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Table of Contents
Transforming the Smaller Church
Empowering Churches Through Effective Leadership
By Robert E. Logan and Gary Reinecke
Pastor, you need to be present at the evangelism committee planning meeting for the Harvest Festival," says Ron. "Your presence sends a message to the outreach committee that this program is important to our church."
The pastor responds, "I am already committed that night which makes it my fourth night out this week. And by the way, I do have a family to consider."
"Can’t we have someone represent the pastor this weekend?" suggests an elder. An awkward silence follows—each board member is already committed to other projects, and can’t imagine one more night given to church activities. The subject gets swept aside and the meeting concludes.
| A godly vision can only be accomplished through an optimistic faith that views obstacles as opportunities and turns defeats into victories. |
In the hallway after the board meeting, the pastor and Ron pick up the discussion. Dejected, the pastor knows that the Harvest Festival will not produce the kind of fruit the church needs to grow.
"You know, Ron, if we just had a few more committed people, we could do the things we’re supposed to be doing," he says. "But I am just one person, and I can’t do it all alone."
Ron acknowledges the pastor’s frustration as they walk to their cars. The same question persists in both their minds: What will it take for our church to grow?
This scenario is repeated in boardrooms around the country. Too many needs, not enough resources.
FOUR REASONS WHY SMALLER CHURCHES REMAIN SMALL
Unwillingness To Change
Established churches with less than 100 in weekly worship attendance have generally plateaued in their growth. Often, the main contributors to this problem are leaders who have become rigid and resistant to new ideas. When leaders become unwilling to take risks in their development, the congregation suffers.
Attractiveness of the Status Quo, or Absence of Sufficient Discontent With the Status Quo To Motivate and Support Change
If a smaller church has remained small for 5 years or more, a certain level of comfort settles in. Eventually, this acceptance of the status quo can lead to complacency. This stagnation, combined with an unwillingness to change, bogs churches down in apathy.
Reluctance To Pay the Price for Growth
Churches with a timid approach to ministry, an attitude of apathy, and a lack of visionary leadership are often reluctant to pay the price for growth. They lack passion for the work God wants to complete through them. In the case of these churches, the problem is simple disobedience.
Lack of Visionary-initiating Leadership
Active, visionary leadership is characterized by a willingness to dream, take risks, and do the right things well. True visionary leaders have counted the cost and are willing to pay the price for the sake of the Kingdom. When active, visionary leadership is lacking, the people "cast off restraint" (Proverbs 29:18, NIV) and flounder.
SMALL CHURCHES CAN GROW
Large, full-service churches deliver high-quality ministry to their constituencies—that is why they grow. Smaller churches are presented with a multitude of needs, have fewer resources with which to address them, and are stretched thin for volunteers—that is why they remain small. Do these perceptions represent reality?
Contrary to popular belief, smaller churches have the potential to create high-quality, healthy ministries.1 Smaller churches also have the potential to reach more unchurched people than their larger counterparts, thus shattering the large-church versus small-church myth that bigger is better.
Smaller congregations are often more effective at providing a sense of community for the unchurched. They can give people a sense of individual significance by allowing members to utilize their spiritual gifts. Smaller congregations can also multiply disciples, leaders, groups, and churches at a rapid rate. Given these advantages, it is imperative that we consider the potential of smaller churches and discover the ways God wants to unleash them to advance His kingdom.
The challenge remains, however, to find the pathway to greater health and effectiveness for smaller churches. Effective smaller churches embrace change. They subscribe to the adage: change is not good or bad, but necessary. These churches understand the necessity of change to remain healthy. A healthy church multiplies disciples, leaders, groups, and more churches.
Leading and navigating change in smaller, struggling congregations requires a blueprint to serve as a guide. Below is a brief description of eight quality characteristics essential to a healthy church. The guidelines are based on an international study conducted in 1,000 churches, 32 countries, and 6 continents. Together with your church’s leaders, use these eight quality characteristics to assess your congregation’s health.
BLUEPRINT FOR HEALTH: EIGHT QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS FOR EFFECTIVE SMALL CHURCHES2
Empowering Leadership
Definition: Effective leadership begins with an intimate relationship with God, resulting in Christlike character and a clear sense of God’s calling for a leader’s life. As this base of spiritual maturity increases, effective pastors and leaders multiply, guide, empower, and equip disciples to realize their full potential in Christ and work together with them to accomplish God’s vision.
Example: Pastor Pablo Contreras has a history of empowering leaders to pastor the churches he has planted. He has found it is often more effective to plant more churches rather than trying to help existing churches grow larger. In his last congregation, he named Liandro, his assistant, as his replacement. This enabled Pablo to leave and begin a new congregation.
When Pablo began mentoring Liandro, Liandro was working in the marketplace as a manager. Many of his managerial skills were easily transferable to a ministry setting. A year after assuming the pastorate, Liandro is confidently leading his congregation, and Pablo has nearly 100 newly baptized Christians in his church plant.
Gift-Oriented Ministry
Definition: The Holy Spirit sovereignly gives spiritual gifts to every Christian to help build God’s kingdom. Church leaders are responsible to help believers discover, develop, and exercise their gifts so the body of Christ "grows and builds itself up in love." One of the best ways to tap into the potential of the small church is through gift-oriented ministry.
Example: A Spiritual Gifts Discovery workshop was offered in a congregation of less than 100 members. After taking a gift inventory, one woman realized the administrative skills that made her effective in her job could also be used in ministry. After a few months of planning, she launched a community outreach program designed to bring in unsaved teenagers from the neighborhood. Two years later, that church is still seeing the fruit of her efforts. Teenagers have been saved, and several parents have begun attending the church.
Passionate Spirituality
Definition: Effective ministry flows out of a passionate spirituality. Spiritual intimacy leads to a strong conviction that God will act in powerful ways. A godly vision can only be accomplished through faith that views obstacles as opportunities and turns defeats into victories.
Example: One church took passionate spirituality seriously and realized that most of the church membership had a deep desire for spirituality but little instruction about how to incorporate it into their lives. To address the need, a gifted leader in the church designed quarterly concerts of prayer where people could pray in small groups, worship together with those from other congregations, and listen to teaching on prayer.
Functional Structures
Definition: The church is the living body of Christ. Like all healthy organisms, it requires numerous systems that work together to fulfill its intended purpose. Each system must be evaluated regularly to determine if it is still the best way to accomplish a church’s intended purpose.
Example: One old and struggling smaller church began evaluating its structures. The members discovered that many of the programs were ingrown and without a compelling vision. The options were clear: change to create a new vision or eliminate the program. The church
leadership invested time, energy, and resources into the programs willing to change, while practicing the art of benign neglect with aging, inflexible programs. Ten years later, the result is viable and purposeful programs that impart life and vitality to the now-growing congregation.
Inspiring Worship
Definition: Inspiring worship is an encounter with the living God. Both personal and corporate worship must be infused with the presence of God, resulting in times of quiet reverence and vibrant celebration. Inspiring worship is not driven by a particular style or ministry-focus group, but by the shared experience of God’s presence.
Example: One town had two churches. The first was an older, more traditional church that met in a modest chapel. Hymns and a pipe organ contribute to the subdued worship atmosphere. The second church was contemporary. This church met in the town hall, people who attended dressed casually, and it had a band. Both churches had about 120 in attendance on a given Sunday.
When asked why they preferred one service over another, people in the town gave reasons relating to intimacy with God and the sense of inspiration they bring away with them at the end of the worship experience. Inspiring worship does not depend on whether the music is contemporary or traditional, but on whether people have a personal encounter with God.
Holistic Small Groups
Definition: Holistic small groups are disciple-making communities that endeavor to reach the unchurched, meet individual needs, develop each person according to his or her God-given gifts, and raise leaders to sustain the growth of the church. Like healthy organic cells, holistic small groups are designed to grow and multiply.
Example: The strength of many smaller churches lies in the close relationships members often have with one another. A holistic small-group ministry seeks to ensure that those relationships are consistent and healthy. One small group began to grow rather large. When the group reached 18 to 20 people, they decided to multiply to maintain the atmosphere of intimacy and accountability that had made the group attractive in the first place. A couple that had been key players in the original group began to lead one of the new groups. Once every few months the two groups come together for a party to catch up with each other and reconnect.
Need-Oriented Evangelism
Definition: Need-oriented evangelism intentionally cultivates relationships with pre-Christian people so they can become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ who actively participate within the life of the church and community. Using appropriate ministries and authentic relationships, believers can guide others into the family of God.
Example: A church in a rural area conducted a survey to discover needs in their community. One common theme that emerged was a sense of isolation among stay-at-home mothers. The church’s outreach committee, comprised of three people, decided to create a program to address that need. They organized a once-a-week event where mothers could come together and socialize with each other and with mothers from the church. Volunteers from the church provided childcare. The program quickly became popular, and the relationships that were formed provided avenues for sharing the gospel. Assessing, and more important, understanding the needs of the impact group, was crucial for this church to make strategic decisions along the way.
Loving Relationships
Definition: Loving relationships are the heart of a healthy, growing church. Jesus said people would know we are His disciples by our love. Practical demonstrations of love build authentic Christian community and bring others into God’s kingdom.
Example: One of the ways a particular church expresses love is in the context of small groups. The groups are where the people develop authentic community, care for and support each other, challenge each other to grow, and become better disciples. A single mother in one of the small groups was having trouble finding a stable job, a place to live, and care for her three children. Members of the church were quick to respond when they heard her story.
Job offers, temporary housing, and childcare were soon made available. Concrete demonstration of love leaves no doubt about that church’s commitment to loving relationships.
ENDNOTES
1. Christian A. Schwarz, Natural Church Development (Carol Stream: ChurchSmart Resources), 46–48.
2. The eight quality characteristics are taken from Natural Church Development. The definitions come from Releasing Your Church’s Potential (Carol Stream: ChurchSmart Resources).
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