Your church has DNA. Your church has a set of values that they live by whether or not you have it written down and that is what I am calling DNA. It may seem hard to narrow it down to 3 or 4 key ones, but there are reasons why your church does the things they do. These values undergird every decision that is made; they influence what you say yes to and no to.
The DNA could be “Preaching is king” or it could be “Change is bad.” I know these may seem to be a stretch, but you and your people have created, without even knowing, an environment that is based on a set of values or DNA that operates in the background. They may be ones you like or they may be ones that frustrate you as a leader. Maybe it is time to clearly define those values so you as a church can be even more effective in how God has called you to make disciples in your context.
I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is creating a culture of living by values you believe are important is 100% possible. The bad news is it is going to take hard work, time, and constant focus to live by that DNA. What I can tell you is it is worth it. It is worth it because like it or not, like I stated above, your church already lives by a set of DNA or values. The question is whether or not it is the DNA you desire and intentionally develop or random DNA that random people within your church are living by. You get to decide which you want, but you don’t get to decide if you have DNA or not.
I was sitting on the couch listening to the ministry leaders we had developed and gathered to build deeper relationships. The question was asked, “what are you excited about or enjoy the most about Steel City?” The answers to the questions were a warm blanket to my soul. “We love that everyone is discipling others,” “We are excited that it is normal and natural to share our faith,” “It seems like we are doing well teaching others to study their own Bible.” Each answer confirmed that the work and struggles of the last 7 years had actually produced the DNA we had prayed and desired to see as normal and natural. They were voicing the values that we had fought to see at Steel City even without knowing it.
Early on in the life of our church, Steel City Fellowship, we decided God was calling us to be a church that lived by a clear set of DNA. We prayed, wrestled, defined, erased, re-wrote and defined that DNA. They weren’t earth-shaking, but they were ours. We had seen so many organizations and churches that said they had values but did not live by them. They were just words on the wall and website. We committed to be different, and that started the journey of becoming a church that lived out an intentional culture. Looking back, there was a clear method of how God guided us in implementing our DNA culture.
The first thing we did was make sure they were clearly defined and not aspirational but who we really were and wanted to be. One of our DNA is “Expect of God.” We wanted to make decisions and live in such a way that it took our faith beyond what we already had. If we truly believe in a big all powerful God, we wanted our church to operate in such a way that if God’s hand was not in it we would be sunk. We defined 5 cultural DNA pieces and constantly talked about them. These 5 allow us to say no to lots of good ideas so we can say yes to the great ideas that line up with who we are. Honestly, one of the things we have not done well enough is make the DNA visible around the church building, but we are working on that.
The second thing we did was we set the expectation that every leader was living them out and making decisions based off the 5 DNA. We told stories about how we were living it out as leaders. We celebrated every time we heard stories or saw how someone at Steel City was living them out. The DNA became normal and natural way of life for each leader. Only leaders who had our DNA would be put in positions to lead.
The next thing we had to do was have hard conversations with individuals who had other DNA. Most of them had good intentions and even good ideas, but their values were different. Truth is we stocked many other churches with good people who fit better with the other churches’ culture. It is painful every time someone leaves, but it has allowed us to be faithful to our church’s calling. This is another reason it is so important to define your DNA. Vision drift happens constantly and is usually caused by good people who love God, but have a wonderful plan for your church that is not the one God has given you.
I want you to hear this clearly again, your church absolutely has DNA. The question is whether or not it is the DNA you desire. If it is not then, is it worth the work and time to create and cultivate it? A culture of the DNA God desires at your church is possible and you can do it.
Nate Templin is the Regional Director (Royal Gorge and Arkansas Valley Association) and Elder at Steel City Fellowship
