Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

It’s possible to make things too complicated. This is something I’ve learned while working on multiple projects. Some projects require extensive planning. They need budgets and a clear vision and measurable goals. Sometimes, however, overly ambitious plans can bog you down. Sometimes it’s best just to get started.

I’ve recently been working on a project like this. We met a year or two ago, and made extensive plans that never went anywhere. Then, we started over, smaller and simpler, and we’re all excited about it again.

There are times when it may be better to just start up the reading group or meditation gathering or blog or small experimental worship service on Sunday evenings with the young adult group. These projects are more like experiments. You have to be willing to let them fail, and keep the stakes fairly small. They may not work out, and if they start to take off it’s at that point you start thinking long term, creating a budget, and taking the next steps.

Of course, these experiments won’t work without some checks and balances. This requires you trust the people leading these projects to exercise good judgment. You also need an understanding of the what kind of support the church leadership can and can’t offer, as well as some guidelines about when you might have to cut it off (if, for example, a discussion group is causing unnecessary division, or the experimental liturgy goes a little too off the wall).

If all members start off with the same understanding, these kinds of experiments can be places where a community can try new things out, pursue their interests, and even experiment with social media. Keeping them small keeps them from getting bogged down in excessive planning. Sometimes we don’t know what the outcomes of our programs will be, or what kind of audience our new blog will have. Starting smalls allows new ministries and even art forms to arise from the community. If they don’t work out, and some of them won’t, then you try something else.