Rev. Dr. Michael Adam Beck
Consulting for Revitalization
Michael’s passion is to see churches/denominations/networks that have been in decline find new life. He is a practitioner of revitalization; alongside his wife and co-pastor Jill. The Beck’s have been involved in several revitalizations and they are currently missionary co-pastors of two revitalization congregations. Additionally, Michael has spent years curating best practices across the U.S./U.K. and learning from top consultants.
Our consultancy is concentrated specifically on the task of revitalization for plateaued or declining churches and denominations. We help you turn your greatest weakness into a superpower!
There is no one size fits all congregation, and there is no one size fits all revitalization process. Every church is a series on interlocking relationships: with God, with each other, with the wider church, and with a given context. Our process is custom fit and tailor-made for your church/denomination/network.
Michael’s approach to revitalization is also distinct from many consultants. It is a process he has described in his writings as “Re-missioning.”
Stuart Murray, in Church After Christendom writes, “The brightest hope for the church after Christendom is a symbiotic relationship between inherited and emerging churches.”
We mean “inherited” in the sense of a form of church passed on as a precious gift by the saints of generations past, also called a “traditional, attractional, or gathered” church sometimes compared to the emerging church. As in our parents leaving us an incredibly valuable inheritance that we must now learn how to steward well.
We mean “emerging” in the sense of a contextual form of church that reaches and serves people currently outside the inherited church. Emerging churches are typically shaped from a relational interaction between people, cultures, and the Gospel and as such are also referred to as “modern, missional, scattered” and fresh expressions of church.
Fresh Expressions are a form of church established primarily for the benefit of those who are not yet connected to an existing church.
Churches that are experimenting with fresh expressions are experiencing transformations. The transformation that occurs in a blended ecology is a form of revitalization, but it is different than prevailing revitalization strategies.
Re-missioning describes the process of reorienting a church around the Great Commission in a local setting. Where revitalization often involves internal adjustments—an inside-out approach (better preaching, better coffee, better programs, etc.) Re-missioning involves an outside-in approach. As we join what the Spirit is up to in our communities, cultivating fresh expressions, the congregation experiences positive transformation through this “symbiotic relationship” (i.e. feedback loops).
Michael has worked with congregations and denominations across the theological spectrum. He is currently on retainer with multiple Methodist Conferences, Evangelical Lutheran Church of America synods, American Baptists organizations, and more.
We offer a free one-hour consultation session to decide if our process is right for you.