Flourish Coaching

Quick post GA 2026 reflections from Matt. If you missed the Session Communication seminar, you can find it here https://youtu.be/PV0Hy5p4bbE?si=nBeUCx60L4wGBFyN

We’re at GA 2026 in Louisville this week, sharing what Flourish has learned from walking alongside Sessions and churches as they make consequential decisions.

For those who could not join us, we’ll publish the full Rethinking Session Communication seminar on YouTube next week. Here’s another glimpse of what’s coming.

What was the fruit of the Jerusalem Council’s community spiritual discernment?

All of us.

The gospel went to the Gentiles as free grace because the early church did the hard work well, both in its decision-making and in its communication.

That is the aim for every session facing a difficult decision: not merely managing conflict, but having a spiritual conversation robust, honest, and prayerful enough to say to the congregation:

“It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us.”

That is more than management. That's community spiritual discernment.

We’re at GA 2026 in Louisville, and we’re grateful to be here sharing some of what Flourish has learned from walking alongside sessions and churches in difficult seasons.

We also want to bring the Rethinking Session Communication Seminar to those who were unable to attend. We’ll publish the full-length video on YouTube next week. Here’s a glimpse of what’s coming:

“If they only knew how hard this was.”

The sleepless nights. The late session meetings. The prayers, apologies, and difficult decisions no one else sees.

Your congregation may never fully understand what faithful leadership has cost you. And they may not need to.

Your Father knows.

He saw the prayers in the middle of the night. He saw the work done in secret. Elders, you can bank on that.

Some church decisions feel heavier than others.

In this video, Robert Benedict, a PCA ruling elder and former Flourish client, reflects on the moment his Session had to face the reality of their congregation’s condition.

The church was tired. Trust had been strained. The congregation had declined. And the Session was facing options no elder wants to put before the people:

Call a pastor.
Fold.
Or merge.

That kind of conversation is not theoretical. It is heavy because it is about the life of a congregation, the care of Christ’s people, and the future of a local church.

Robert says it plainly: “I was afraid our church wasn’t going to exist.”

Many ruling elders know this kind of weight. The responsibility to shepherd faithfully when the path forward is unclear. The desire to move quickly, but the fear of moving unwisely. The need to trust the sovereignty of the Lord while still making real decisions in real time.

For ruling elders headed to General Assembly: if your church is approaching a season where the next decision feels consequential, we’d be glad to talk.

You do not have to carry that weight alone. Connect with us at at GA 2026 in Louisville https://www.flourishcoaching.org/ga2026

**Video: When the Future of the Church Feels Uncertain**

Mistrust in a church rarely appears out of nowhere.

It is usually preceded by miscommunication, misunderstanding, unclear expectations, and conversations that should have happened but didn’t.

In this video, Robert Benedict, a PCA ruling elder and former Flourish client, reflects on what he learned serving in his former congregation that moved from strain into crisis.

One of the warning signs was not simply conflict. Every church experiences conflict.

The deeper warning sign was mistrust taking root: between members of the congregation, between the congregation and the Session, and even among leaders themselves.

When that happens, elders cannot afford to treat communication as a secondary matter. Communication is part of shepherding.

For ruling elders heading to General Assembly: if your church is beginning to show signs of mistrust, relational strain, gossip, or communication breakdown, this is worth paying attention to before the crisis deepens.

Struggling in this way? Meet us at GA and lets talk. https://www.flourishcoaching.org/ga2026

**Mistrust usually starts as miscommunication.**

Naming a church’s weaknesses plainly can be both relieving and painful.

In the second video from our series with Robert Benedict, a PCA ruling elder and former Flourish client, Robert reflects on what it was like for his Session to have the congregation’s weaknesses named clearly.

Many Sessions already know where the weaknesses are.

They know the patterns.
They know the subjects that are hard to discuss.
They know the places where the church’s culture, process, or habits are not serving the congregation well.

But knowing something is there is not the same as having the permission, language, or outside perspective needed to name it faithfully and begin working on it.

That is part of why outside help can be so valuable.

Not because it replaces the leadership of the Session, but because it can help elders see more clearly, speak more honestly, and shepherd more intentionally.

As Robert says, when those weaknesses are named, it can be “relieving, challenging, and humbling.”

For ruling elders headed to General Assembly: if your Session knows there are things it needs to name, but has struggled to know how, we’d be glad to talk. Find us at GA in Louisville: https://www.flourishcoaching.org/ga2026

**Video 2: Naming Weakness Is Both Relieving and Painful**

Your church is not a business.

That may sound obvious. But for many ruling elders, especially those who have led in business, nonprofits, education, healthcare, or other complex organizations, it can be easy to assume that proven leadership instincts will transfer directly into the life of the church.

Robert Benedict learned this the hard way.

In 2019, Robert was ordained as a PCA Ruling Elder (RE) in a congregation in Portland, Oregon, that was already under strain. Within months, the church entered a season of pastoral transition, relational fracture, mistrust, and deep uncertainty about what should come next.

In this short series leading up to General Assembly, Robert reflects on what he wishes he had understood earlier as a ruling elder: that churches are not merely organizations to be managed, but spiritual families to be shepherded.

If you’re a ruling elder heading to General Assembly, especially if your church is tired, divided, or unsure what comes next, we hope this series serves you. To connect with us at GA, see here. https://www.flourishcoaching.org/ga2026

First up:

**Your Church Is Not a Business.**