Secrets of Church Growth-Keeping the "Magic"!

I suppose "Magic" is not a good word to use when considering the Church and worship.  But I mean it in a different way than it is normally used in connection with entertainment or the occult.  It is like a winning basketball team that has that "Something" that just lets them do great things as a team.  We sometimes refer to that phenomenon as "Magic".  All winning teams seem to have it. It is more than skill, although they must have skill to make it work for them.

In the same way a local church can hit a winning stride, having all the right players, having the right plays and the best equipment, being the place where 'It" is happening.

Occasionally an athletic team can slip into a slump. Often, the sportscasters will only say that the team has lost its "chemistry" or its "Magic".  The team will fire coaches, trade players, hire sports psychologists and have seminars; all in an effort to regain the "feeling".  Sometimes it works, sometimes not.  And usually the team owner is never quite sure why or how it happened.

Just as a sports team can go into a slump, so can a church.  They can have the best facility, be presenting the right message, seeing converts on a regular basis. But the church is not growing. It seems to be marking time or stuck in one spot like a swimmer pushing against the tide.  We can make the excuses: "If only we had a larger building". "If we were in a different part of town." "If we had something for the children or teens", then it would all come together.

On a sports team, quite often success does not always breed contentment. Some players are getting more time in the game, others may feel they are under-paid, still others have a problem with the coach.  In a nutshell, what begins to happen is dis-harmony or a lack of unity among the players.  They cease being a team and start playing as individuals.

Meanwhile, back at the local church, while we still have the same group of staff people, things may be starting to slip. There can be several causes or a combination or reasons.  I will list some that come to mind:

1.  Unrest among the staff people.  As with any group of management workers, church staff can have relational issues where the unity and common goal of the church is strained. Although Christians are supposed to have "Sanctified Egos", if you feel that you are  better preacher or better singer or worship leader, or maybe you can play an instrument better than those on the stage, you are going to have a struggle remaining content. While we want the very best people running the church, they are human as well.  If a person is especially talented or trained in an area, and he is not given opportunity to express those abilities he may feel cheated or deprived.  Or if you feel you are being "micromanaged" by the pastor or department head, you may think they do not trust you.

I will say at this point that our enemy Satan loves to take jabs at these areas of potential unrest. His whole purpose is to cause disunity.  It takes a lot of prayer and humbleness for a talented preacher, administrator or musician to resist the temptation to exert self-interest over that of the church.

2.  Lack of followup with visitors and especially new converts.  A new person comes to the church, receives a bulletin and welcome from the greeter, enjoys the worship-music, and responds to the Message of Salvation by praying the sinner's prayer, possibly followed by baptism.

What happens next??  In many Seeker-Friendly churches, NOTHING.  There is no followup, no call from the church, no personal invitation to attend a small group, no inclusion in social activities, no mentoring.  If they have filled out a card, they may be included on the church's mailing list. But beyond the newsletter, the new Christian is often left to fend for themselves without any support from the church.  They may continue to attend for a while, especially if the worship and preaching appeals to them.  But unless they are befriended by the church and befriended by the more mature, individual Christians in the church, they will most likely return to the last place they experienced friendship and caring.  That place may be the neighborhood bar "where everybody knows their name", or worse, a destructive relationship.

Suppose a church has fifty new converts in a year's time.  That same church should be experiencing a growth in attendance by at least the same number of people.  If they are not retaining their converts SOMETHING IS WRONG.  One of the most important rules of salesmanship is retaining customers.  A good salesman will spend a significant amount of time contacting former customers because he knows they are the most likely to buy. What is true in the business world is also true in the church.

Retaining converts and mentoring them to become soul-winners must be the second goal of the Church of Jesus Christ, following right on the heels of the individual's personal salvation.   This is not exclusively the pastor's responsibility.  However, he should see that volunteer groups with follow-up responsibility are organized and active to take up the task of involving new converts in the church's mentoring program

What? The church does not have a mentoring program?  Well, then organize one!  Jesus Christ was very explicit when he laid down the rules by which the Church is supposed to engage the world.

Matthew 28:19-20 (New International Version, ©2010)

¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Church Growth Secrets, part 4.

We have seen from the Scripture that the early Christian Church was seeker friendly, they geared their services to the non-believer. As a result, the Church experienced amazing growth.   But how is it possible to be receiving converts while at the same time feeding the flock?

The worship of the church can be a real time of blessing and refreshing to believers, while being exciting and entertaining to non-believers.  While I love the old hymns, they are nothing more that the contemporary Christian music of an earlier era.  At the time they were written many Gospel hymns were considered "over-the-top" by the traditional church.

The original music or worship of the Church was from the Jewish roots of the founding leaders, songs and psalms taken from the scripture. One can still hear this style of music in synagogues.  Later in the middle ages the chant had taken the place of the original Jewish-style songs. 

But as musical instruments became more common and available, the style of music changed again.  The pipe organ began to be a common fixture in larger churches.  Guitars and lutes were used in smaller services.  One of the first Christian songs specifically written to be played on guitar was Silent Night.  The church organ and broken down, and a simple song was needed that could be accompanied by guitar.

In the second half of the 19th century, both the portable pump organ and the piano began to appear in worship services.  The piano was a popular instrument in the theater and bar room, and was well-entrenched in the culture of that time. In fact quite a few Christian songs were sung to the melodies of familiar bar songs. Each time a new form of music entered the church there were those that resisted it.  But the non-believers loved it because it was like the popular music they enjoyed.  Songs like those of Stephen Foster spanned the gap from popular music to church music.

Today is no different.  The pop and rock music of our era has made the transition to the Church.  But while the instrumental music might sound like something from the Top-Forty, the lyrics of this music touch the heart and provide a wonderful expression of praise and worship for believers, while the visiting non-believer also enjoys the worship because the rhythm and beat of the music is like what he listens to on his iPod or car radio.

If you have ever been to a rock concert you have seen people listening to the music on their feet, arms upraised, often waving small flashlights, singing along with the performers and dancing in the aisles.  This is not too different from a congregation of Christian believers worshiping and praising God.  To be fully absorbed in worship can be a wonderful thing for those who are able to lose themselves in the spirit of the words and music of praise! 

So to conclude this session I will propose that for a church to be growing and dynamic it must have two things: First, a consistent message of Salvation presented by the pastor and second, a time of worship that is both uplifting and entertaining.  If you feel resistance to the word "entertaining" look it up in the dictionary and you will find one of the definitions is "To capture and hold the attention in a pleasing manner".  Certainly, we do not want our services to be "unpleasing", although I can tell you that I have been in a few congregations where the message and music were anything but pleasing.

So far we have spoken only of the main Sunday service of the Church. Next time we will get into aspects of "The Rest of the Story"

Chruch Growth "Secrets" part 3

In our previous blog, we looked at the Early Church and saw that it grew because of its Message of Salvation.  It was the formula designed by God himself and the purpose for which The Church was created.  In modern terms, the Early Church was 'Seeker Friendly" or "Seeker Sensitive".  It's whole message, its meetings and functions were all designed to address the greatest need of the human soul; to be reconciled with God.  At the same time, they were maintaining an atmosphere in the church services where the non-believer could feel comfortable with the believers; and the messages were in understandable language where a non-believer did not need a degree in divinity to gain understanding.

In the Modern Church, the pastor often feels he has to make a choice; whether to build the church or build the believers.  It does not take a new pastor very long to figure out where his congregation is in regards to their spiritual experience. If his church is comprised mainly of established believers the congregation may desire biblical teaching concerning life issues, finances, child rearing, spiritual gifts, or any number of topics designed to build the Christian's faith and experience.

All of this is good, and it is the church's responsibility to provide guidance in these areas.  But, if the Sunday morning service is geared toward believers, visiting non-believers are not going to feel included, or the subject matter will have no application in their lives. The fact of the matter is that most visitors will attend Sunday morning services, and they will be there because someone invited them.  Or if they just happen to wander in off the street, or perhaps have decided that they need to attend church for their family's sake, they are not likely to return if the sermon content does not seem relevant to them.

On the other hand, regular attenders and members are not likely to invite non-Christian friends if they think their friend is going to be uncomfortable or "out of place" in their congregation. But the reluctance to invite friends can go even deeper than that. Often the regular attender or member is embarrassed to invite friends. In fact, several years ago a survey was conducted by a national Christian magazine, arriving at the ten top reasons churches did not grow. The number-one reason, as determined by their survey, was that members were embarrassed to invite visitors to their church.

How can this be true if the member is an earnest Christian? Several things can contribute to these feelings.  Maybe the church has a tendency to do things that would seem "strange" to outsiders. An extreme example would be the "snake-handling" practice of a small denomination in the South.  The story is told about the traveling Gospel quartet that was singing at one of these churches for the fist time.  (Not the same quartet that I was with!)  They sang their first set of numbers and sat down on the chairs provided on the platform, when the elders brought out a basket full of rattlesnakes!  The bass singer, who was sitting next to the pastor leaned over and asked him, "Do you have a door going outside from the platform?"  The pastor relied, "Why, no we don't have a door up here".  To which the bass singer asked "WHERE DO YOU WANT ONE?"

Many times visitors who find themselves in unusual worship situations can feel almost like the bass singer; "How do I get out of here?"  Of course, this is not the feeling we want to create in visitors.  We may not be snake handlers.  But some church practices and traditions can seem just as strange to the non-church going person.

Regardless of church doctrine, all evangelical churches have one common doctrine and goal: "You must be born-again", or saved, or repent of sins.  We say it in different ways sometimes.  But the gateway to becoming a Christian and a part of the Church of Jesus Christ is salvation by believing in, and  accepting Christ's gift of salvation. And the primary method given to accomplish the task of bringing people to a place of repentance is preaching.

Romans 10:9-16 (New International Version, ©2010)

⁹ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ¹¹ As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”^{[a] 12} For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³ for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”^[b]

 ¹⁴ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? ¹⁵ And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”^[c]

So the key to growing a church is to have our main weekly service geared toward the non-believer by having the message of salvation presented regularly and consistently.  This does not mean repetitious messages presented over and over and over.  The Bible is packed from cover to cover with the Story of Salvation.


Of course the church meeting is comprised of more than preaching.  Along with offering, announcements, and scripture reading is Worship, or congregational singing.  Just as preaching can lead people to Christ, so can Worship.  We will talk about this aspect of the Sunday Service in our next blog.

Also, lets take a look at how to keep the Saints (established believers) connected and productive, while at the same time using every opportunity to grow the church through winning converts to the Christian Faith.

The "Secrets" of Church Growth, part 2

It the previous blog post we laid some groundwork for what is to follow: First, that Jesus Christ established the Church, and secondly, the Church is victorious over the powers and person of Satan.  Notice that I make this statement in the present tense because Satan was defeated with the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  The Church became officially established fifty-days later when The Holy Spirit descended on the disciples who were assembled in the upper room.  At that time the believers became equipped to fulfill the purpose of the Church.

Attracted by the commotion raised by the newly spirit-filled believers, a large crowd gathered to see what was happening.  Peter took the opportunity to exercise his recently acquired boldness to stand up and preach to those assembled.  After his sermon and in response to their questions, Peter gave an "alter call":

Acts 2:37-40 (New International Version, ©2010)

 ³⁷ When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
 ³⁸ Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
 ⁴⁰ With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 

This is the first sermon delivered in the Church, and also the first invitation given to accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah and to repent of their sins in order to be saved from the world, here defined as the "corrupt generation".

With this example a pattern was initiated which gives us a striking example on how the Church grows:

Acts 2:41 (New International Version, ©2010)

⁴¹ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

We see that during the first day of the existence of the Church that a salvation message was preached, as well as an invitation to repent and be baptized.  The response was remarkable.  We do not know how many people were present to hear Peter's sermon.  But knowing the limitations of the non-amplified human voice it is possible that anywhere from 3000 to about 10000 persons were within range of Peter's voice.  The scripture seems to indicate that there were also those present who did not accept Peter's message.

But most pastors would be extremely happy to have 3000 converts in one day! The early church began to snowball with incredible grow, starting with this first day.  And the Early Church leaders did not alter their message or their methods. They had been given their marching orders by Jesus just before he ascended into Heaven:

Luke 24:45-49 (New International Version, ©2010)

 ⁴⁵ Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. ⁴⁶ He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, ⁴⁷ and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

In recent years, it seems that many of the churches are preaching a different message. Yet, we see the example of the Church in the book of Acts and the message "Repent and be Baptized", following the directions from the Lord " and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations.. "

So why is it that so many churches have placed their defining commission on the back burner, in favor of other  messages?


I will address this question and others in my next blog-post.  Keep checking in!

The "Secrets" of Church Growth.

Today I am beginning a series of blog reports on Church Growth. I do not claim to be an expert on the subject, but after 50-plus years of Christian service in various capacities and visiting literally hundreds of churches while in the music ministry, I have noticed a few things and picked up some ideas which may prove helpful.

For eleven years I traveled weekends with a part-time gospel quartet.  We would be in as many as four churches in a weekend. We went out into the rural communities, as well as the suburbs and the cities, ministering in all protestant denominations, from the smallest churches to the mega-churches.  Many of the churches would call us back annually or every-other year. So we were able to observe some of the same congregations over several years. We noticed that some churches were increasing in attendance, building new buildings and expanding their ministries, while others seemed to be stuck in a time-warp. And it didn't seem to matter whether it was a rural or an urban church.  We found examples of healthy growing churches in every denomination and community, while the opposite was also true.  There was no constant pattern based on demographics or affiliation.

During this time I established many friendships with a number of pastors, since I was the manager of the quartet and the contact person who made the booking arrangements.  Often I would be in conversations with pastors about the history of their church, their personal philosophies and what they felt were the strengths and weaknesses of their church and ministry. Also, I wanted to know the greatest needs of the congregation so our music ministry could address the issues that were troubling the pastor or the church.

Something I discovered almost without fail is that the pastors of the successful growing churches did not really know why their churches were doing so well.  Of course, many of them had dynamic pulpit ministries with superb music ministers to back them up.  But to be able to express just why their church was growing was very difficult for them to do.  For one thing, most pastors are modest people, who do not want to take credit for what the Spirit is doing in their midst.  But the fact of the matter is that the atmosphere they established with their leadership was providing fertile ground for the Spirit of God to function.

But some of the pastors had come from other churches where they were unable to see any growth.  In fact, a few were ready to leave the ministry when they were reassigned or called to their current church.  So it was apparent that the pastor was not necessarily the common denominator in church growth.

During his earthly ministry, even Jesus was not always able to inspire congregations to become believers and followers. This was especially true in his home community.   I believe that the Lord himself had to suffer rejection in this manner, among other reasons to be able to share the burdens of the local pastor who has been unable to make headway with a seemingly difficult congregation.

So we have to recognize that not every pastor can be effective in every situation, that sometimes there is a personality issue or "chemistry" on a human level that prevents or interferes with his ministry among a particular group of people.

The other side of this coin is something that we must recognize and acknowledge, because the lessons of the Early Church show us that Satan also goes to church. In fact, in some instances he is so entrenched in the congregation that nothing short of a divine "exorcism" could clear the spiritual air.  This is the situation that sometimes calls for "Shaking the dust from your feet" and moving on to a more receptive audience.

All of this being said, we still have not addressed the question of why churches grow.  Personally, and from my experience and study, I believe there are clear "formulas" for church growth.  And these concepts are based on Scripture, rather than some psychobabble.  To begin, we need to go back to basics and consider the purpose of the church.   Jesus Christ established the church.

Matthew 16:17-19 (New International Version, ©2010)

 ¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter,^[a] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades^[b] will not overcome it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be^[c] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be^[d] loosed in heaven.”

In this sometimes contested scripture we see that Jesus states that He will build His Church.  Protestants and Catholics have debated whether Peter was the rock upon which the church would be built. Or was Jesus referring to himself?   Actually, the issue is not about Peter.  The fact is that Jesus says HE WILL BUILD HIS CHURCH! We know that Peter was an important part of the formation of the Early Church.  But the builder was God Himself.

Another portion of this scripture reference that is not often correctly understood is the line, "The Gates of Hades (Hell) will not overcome it.", or as it says in the king James Version, "Prevail against it.".  Often, we as Christians imagine the image of a bunch of beleaguered  believers huddled together in the church while the Gates of Hell plummet the building with earth-shaking blows.  

But this is not the perception Christ wants us to have. Gates are for defensive purposes. The early cities were enclosed with walls, the only access being through the city gate.  When at war, the gate would be closed and bolted. The advancing enemy would attempt to breach the gate with battering rams.  When the gate was torn down, the city would be over-run and captured.


In the same way, the Church is the battering ram that is aggressively pounding on the Gates of Hell, the stronghold of Satan and the demons of Hell.  In this scripture, Jesus is telling us that the Church is a victorious army, for which the enemy had no effective defense!

This is where I will leave us today. In my next blog I will continue the series on how Churches grow. 

Finding the Will of God.

Christians who have any knowledge of God know that He is all-knowing and is aware of our future. Whether we all believe in predestination or not, we can all agree that God does know the future. But the place where most of us have trouble with this holy attribute is thus; “If He knows, why doesn’t He tell me??”

Scripture also tells us that God has a plan for our lives that He established before we were born. Again, “Why don’t you share the secret with me, Lord?”

There are some things that God DOES let us know concerning His will for us. “God is not willing that ANY should perish”. So He wants us to be saved and establish a redeeming relationship with Him.

But here is where we often run into trouble because “the Devil is in the details”. Literally! If fact, when Satan attacks us, it is usually when we become impatient with God. Following God’s will is a matter of faith, and without faith we are unable to please God. God reveals his will for us on a “need to know” basis. He wants us to trust Him in the management of our lives.

Sometime God does reveal His long-term will for us. A call to the preaching ministry is a good example. But it is probable that where we go to seminary or take a church will not be known to us right away when we receive His call.

Another example of God’s long-term revelation is when we get married. Actually, the first time I met my future wife Marilyn I knew I was going to marry her. And 49 years later, God has not changed that aspect of my life.

Discovering God’s will is a daily process, sometimes even a minute by minute process. Each day when we get up, God wants to meet with us. Part of our daily prayers need to to be seeking His will for the day, or for the next hour! Ask God to lead, and then trust Him to open or close opportunities. The good news is that the longer we serve Him and see His faithfulness, the more He is willing to reveal to us.

When I was in a Christian High School, the importance of seeking God’s will for my life was stressed repeatedly, almost as if the heavens were supposed to open and an outline and a road-map would be lowered. In the outline I would see what my profession would be, who I would marry, the names of my children, where I would live, etc. I thought I had it figured out. But my plans soon changed when I met Marilyn. Then the plans changed further when we had David a year later. The fact of the matter is that if I would look back and prepare an outline of how my life actually went, you would see that it would have been impossible to have foreseen the events that led me to where I now am.

But except for a couple times in my early life when I wandered away from God, I can see His hand in almost everything that happened. I am now retired and very happy and content, knowing that I am exactly where God wants me to be. He is continuing to reveal Himself to me on a daily basis, and I am amazed at how God “works out all things for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose”.