Church Growth

TimeToChange

When should a church initiate change?

My colleague and ministry partner Gordon Penfold’s favorite refrain has one line: “Successful turnaround takes a capable pastor and a willing church.” Our research and Turnaround Pastors Boot Camp© training address the first requirement. It is doubtful that every pastor will become a turnaround rock star, but all of them can become more effective change

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20 Reasons Your Church May Not Be Growing

In a post on “Church and Culture Blog”  (https://www.churchandculture.org/Blog.asp?ID=4727) titled, “20 Reasons Your Church May not be Growing,” James Emory White makes a point about church growth and health: growth is often about “removing barriers.”  He says, “…you don’t have to ask yourself how to grow your church. You have to ask yourself what is

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20 Reasons Your Church May Not Be Growing

In a post on “Church and Culture Blog”  (https://www.churchandculture.org/Blog.asp?ID=4727) titled, “20 Reasons Your Church May not be Growing,” James Emory White makes a point about church growth and health: growth is often about “removing barriers.”  He says, “…you don’t have to ask yourself how to grow your church. You have to ask yourself what is

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Help Us Help Your Pastor

Chances are you’re in a church that’s on the plateau, or on the down hill slide. The chances are great, in fact. 85% of the churches in America are either stuck on the dime or they’re in a death spiral. It takes a special kind of pastor to turn these churches around. But those pastors

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What churches can learn from Google about hospitality

Imagine you’re in charge of Google’s plan to bring fast Internet to America’s cities. You need a bit of cooperation from city governments. If you put yourself in Google’s shoes, you’ll know how church visitors feel. Obscure rules that hinder entry. Inefficient communications. Hard-to-get information. Unwillingness to share. Indifference. Government Challenges for Google Those are

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A free professional development tool for pastors

Other people. The Turnaround pastor’s most effective professional development tool. More important than biblical languages. More important that seminary education. More important than professional certification. The only “tool” that surpasses the value of other people is the call to ministry and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Consider the following three scenarios. Scenario 1 –

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7 Qualities Jesus Seeks In His Church

It’s been five years since I’ve had a church to call home. Three interim churches, a couple of moves and now I’m adrift. It’s time to start looking for a church where I can be one of the folks. What should I look for? I think I’ll look for the things Jesus looks for and

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Avoid these 6 Bible verses to grow your church

There’s a simple way to plan your preaching and increase church attendance at the same time. It came to me while I was reading Thom Rainer’s recent article, Why Playing it Safe as a Pastor Is the Riskiest Move You’ll Make. He got me thinking about how we try to grow churches on the shifting

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Train Turnaround Pastors: 1 Surefire SBC Strategy

The SBC has a problem. They’re lacking turnaround pastors who can lead churches in the right direction. A recent article, “Southern Baptist Pastors Hope to Revitalize Hundreds of Churches in Decline“, lays it out. About 800 to 1,000 Southern Baptist congregations cease to exist annually, largely due to a stagnant vision among the leadership and

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