Of Coaches, Consultants, and Pooled Ignorance
It happened again recently. I was in a large group of mainline church leaders who professed their interest in church transformation. We were all milling around the room waiting for the convener to launch the meeting, and the conversation was pensive. Then the “transformational church leader” stood up, thanked us for coming, and said, “We’re […]
Why Churches Don’t Break the 200 Barrier
Earlier I blogged about what it takes to grow a church from 0-500. Now here are my thoughts about why churches fail to break the 200 in worship barrier. The church loses its focus on evangelism and turns inward on itself The laity starts running the church instead of inviting their networks. The pastor does not respond personally to […]
Growing a Church from 500-900
I’m constantly asked about the keys to moving through the various barriers churches face. Over the years I compiled my list. Since this post was lost in the transfer of our site, I’m reposting it. Staff becomes far more essential to the journey. Pastor has to hone his or her hiring skills. All staff has […]
Growing a Church from 0 to 500 in Worship
1. The pastor never loses focus on evangelism. 2. The pastor responds personally to every signed in visitor. 3. The pastor hands–off as many ministries as possible and as soon as possible. 4. The pastor learns how to hire, grow, and fire staff the first of which is a worship pastor. Up till 500 it […]
Hospitality Tips: Your Greeters, Ushers, and Hosts
I was working on a worship evaluation and thought that I’d share words and recommendations about a church’s welcome. If you’re going to be open and welcome to guests, you might want to consider the following. Hospitality begins in the parking lot. Well, it really begins when a guest goes to your website to find […]
The Magic Pill Placebo
I wrote this entry the other day and I think I posted it … but in the great server switchover, it appears to have been misplaced. So, just in case, here it is again. I had a conversation with some pastors about one of the seminars they had attended. They had gone looking and hoping […]