The Church We Are Becoming

One of the greatest gifts of Cason United Methodist Church is the people who have faithfully shown up, stepped forward, and served; often quietly and often for far longer than anyone should have had to carry a role. Before anything else is said, it needs to be said clearly and publicly: thank you. The leadership, care, prayer, and commitment that so many of you have offered over the years has sustained this church through seasons of growth, challenge, and transition.

Over the past several months, we have been engaged in prayerful discernment about the future of leadership at Cason. That discernment has led us to make changes to our leadership structure as we seek to be faithful to where God is leading us next.
Several years ago, Cason adopted the OC15 committee model with the hope that it would simplify leadership and reduce the number of people needed to serve. While the intent was good, in practice this structure has not functioned as we hoped. Attendance and engagement have remained ongoing challenges, and too often leadership roles have been filled because people were willing or asked, rather than because they felt clearly called to that work.

As a result, many faithful leaders served far longer than was healthy. Burnout became common, rest became rare, and sustainability suffered. That was never the goal, and it is not how the church should care for its people.
Cason now finds itself in a valley between seasons of leadership. We are deeply grateful for those who have carried the church faithfully for many years. At the same time, we are preparing for those who are coming, leaders who will grow as disciples and serve out of a deep sense of calling. In this in between moment, we must consolidate our leadership structure so that we are working with a smaller group of leaders who feel both called and committed, while intentionally focusing on discipling and developing the next generation of leadership. The Church Conference announced for January 25th will be held for the purpose of approving this new Leadership Team.

For those who wonder why change is necessary, it is important to state something else clearly: You cannot pursue new vision, new ministry strategies, and new priorities without also embracing new structures and systems. Healthy churches recognize that shifts in vision require shifts in how leadership is organized and how ministry is supported. When structures remain unchanged while the mission evolves, frustration and fatigue follow. Faithfulness sometimes means letting go of systems that no longer serve the work God is calling us to do.

And the truth is, more changes will be needed. Adjusting service times and restructuring leadership is not the end of this work. It is the beginning of a broader transformation. We are paying close attention to what is happening in the wider church, and one trend is especially clear. Gen Z is now the most frequent church attending demographic. This is not a gradual generational shift. It is a significant increase in engagement from a group that barely attended just a few years ago. Young adults are showing up with deep spiritual hunger and a desire for authentic community. [1]

 If we are going to be faithful to the people God is sending to us, we must continue to transform. Churches today are being called to become more flexible and more community focused, serving as places that respond to modern realities like isolation, loneliness, recovery, and spiritual pluralism. This means moving beyond rigid models toward adaptable structures that embody faith in contemporary ways and engage people where they are.
 At the same time, this work is not about abandoning our long-term members or those who have faithfully sustained this church for decades. This is not an either-or choice. The goal is not to serve one group at the expense of another. Faithful change allows us to serve all of God’s children more fully. By becoming more flexible and more responsive, we create space for meaningful worship, care, and discipleship across generations. Our older members matter deeply, and this transformation is meant to strengthen the church so that everyone can continue to belong, be cared for, and be spiritually nourished.

 Michael Beck captures this truth beautifully when he writes:
 “Jesus teaches that different kinds of wine require different structures. New wine, still fermenting and expanding, will destroy rigid old skins. Vintage wine, settled and matured, belongs in strong, time-tested vessels. The wisdom is in recognizing that God’s Spirit produces both kinds of wine, and each needs the right container. This is not an either/or but a both/and: ‘both are preserved’ when new wineskins hold the fresh ferment and old wineskins hold the vintage. The church, then, needs structures for the new and for the old so that God’s love is carried faithfully across generations.”

 Restructuring allows the church to move beyond internal maintenance and toward outward mission. It helps us direct energy and resources toward real needs in our community. This is not about abandoning who we have been. It is about becoming more fully who God is calling us to be.

 I am sharing this so that you know this is not change for change’s sake. It is a faithful effort to prepare Cason to be a home for those who are desperately seeking God and community, while continuing to care well for those who have already found that home here.

As we step into this next season, I again say thank you. Thank you to those who have served faithfully, sometimes quietly and sometimes for longer than you ever expected. Thank you for the prayers, the meetings, the late nights, the patient listening, and the steady love you have poured into this church. Your faithfulness has shaped Cason in ways that cannot be measured or easily named. I invite you to be part of this next chapter in the life of Cason. This vision is still unfolding, and it will continue to grow and change as we discern together. There is room here for questions, for prayer, for new ideas, and for new callings. My hope is that we will move forward together as a church that is rooted in faith, open to transformation, and be a place where people can “experience grace, find community, and follow Jesus together.”  

 This moment did not appear out of nowhere. We are standing on the shoulders of the saints who came before us, reaching out to the saints who will be here after us. Because of what has already been given, we have the opportunity to listen closely to where God is leading and to respond with courage and trust.   [1] 7 disruptive church trends that will rule 2026 - careynieuwhof.com. https://careynieuwhof.com/church-trends-2026/.