Wisdom from Lyle E. Schaller: The Elder Statesman of Church Leadership

wisdom from LYLE E. SCHALLER

Praise for Wisdom from Lyle E. Schaller

Lyle Schaller’s insights have been a game changer for my leadership.

—Rick Warren, Lead Pastor, Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, CA

Lyle Schaller changed my ministry. He told me that I think too small, and he was right! Let his writings stretch you in the same way.

—Craig Groeschel, Senior Pastor of LifeChurch.tv

Author of Soul Detox: Clean Living in a Contaminated World

I’m thrilled to recommend to you Wisdom from Lyle E. Schaller so that you can benefit from the insight of the greatest American thought leader on church life in the 20th century.

—Dave Ferguson, Lead Pastor, Community Christian Church, and Movement Leader, NewThing.org

World-renowned consultant Lyle Schaller has personally consulted with almost 6,000 churches and is a legend in the field of church consulting. My friend Warren Bird has chosen excerpts of Schaller’s best consults, each introduced by a story of how they worked. It’s fascinating stuff.

—Ed Stetzer, author and popular blogger at www.edstetzer.com

I credit Schaller’s books for clarifying my call into ministry, and I hope this fascinating mini-biography and selection of insightful quotes will point others to Schaller’s wisdom.

—Tammy Kelley, Founder, Intelligent Design, Inc., previous senior staff at Willow Creek Community Church and Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church

As a young seminarian, while serving as a youth pastor, I first heard the name Lyle Schaller spoken by leaders who I respected. They spoke of him as a mystical, Moses-like character who had the wisdom of Solomon. He was a catalyzing influence in my life who gave me permission to dream bigger dreams for the beautiful mess that is the local church.

—Jorge Acevedo, Lead Pastor, Grace Church, Cape Coral, Fort Myers Shores and Fort Myers Central campuses, Grace Community Center

Lyle Schaller has had an incalculable impact upon American Christianity. He has devoted his life to challenging, encouraging, and sometimes cajoling church leaders in the hope of seeing congregations renewed and disciples made.

—Adam Hamilton, Senior Pastor, Church of the Resurrection, Leawood, KS

I highly recommend this wonderful collection of excerpts that would be an asset to any person in any ministry. It will be especially helpful to lay people as well as ministers.

—John Ed Mathison, Pastor Emeritus, Frazer United Methodist Church, Montgomery, AL

Whether you grew up on Schaller or are new to him, this is must reading for anyone looking for wise advice and helpful planning.

—Jeff Spiller, Senior Pastor, Christ United Methodist Church, Mobile, AL

WISDOM FROM LYLE E. SCHALLER

Copyright © 2012 by Abingdon Press

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission can be addressed to Permissions, The United Methodist Publishing House, P.O. Box 801, 201 Eighth Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37202-0801, or e-mailed to permissions@umpublishing.org.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wisdom from Lyle E. Schaller / edited and compiled by Warren Bird.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.

ISBN 978-1-4267-4910-0 (book - pbk. / trade pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Pastoral theology. 2. Schaller, Lyle E. I. Bird, Warren.

BV4011.3.W57 2012

253—dc23

2012027606

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21—10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

CONTENTS

Preface

with insights from Leith Anderson and Herb Miller

Part One: Introducing America’s Best-Known Parish Consultant

  1.   Meet Lyle E. Schaller

with insights from Fred Smith, Charles Anderson, Bob Buford, Jim Davis, Paul Dietterich, Marjorie Royle, Carl George, and Scott Field

  2.   What Influenced Schaller

with insights from John Ed Mathison, Ray Sells, Chuck Smith Jr., Carol Childress, Bob Buford, George G. Hunter, and Knute Larson

  3.   Schaller the Author

with insights from Paul Pettit, Jim Davis, Mark Sweeney, Tim Ahlen, Mike Slaughter, Reggie McNeal, and Jeff Spiller

  4.   What the Future Holds

with insights from John Vawter

Part Two: Asking Tough Questions from Three Million Words

  5.   How Should I Approach My First Year in a Pastorate?

story from Dwayne Hunt

  6.   How Do I Follow a Long-Term Pastor?

story from Knute Larson

  7.   What Are the Most Important Staffing Mistakes to Avoid?

story from Mike Slaughter

  8.   What’s the Best Way to Introduce Change at My Church?

story from Scott Field

  9.   What’s the Most Important Thing a Church Planter Can Do?

story from David Roseberry

10.   How Do I Build on the Strengths of a Small-Attendance Church?

story from George Bullard Jr.

11.   How Do I Build on the Strengths of a Medium-Sized Church?

story from Ted Keating

12.   How Do I Build on the Strengths of a Large Church?

story from Linda McCoy

13.   How Do I Build on the Strengths of a Very Large Church?

story from Rick Warren

14.   How Do I Best Expand the Teaching Ministry of My Church?

story from Leonard Sweet

15.   How Do I Develop New Funding Sources for Mission?

story from Gene Wells

16.   What Are the Land Mines to Avoid in a Merger?

story from Michael Coyner

17.   How Can a Church Learn to See Itself More Accurately?

story from Dan Reiland

18.   Why Is Innovation Important at Church?

story from Geoffrey Mitchell

19.   What Are the Most Important Strategies for Change?

story from Cynthia Woolever

20.   Why Is It So Hard to Turn a Church That’s Plateaued in Attendance?

story from Rick Morse

21.   How Can Leaders Create Dissatisfaction with the Status Quo?

story from Ronald Pat Day

22.   Why Is It So Important to Develop Allies and How?

story from Dick Rogers

23.   How Can a Church’s Leaders Improve Their Decision-Making Process?

story from Jeff Jones

24.   What’s the Biggest Issue When a Church Thinks about Relocating?

story from Randy Pope

25.   Should Our Church Become Multisite?

story from Brian Frye

26.   What Leadership Style Is Best for This Congregation?

story from George Cladis

27.   Why Are Small Groups So Vital for Church Health?

story from Larry Osborne

28.   What Needs to Change for More People to Volunteer?

story from Tim Ahlen

29.   When Do I Know It’s Time to Resign?

story from Chuck Congram

Appendix 1: Schaller Life Highlights

Appendix 2: Schaller’s Ninety-Six Books

Notes

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Index

PREFACE

with insights from Leith Anderson and Herb Miller

My first exposure to Lyle Schaller was through his books. Like many young pastors, I needed a lot of coaching, so for a season I attended every ministry conference I could find. To those conference speakers who seemed particularly insightful, I asked about their mentors. More times than not, they said, Lyle Schaller. The ministry coach I liked the very best pushed it even farther: Young man, read every Schaller book that you can find.

So I did. Or at least I decided to, only to find out that Schaller has authored fifty-five books and edited quite a few others (see the list in the appendix—Schaller’s Ninety-Six Books). His books total over three million words, not including over five hundred magazine articles and published interviews. To top it off, an even bigger portion of his printed words is in private reports to various churches. Consider the three hundred church reports and several dozen judicatory-level reports—filling a shelf six feet across—that he donated to the United Methodist archive at Drew University, Madison, New Jersey.¹

Yet after polishing off one Schaller title after another, I was always curious to learn more. In the years since my initial challenge, it’s been a rare season that I haven’t read or re-read a Schaller book or magazine article. With each Schaller title I marked up, I came to understand more about how churches really work. I saw that Schaller is a man of deep faith, rooting for churches to be successful, but someone also with the rare ability to apply social science concepts in practical ways. He helped me feel that many of my frustrations as a pastor, as well as those of the congregation I was trying to serve, happened because we didn’t understand the basic social principles that operate in all human organizations, including congregations. Perhaps more than anyone else, Schaller through his writing helped me select sociology of religion as the subject for my doctorate.

Schaller is a man of deep faith, rooting for churches to be successful.

Along the way I learned that Schaller had been voted as America’s foremost influencer of thinking about the church’s life and mission today, according to a survey² of Protestant denominational executives and program staff—outranking even Billy Graham. A lifelong United Methodist from the Evangelical United Brethren tradition, Schaller is respected across the theological spectrum from mainliners to non-denominational evangelicals. The Los Angeles Times article that first publicized the survey titled it Church-Growth Analyst Leads in Survey of Influential Figures.³ The Parish Paper describes him as America’s foremost church consultant,⁴ Net Results (he wrote a regular column for years) identifies him as an internationally respected church and denominational consultant,⁵ Leadership Journal calls him America’s foremost authority on the dynamics of church life,⁶ and Christianity Today magazine titles him the dean of church consultants.⁷ The seminary he graduated from, in naming him their distinguished alumnus, affirmed that for over three decades he has been America’s leading church planner and consultant to congregations, pastors and denominational officials.⁸

I also met Schaller a number of times, which further increased my admiration and respect for him. One of our encounters took place serendipitously in Chicago’s O’Hare airport. I was boarding a connecting flight to a Leadership Network conference where he was the speaker. He was just ahead of me in the line to board the flight, and I was impressed that he traveled coach. When we landed, I found him again, this time with me in the line for the cheapo shuttle, the one that stops at a bunch of different hotels including the one hosting our conference. Eager for an excuse to talk with him, I offered to carry his suitcase. He seemed a bit taken aback, but allowed me to do so, and we chatted. A week later I received a sweet letter from his wife, Agnes, thanking me for taking care of her husband of almost fifty years en route to the conference.

Little did I know that my admiration of Schaller would be converted into a book. When the editors at Abingdon Press, friends who know I’m a huge Schaller fan, approached me with this project, I immediately said yes. I find Schaller’s insights as relevant and fresh today as when he first inked them. His focus is generally on the reasons behind ministry decisions, principles of why churches do or don’t want to grow, and how church leaders can better anticipate tomorrow in our congregational planning. These issues remain just as relevant from one decade to the next.

I’m not alone in my appreciation. I have received a strong response each time I have blogged, tweeted, e-mailed, or otherwise put out the word to ask, Do you have a story of how Schaller significantly helped your ministry? Many of those church leader comments are sprinkled across this book.

Typical is the perspective of Leith Anderson, a longtime Minneapolis pastor, who has also been a seminary president, popular author, and president of the National Association of Evangelicals. He was a young pastor when he first met Schaller. They struck up a personal friendship that they have maintained for over three decades. Lyle has been a consultant in something like six thousand parishes, Anderson says. Nobody has visited that many churches, and probably no one else ever will. Schaller really knows churches, getting into the head and heart of church leaders. He’s not unique in being a system theorist, but he is unique in understanding complex systems and making them simple.

Herb Miller, longtime editor of Net Results and The Parish Paper, echoes likewise: In every corner of congregational life, Schaller pointed out the invisible obvious—invisible to the average observer, but obvious after he pointed it out. Every book he wrote sprinkled me with diamonds of information, insights, and inspiration. Case in point: One of his most influential insights, says Miller, is that a congregation’s size determines much of its behavior, organizational structure, and decisions. As denominations recognized this principle, they improved their clergy training and placement procedures. Consequently, many churches experience a better fit between pastor and people, becoming more effective in their ministries.

Ten Ways Lyle Schaller Will Change Your Ministry

Why learn from Lyle Schaller? Based on dozens of interviews for this book, plus two decades of reading Schaller, here are my ten reasons, applied especially to pastors and church leaders. Lyle Schaller’s writings will:

1. Give you hope that you can be an effective leader and that the best is yet to come for your congregation.

2. Help you shift your focus from teaching to learning.

3. Show you how to ask better questions.

4. Expose you to multiple choices for various decisions where you think you have only one or two options.

5. Identify with far more accuracy the underlying issues affecting your congregation and then better diagnose how to plan your response.

6. Offer insight into how your church can grow, including ways to invite and welcome unchurched people into your congregation’s fellowship.

7. Stretch you to be aware of more ways in which the social nature of a church can both hinder and advance its divine calling.

8. Reshape your thinking about the behavioral settings represented by different church sizes, demonstrating that a congregation’s attendance determines much about its leadership style, organizational structure, and decision making.

9. Provide many practical ideas for planning your next steps as a congregation.

10. Increase your skill as a change agent and your faith that God can use you to lead your church toward a better tomorrow.

Format of the Book

The structure of the book is rather simple. In the first part I acquaint readers with the person of Lyle Schaller. I highlight his personal story, influences that shaped him, his impact as an author, and his view of one of the biggest issues shaping the future—or as he often phrases it, of tomorrow. Sources of the quotations from his books are included in notes; all other quotations are from interviews conducted specifically for this book.

For the larger second section, I offer a series of poignant quotations from his writings, each with a ministry picture attached to it, typically a short story of someone influenced by his words on that subject. Each of a set of perennial church leadership issues receives a relevant ministry story and a relevant collection of Schaller sayings.

The chapters of the second section can be read in any order. The abundant notes identify which Schaller books and chapters provide further insight. Almost all of Schaller’s titles are still in print, and those that aren’t are easily accessible from used book dealers.

A total of over two million copies of Schaller’s books have been printed since his first Abingdon release in 1965. Working through just his fifty-five authored books, while highly advisable, is a long journey. That’s why we gleaned wisdom from a wide diversity of topics that he’s addressed, hoping that this slender volume will provide readers