Replant Bootcamp

Episode #16 - Rebranding and Replanting with Special Guest Rodney Richardson of Rare Design

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When NBA, NFL teams, and other major sports franchises want to rebrand they call Rodney Richardson at Rare Design. Rare Design also helps a lot of churches and Rodney is a lay elder at The Church at 4 Points. Rare Design and 4 Points help support and manage Ddembe Ministries in Uganda. Rodney has served in various forms of lay leadership in local churches – including one replant. The combination of his ministry experience and professional expertise give him a unique and valuable perspective on replanting and rebranding.

“Branding” is about much more than good looking images. “When I use the word ‘brand’ it is synonymous with story. It is your story.”

We need to understand who we are. Where we come from. Our heritage. A lot of times we forget why we got into things in the first place. So much about replanting and rebranding is remembering. Remembering the story of the church. Embracing the story and the legacy of the church.

A vital characteristic for a replanter is a Respect for a Church’s Legacy – “A pastor with Respect for a Church’s Legacy knows how to love and build off of a church’s past without allowing people in the congregation to idolize it in an unhealthy way.” This requires a posture of humility.

Replanters need to recognize that God planted the church they are pastoring intentionally. Each church is a unique place in the world. No other church has the exact same story.

Sometimes when looking into the history of the church you are pastoring you might find things you wish weren’t there. We have to be honest about the past and approach it with grace. We have to recognize and repent of things like this when we find them. Sometimes there are things that must be dealt with. Sometimes there are wounds and there has to be a healing process. Part of replanting is facing the ugly stuff. “If we don’t know it, if we don’t admit it, then we can’t know how to deal with it to move forward in right ways.”

Ecclesiastes 4:12 – Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

• The three strands of any organization are:
  • The Story – Vision, Mission, History, Beliefs, The Stories of Who We Are
  • The Culture – Systems, Structure, Personnel, Processes, Protocols, The Daily Living of Who We Are
  • The Expression – Identity, Marketing, Public Relations. The Outward Expressions of Who We Are

The story is the most vital. We need to build our structures and expressions according to our story. When all 3 strands converge, your entire organization will come into alignment, positioning you for success.

People aren’t coming to your church because they want a cool logo and/or website. People are hurting. People are looking for connection. They are looking for real relationships. They are looking for real answers as to who they are and who they are created to be.

It is important to discover who God has wired you to be as an individual and as a church. When Jesus called the disciples he called a tax collector, a zealot, a doubter,  and an impetuous guy who just said whatever came to his mind. Each of these men served God through their personality of who God wired them to be.

Replanters need to figure out what the personality of the church is. Effective replanters have a good sense of Organizational Awareness – A replanter with Organizational Awareness is adept at understanding how power dynamics work within the church, anticipating how changes would be received, recognizing where change may produce friction, and showing an awareness of how current practice and changes affected their position within the community in which they served.

At Rare Design we challenge people to practice the law of asymmetry – dare to be different. You have permission to be who God has called you to be. Don’t measure against the “crowd” – don’t fall into herd mentality. Be empowered in who God has called you to be as a church. You don’t have to be cool and trendy – you have to be who God has called you to be.

When we say we want a good logo or branding usually we are saying we want good expression. But you can’t express what you don’t know.

We are always story telling. Let’s make sure we are telling the greatest story ever told.

Replant Bootcamp is Sponsored by OneEighty Digital

OneEighty Digital is a team of design, development, and marketing experts that love working with churches big and small, and they’ve just launched two awesome new products to help churches, plants, and replants. The first is called Launchpad, it’s an all-in-one custom branding and website bundle developed specifically for planters, replanters, & revitalizers who need to get things moving quickly. The second is Church Quicksite. It was created for churches working with tight budgets and can help get them an amazing new church website in as little as 1 week at a really affordable price. Check out OneEighty.Church to learn more about these special new offerings and how OneEighty can help your church Move Forward!