting for the next blockbuster, the theater industry should rethink it’s strategy. The same can be said for churches. I am not saying we should rethink our mission of sharing the gospel and loving people as Jesus did. “Strategy” describes the ways that we are pursuing the mission.
I don’t know what your new strategy should be, but my hunch is that it should include several elements. One is a strong external orientation that seeks to reach unchurched people and make a positive difference in your community. Another is an increase in experimentation. Trying several different short-term ministry efforts can help you determine what will be most effective in your context. A third element is more honest evaluation of what is working. Finally, the new strategy may result in fewer internally-focused programs and less staff to lead/support those programs.
I wouldn’t want to invest in a movie theater right now. But I’m all in for an investment in the church … as long as we’re willing to take a fresh look at the strategies that will help us accomplish our God-given mission.
