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What I know about “church mergers”

In September of 2018, I was elected “Deacon” of a small suffering church in North Carolina (average Sunday attendance ~30).  At the end of that same week (and before the new deacons were seated as a board or had a meeting), the pastor of over a decade decided to retire.   The week after that, we started really trying to figure out how bad the finances were (very bad).     Like most of the 4,000ish churches that will close this year, the congregation was largely unaware, or in severe denial.   They were hurt, angry, and grumpy.    My fellow deacon board (also the “board of directors” and I set out to keep the church open, in the same denominational tradition and keep our congregation together.   That turned into a “merger”.   This blog will address the past nearly two years of what happened and how it all turned out.

I’ve been a church attender nearly all my life.   I’ve got kids, though, so I attended, taught a little Sunday school, changed some light bulbs, painted stuff.   It was never my intention to help run (much less try to save) a “church”.    Ive taken a couple seminary classes.  But I am no church policy expert, attorney, senior executive, or pastor.   None of the deacons left were. Just average folks trying to figure out how to get ‘er done.   So that’s the perspective you’ll get here.  Real. Mistake-riddled.  Lifelike.
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