How do the people in your congregation view the summer? If they’re like most people, they see the purpose of summer through the lens of relaxation and social reconnection, and most of them are planning to travel to do so. Approximately 91% of Americans plan to travel the rest of this year, with over half of them planning to travel more than they did in 2025. The primary reason for those vacations is rest and relaxation, along with spending quality time with family or friends.
And while you, as a church leader, might also view summer as a season of rejuvenation. That’s a good and right thing; indeed, God has built into our DNA as human beings a rhythm of work and rest. But that season of rest should also be a season of deep reflection and planning as we recalibrate after a busy year of ministry.
It must be so if we want to see spiritual growth happen in the fall.
Put another way, discipleship in the fall is a summer decision.
How, then, can you best put the summer to work for the sake of the spiritual development of your people in the fall? Consider these categories of thinking:
1. Assessment
The first step in your fall planning ought to be a realistic and accurate assessment of where your congregation is right now. As a guide, you might consider using the seven rhythms of discipleship found in Rooted.
Taken from Acts 2, these are the spiritual practices that ought to characterize the life of every growing believer. You can read more about these rhythms here, but using them as an assessment tool can help give you a good idea of where your people currently stand spiritually:
- Daily Devotion (Acts 2:42, 46)
- Prayer (Acts 2:42)
- Repentance (Acts 2:37-39)
- Sacrificial Generosity (Acts 2:44-45)
- Serve the Community (Acts 2:44-45)
- Share Your Story (Acts 2:14-36)
- Worship (Acts 2:26-28, 46-47)
2. Goal-Setting
After you have a firm grasp of the current state, you can begin to think about goals for the fall. In which of these areas do you desire to see the most progress in people? What are some goals to measure that growth? It’s important in beginning to set the goals that you think in these terms:
- Realistic—The goals that you set should be realistically achievable. While it’s a good thing to be aspirational, if you set goals out of the realm of possibility you are setting yourself and the congregation up for disappointment and failure. Remember, spiritual growth is always a work in progress, so when setting goals, think about the next step rather than some final state.
- Specific—Goals can only be achieved if they are specific. Yes, in general, you want people to grow in their appetite for things like daily devotion and prayer, but how will you measure that growth? Force yourself to be specific when articulating your goals for the fall.
3. Resourcing
You have a good idea of where your people are, and you have a good idea of what specific progress you’d like to make. Now consider what resources you will need to have in order to see those goals come to pass. While there are physical resources of things like books and tools you will need, expand your thinking beyond that. Consider also:
- Leaders—How many leaders will you need to have in place ready to serve?
- Training—How will you get those leaders equipped for service, and what resources will you need to do so?
- Time—What meetings will need to take place over the course of the summer, and who needs to be involved?
The aim of these three steps is to make the most of the down time during summer. Because discipleship in the fall is a summer decision, now is the time to start getting ready. And of course, we are always here to help.
Contact us today, and a Rooted coach will reach out to you soon.
Or, take a step toward implementing Rooted by previewing it for free today!
