Are You Conforming Or Being Transformed?
In our busy lives, it’s easy to settle into patterns that feel comfortable and familiar. Church can become one of those patterns. We show up, we sit, we listen, and we go home. But is that what Jesus really calls us to?
The apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 12:2, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” That verse doesn’t just apply to our personal behavior, for me it speaks directly to how we live as a church community.
Because let’s be honest: it’s possible to attend church faithfully and never truly be changed. It’s possible to know the songs, nod at the sermon, and to stay in your comfort zone and never really change.
The Difference Between Conforming and Transforming
To conform is to fit the mold, to adapt ourselves to the expectations of the world around us, or even to what we think church should be. Conformity says, “This is the way it’s always been,” or “I’ll come on Sunday, but don’t ask too much more.”
But to be transformed is to allow Jesus to shape us from the inside out. It’s messy. It’s active. It’s often uncomfortable. And it’s exactly what we need.
The question is: are we just doing church, or are we being the Church?
Sitting or Leaning In?
There’s a big difference between a congregation that sits back and listens and one that leans in and lives it.
The first is passive. It treats church like a performance: someone up front speaks or sings, and the rest watch. But a transformed congregation doesn’t just show up; it shows up for each other. It participates, it prays, it sings, it serves. It understands that church is not something done to us, but something Christ does through us.
This is especially urgent in small churches like ours. If a handful do everything and the rest spectate it’s a challenging environment.
The Church isn’t a show. It’s a living body. And every part matters. Every voice counts. Every person is called.
In a small church, the difference between survival and thriving often comes down to this: is everyone in the room leaning in? Is everyone asking, “What can I bring?” instead of “What do I get?”
We are the Body of Christ. And a body only functions when all its parts are alive and active.
Jesus Is Still in the Business of Transformation
Jesus didn’t come to be an hour slot in our schedules, He came to change our lives.
I write this not because I want to make church more exciting or more efficient. It’s about allowing Christ to renew our minds, so we no longer conform to the expectations of the world, but are transformed into something holy, something living, something different.
Transformation isn’t a one-time event. It’s a daily choice to follow Jesus more deeply, more honestly, and more openly than we did yesterday. It’s learning to listen more closely, loving more freely, and serve more faithfully.
And if you want to turn up for an hour and walk away that is fine, I’m not judging you. I’m just saying there might be more for you.
But if you do want to be transformed keep reading.
How Do We Begin?
Get Curious About Where You’ve Settled
Ask God to show you where you’ve conformed, where you’ve settled for attendance instead of transformation. It might be in your expectations, your habits, your fears, or your silence.Be Willing to Participate
Church is not a spectator sport. Especially in a smaller church, your presence matters. Your gifts matter. Don’t wait to be asked. Lean in. Offer. Risk. God doesn’t just want your attendance; He wants your heart, your hands, your voice.Let God Lead the Change
Transformation isn’t something we do in our own strength. It’s what happens when we open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit’s work. That might look like praying differently. Serving differently. Or simply showing up with a new mindset: “Here I am, Lord. Use me.”
A Final Thought
We don’t need more churches that just look like churches. We need churches that act like the body of Christ, breathing, moving, transforming. In this season of church life, especially as many congregations shrink or struggle, we can’t afford to conform to old models.
We need everyone. Everyone leaning in. Everyone alive in the Spirit. Everyone transformed, so that together, we can transform the world around us.
A Prayer for Transformation
Lord Jesus,
We confess that it’s easy to slip into patterns to conform to what feels familiar or comfortable.
But You have called us to something more. You have called us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
Wake us up, Lord. Stir in us a holy dissatisfaction with passive faith. Show us where we’ve been sitting back instead of leaning in.
Teach us how to be your Church not just in name, but in action, in love, and in service.
Renew us. Rebuild us. Remind us that every part of the Body matters, especially ours.
May Your Spirit breathe new life into our church, and may we be ready, willing, and alive to Your call.
In Your holy name,
Amen.
This article was written by Sarah Newton and reflects her opinion on this matter. Other opinions within the church and the wider Church of England may differ.
