We are changing how we do it in 2026!

Posted on 24 Jul 2026 - By Gradon

At North-South, we are changing how we do things. The model we were using involved the national leader travelling and visiting up to six times as we went on the Church Revitalisation Journey. It was not very efficient in terms of cost and use of time.

Our new model is very different and has very little in the way of costing.

Here’s what it offers you:

• A pastor-led process — you lead; we coach, encourage, and support
• A questionnaire goes out to every member on the church database — a snapshot of how people see the church right now
• A recorder is appointed to keep discussions focused and to help shape the slides for each session, taking that load off the pastor.
• We handle the groundwork — congregation survey, slides for each session
• You choose the leaders and emerging leaders that you would like to invite on the journey.
• A ready-made set of discussion sessions and slides, so you’re not starting from a blank page
• Typically, 4-6 sessions to a clear, practical, congregation-owned plan

In the past, we used material developed in the USA and tried to make it fit the NZ Church. We have now led seven Church Revitalisation Journeys in very different kinds of churches, and we know what works in Kiwi culture and have adapted the CRJ to make it work. Moving to a pastor-led journey is the final adaptation that we are attempting, because the pastor knows the congregation he/she leads better than anyone – we are simply providing the slides to facilitate the discussions and help clarify next steps.

We have some basic foundational work in session one – the results determine the key focuses for the following sessions

They are:

• Questionnaire review — what stood out as encouraging, and what concerns came through
• The life cycle of a church — using Charles Handy’s model, an honest conversation about where you sit on that continuum
• The Snapshot exercise — naming your church’s Struggles, Notables, Alarms, and Possibilities
• A look at existing vision, mission, and values statements (or, if you don’t have one, drawing out the values your church already lives by)
• The God Dream exercise — in pairs, imagining what your church could look like with unlimited people, money, and resources, then voting as a group on what matters most
• Naming any hindering values in your church’s DNA that need to go — things like fear of taking risks, or an inward-looking mindset

Looking forward to hearing from you if this has piqued your interest as a leader.

Gradon Harvey

 23 July 2026