MC USA Executive Director Glen Guyton outlines a strategic-planning post-mortem of the Reimagination Process, identifying 10 key pitfalls the church must avoid to ensure meaningful, Spirit-led denominational renewal.
Glen Guyton is the executive director of MC USA. He is the first person of color to serve in the role. Glen has almost 30 years of leadership experience in the denomination. Guyton joined the MC USA Executive Board staff in 2009 as the director of Intercultural Relations, and for the next serval years, held various staff roles until becoming executive director. An officer in the United States Air Force when he first joined the church, Guyton credits several Mennonite leaders for teaching him what it means to be an Anabaptist Christian, in particular Bishop L.W. Francisco III, oversight pastor at C3 Hampton, and Titus Peachy, formerly of Mennonite Central Committee, which led him to leave the military and commit to nonviolence. Guyton holds a bachelor’s degree in management from the United States Air Force Academy and a master’s degree in education from Regent University. He is the author of several books including, “Navigating Microaggressions at Work: A Guide to Understanding and Avoiding Microaggressions in the Workplace,” and “Reawakened, Activate Your Congregation to Spark Lasting Change,” which explores eight keys to developing the abilities of congregations to bring healing and hope to their communities. Guyton is also a professional member of the National Speakers Association.
This blog is part of a special series on “Reimagining Mennonite Church USA,” an initiative to “reimagine a framework that maintains the interconnectedness between the church’s various entities and better responds to current and future needs.”
If I’ve learned anything in my 32 years of being a Mennonite, it’s that we excel at two things: asking good questions and critiquing any process we didn’t design. We want to see the fingerprints of “real Mennonite wisdom” on anything that carries our name. That instinct can be a gift. It can also be a hurdle.
Before we officially launch the Reimagination Process, I want us to step back and perform what strategists call a post-mortem. A post-mortem imagines a future where the project has already failed. Then, we work backward to identify what got in the way. It’s preparation, not pessimism. It gives us clarity, urgency and, if done well, a touch of humility.
So, let us imagine the Reimagination Process has ended, and nothing truly changed. What went wrong? And how do we avoid those traps?
Below are the 10 biggest reasons the process would fail, unless we commit to something better together.
1. We lacked a sense of urgency.
If members and leaders don’t believe change is necessary, the work will stall before it starts. Urgency isn’t fearmongering or faithlessness; it’s acknowledging reality. We cannot assume MC USA can operate as it did in 2001, much less 1525. The world has shifted dramatically around us.
Scripture: “As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” John 9:4
Urgency honors the moment God has placed us in. If we pretend everything is fine, we miss our chance to grow.
2. We focused only on internal conflicts and ignored the world around us.
Healthy organizations scan the horizon. Struggling organizations chase their own tails. If we only rehearse old grievances or replay historical arguments, we fail to see demographic shifts, cultural trends and global realities that affect our mission.
Scripture: “The sons of Issachar … understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” (1 Chronicles 12:32)
Reimagining requires paying attention to what God is doing beyond our walls both the physical walls and the mental ones.
3. We got stuck in paralysis by analysis.
Our default posture can be, “We need more information before we decide.” But discernment doesn’t require perfect data. It requires faithful action. If we insist on 100% clarity before making a commitment, we will never move forward.
Scripture: “We walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7)
At some point, trust must carry us farther than certainty.
4. The Executive Board and staff failed to communicate well with the broader church.
Communication must reach beyond dominant cultural styles. Messages should resonate with the center and the margins, especially communities that have historically felt unheard. If our communication doesn’t honor that full diversity, trust erodes quickly.
Scripture: “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt.” (Colossians 4:6)
Good communication is not simply public relations. In our context, it is pastoral care and community building, ensuring that we journey together, not in our bubbles.
5. We romanticized the past and failed to face the present.
Nostalgia can be a powerful sedative. We can cling to what once worked and become, like Lot’s wife, frozen by looking backward. But our calling is not to reconstruct yesterday; it is to follow Christ faithfully today.
Scripture: “Remember not the former things … behold, I am doing a new thing.” (Isaiah 43:18–19)
Our history shapes us, but it must not shackle us.
6. Fear of failure kept us from taking risks.
Meaningful change always requires stepping into places where the outcome isn’t guaranteed. If leaders and members are more afraid of criticism than they are hopeful about God’s future, we will stay stuck in patterns that feel safe but slowly drain our vitality. Every major shift in Scripture involved people trusting God enough to move before everything was settled or certain.
Scripture: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
Courage doesn’t erase uncertainty, but it does remind us that we never walk into the unknown alone.
7. We proposed changes that altered our identity rather than strengthened it.
Change management requires discernment: What must change? And what must never change? If we tamper with the core — our Christ-centered mission, our peace witness or our commitment to community, the structure will collapse.
Scripture: “No one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 3:11)
This process is about changing methods, not our mission.
8. We lost our sense of community and prioritized personal agendas.
When we stop caring for one another, even small disagreements become fractures. Reimagining must be a relational, not transactional, process. If we enter this with suspicion or self-protection, the process cannot hold. This is not to dismiss the harms that have been done in the past, but to embrace where we can journey together in the future.
Scripture: “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)
Community is not optional; it is the container for discernment.
9. Our scenario planning was too safe.
True imagination requires holy risk. If we simply rearrange the denominational furniture, we will not build a structure that can withstand future pressures. Safe planning leads to predictable outcomes and declining organizations.
Scripture: “Enlarge the place of your tent.” (Isaiah 54:2)
God invites us to widen our vision, not shrink it.
10. We missed God.
This is always the fear in any spiritual process. But missing God doesn’t mean the Spirit wasn’t speaking; it might mean we weren’t listening carefully enough. If we reduce discernment to strategy alone, we mute the very voice that gives us life.
Scripture: “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.” (Psalm 127:1)
Throughout this process, we cannot forget that prayer is not the garnish to our work. It is the lifeblood.
Moving Forward Together
Now that we’ve named the potential reasons for failure, we can address them directly and proactively. This post-mortem is not a prediction. It’s an invitation to participate with clarity, courage and hope.
I believe deeply in the people of MC USA. I believe we can do this work faithfully and boldly. However, we must commit to showing up wholeheartedly, rather than criticizing the process before it begins.
Visit the Reimagining Mennonite Church USA website. Join a small group conversation. Submit your feedback. Pray with us. Walk with us. If there is anything that I have missed in this post-mortem post that our leaders and committee should consider, please share that as well.
And please help us choose hope over hesitation.
We’re doing this together, trusting the Spirit to guide our steps.