From ATTENDANCE to APPRENTICESHIP with Jeremy Adelman
Episode Summary
Danielle and Derek kick things off with laughs about northern lights, conspiracy theories, and a round of “This or That” (turns out Derek would rather read minds than fly). Then the conversation turns to what if our churches have been measuring the wrong things?
This week’s Reinventing Church shift comes from Dave Rhodes of Clarity House, who challenges leaders to redefine success, not by how many people attend, but by how many are apprenticing under Jesus. Dave unpacks the difference between input, output, and impact results and reminds us that the real question is, “Do I have a life worth imitating?”
Then Derek sits down with Jeremy Adelman, Lead Pastor of River City Church in Minneapolis. Jeremy shares how his 170-year-old congregation literally chose to die and replant for the sake of new life. He describes how they’re building a culture of apprenticeship, defining maturity, creating shared language, developing residency programs, and helping people see their everyday lives as ministry.
LINKS & RESOURCES
SHOW NOTES
Key Insights from Dave Rhodes (Clarity House)
- Redefine success. Stop measuring only inputs (attendance, giving) and start measuring outputs (the kind of disciples you’re forming) and impact (change in your community).
- Name maturity. Clarify the kind of disciple your church exists to produce, one your community desperately needs more of.
- Move from efficiency to effectiveness. Big numbers don’t always mean big impact; growth should reflect people becoming more like Jesus.
- Offer access, not just excellence. Apprenticeship requires people seeing your life, not just your stage presence.
- Ask the right question: not “Is my sermon worth preaching?” but “Do I have a life worth imitating?”
Key Insights from Pastor Jeremy Adelman (River City Church | Minneapolis, MN)
- Reclaim a pioneering spirit. Jeremy’s 172-year-old church chose to “die to what was” and replant, a courageous, gospel-centered restart that’s produced growth for the first time in 90 years.
- Define apprenticeship. Success isn’t who shows up on Sunday but what’s happening in their lives Monday through Saturday.
- Create a shared definition of disciple. Their team named four local disciple roles: Responsive Follower, Patient Pursuer, Courageous Restorer, Winsome Witness. A shared definition brings clarity and unity.
- Use self-assessments. Encourage members to evaluate their growth in each role to personalize discipleship and focus training.
- Start small and incubate. Smaller churches have agility, experiment with new training cohorts before scaling.
- Lead by imitation. You can’t train others to do what you’re unwilling to do; lead as a first learner.
- Build a residency pipeline.
- Interns = early learners exploring calling (≈ 10 hours/week).
- Residents = emerging pastors/leaders on a 2–3 year track for vocational ministry.
- Both start with proximity, pull people close and share life.
- Adopt a “Raise and Release” mindset. Train and send leaders instead of collecting them, “Gospel influencers are meant to be catalytically sent, not selfishly collected.”
- Empower everyday ministry. Help members see their workplaces and neighborhoods as their primary ministry field. “Your life is the ministry of our church.”
- Be patient and keep the gospel central. Shifts take time, remember that we’re apprenticing under Jesus Himself.
Behind the Curtain at Grace
Derek and Danielle share how they’re equipping high-capacity volunteers like Nick, a Slippery Rock professor and production team member, to lead through mentorship. They’ve created a new Programming Mentor role focused on equipping others instead of just doing tasks, reflecting Ephesians 4’s call to “equip the saints for works of ministry.” Derek also celebrates breakthroughs in the Handcrafted Calling course as participants discover their two-word purpose statements, powerful moments of clarity across every life stage.
Tips and Tools: Say the Hard Thing
Derek introduces “Five Tips for Responding to Aggressive Emails.”
- Decide who gets a response, ignore unsigned or anonymous messages.
- When responding, correct mischaracterizations without malice.
- Example: “You mentioned no one reached out to families in crisis. In fact, our care team has been walking with several families personally. You may not have seen it, so I wanted to clarify.”
- Respond with truth and grace, firm but kind.
Quick Application
- Audit your scorecard. Identify what you’re measuring (inputs vs outputs vs impact).
- Model apprenticeship. Invite people to watch you follow Jesus, not just hear you talk about Him.
- Equip volunteers to mentor. Every role should include a “develop someone else” component.
