Are you ALL IN?

The past two years since re-introducing in-person gatherings post-pandemic have presented several challenges for our congregation; namely:

1. Post-pandemic mode of church became unsustainable — two years of low attendance, low volunteerism, low morale (especially amongst pastoral team and leadership).

2. We saw a $91,935 decrease in financial funding last year: $256,223 (FY21/22) → $164,288 (FY22/23)

As such, our Elder Board identified three viable options in January 2023:

1. Sunset the church.

2. Merge the church.

3. Grow the church — shift from surviving to thriving.

After much prayer & discernment, our leadership felt and believed that God still had more for our church and that our time had not yet come to an end. So with a commitment to investing in the growth of our church, for the remainder of 2023 we prioritized hiring support staff to create a more sustainable organizational infrastructure.

This investment would require utilizing our savings as “startup” capital to (re)plant our church in strength, believing for growth. That being said, based on current income/expense projections, we are running a -$159,297 deficit this year, which will leave us with $38,705 in savings by August 2024.

Our ALL IN Campaign is an act of faith and an intentional effort to invest in the rebuilding and (re)planting of our church in 2024, believing that there are many more lives to be impacted through our ministry over the next 10 years.

Our approach to rebuilding as a church in 2024 with the next 10 years in mind, and to move us from surviving to thriving, is a (re)planting church strategy. What exactly does this mean? It means we’re going to treat the next 6-months as if we were planting a church all over again, and as such, we will be focusing on three things:

1. Build Community. Given that people are what makes up a church, and community is at the core of any church planting movement, we will be focusing on community building initiatives, deepening relationships, and leaning into our commitment to diversity, equity and radical inclusion.

2. Expand Reach & Impact. In order to plant a church, growth is imperative. We will be intentional about inviting and welcoming new people to our family, enlarging our local and regional community footprint and impact and expanding our digital reach and cultivating our online community.

3. Raise Money. While money is never the goal of a ministry, they are a means to an end and finances are a necessary component of any organization, including the church. Over the past 2 years, we saw a ~$92k loss in annual giving, from $256,223 (FY21/22) to $164,288 (FY22/23). In spite of that, we determined to go “ALL IN” by investing in our community, hiring new staff, and utilizing our savings as “startup” capital to (re)plant in strength, believing for growth. Based on current income/expense projections, we are running a -$159,297 deficit this year, which will leave us with $38,705 in savings by August 2024. As such, we are actively seeking to raise funds to close the deficit gap in our current budget.

Going with our ALL IN church planting or (re)planting approach, such an effort does require commitment and investment from a core team of community members who not only believe in the vision and mission, but who also feel called to put some skin in the game and participate in the co-creating and building of the community.

As such, we believe that if a small remnant of 60 people are willing to be a part of our church (re)planting core team (AKA TEAM ALL-IN), we have a great chance at seeing the vision through.

We are asking those who feel compelled and called to help (re)plant Common Good Church to commit to the following for the next 6-months:

1. Attend and show up regularly. I will prioritize attending on Sundays (in-person or virtually) and showing up for church related events & activities when possible.

2. Serve somewhere, somehow. I will serve on a ministry team (or two) once a month or once every two months, in some capacity or another.

3. Give beyond your tithes & offerings. I will, within my financial means, contribute financially to our ALL IN CAMPAIGN 2024 by giving above and beyond my regular tithes & offerings.

4. Invite & tell. I will be intentional about telling, inviting and bringing others who might be longing or searching for a faith community like Common Good.