Category Archives: Congregrational Ministries

3 Groups, 3 Facts, 1 Church Census
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August 11, 2020

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Church Growth, Congregrational Ministries, Pastoring

3 Groups, 3 Facts, 1 Church Census

by Franklin Dumond, Director of Congregational Ministries

Three Groups

Simple record-keeping provides an effective strategy to track progress as the church re-gathers from the shutdown imposed by this year’s pandemic.

This record-keeping can be complex and utilize advanced computer programs or a simple notebook can contain the essential records for the smaller church. The church leader with a working knowledge of spreadsheets can easily create a working tool to assist this very important ministry activity.

Some of this activity will happen accidentally or even naturally. With a modest effort, however, a good set of basic records can advance the process and enhance the ministry and growth of the church.
This record-keeping should identify three groups of attenders:

List #1: Members/regular attenders.

In Baptist churches, it is very important to have a list of members to maintain the congregational polity of the church. It is also very important to maintain a list of all the folks who are regular attenders. Regular attendees will generally be those folks who attend at least once every 6-8 weeks. Tracking weekly attendance can be a vital part of pastoral care and can be an aid in closing the back door if absentees are noticed and cared for.

List #2: Guests.

Guests are those who are attending for the first few times. Follow-up is impossible unless there is a mechanism to gain contact information from those who are guests. A good source of this information is a communication card that allows folks to share their information. Gifts at the welcome center also provide an incentive for completing the communication card.

List #3: Prospects

Prospects are those who have not yet attended. They may be family members and friends of regular attenders. They may be other folks from the community who have some connection with the church’s ministries. Prospects are only prospects if contact information is available for them and if some intentional effort is being made to cultivate them for attendance.

Once identified as prospects they can be included on prayer lists, invitation lists, mailing lists, etc.

Three Facts

As soon as possible three essential facts need to be recorded for every regular attender. The date of birth and/or date of first attendance needs to be on file. Date of birth allows age-appropriate targeting. For example, those who are under 5 will not be targeted for evangelism and membership while those over 15 will always be the target for evangelism and membership.

A conversion date is essential for all regular attenders/members. Many believers will not remember the specific date but can relate “I was 10 years old”. Records can be developed so that a realistic or working conversion date can be developed for everyone. Those who do not have a conversion date are then the specific targets for age-appropriate evangelism and special invitations to new member/discipleship classes.

A baptism/membership date for all regular attenders is essential. Baptism should never be separated from membership. Those who do not have a baptism/membership date on record are then the specific targets for contact and follow-up to help them make these very important decisions.

Church Census

One good way to gain this information is to do a church census every couple of years. Advertise that the church is reviewing all its records and looking to have a more accurate discipleship record for its attenders.

This is especially easy this year since the federal census is scheduled for 2020 and the follow-up work to complete it has now started. It would have been even easier in the Spring when there was a lot of promotion of the census but our congregations were scattered then so we didn’t do much of this kind of work. You may request a sample church census form that is easily copied by responding to this e-mail.

Another good way to keep this information up to date is to have a member profile form as part of the new member’s/discipleship class. This form is completed at the conclusion of the class as part of the membership application.

Way back in the Old Testament the Lord offered sound advice that still rings true today:

“Take a census of the whole Israelite community” Numbers 1:2

Powerball theory of church growth
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July 28, 2020

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Church Growth, Congregrational Ministries, Leadership

The Powerball Theory of Church Growth

by Franklin Dumond, Director of Congregational Ministries

I keep not-winning the multi-million dollar Powerball drawings. Every few months I hear about someone who had the chosen set of numbers, with the result that early retirement appears to be on their horizon.

My wife and I have often speculated about what we would do with several hundred million dollars.

When we first starting playing that game we always included mortgages paid off, new cars all around, and student loans for the boys retired early. We quickly ran out of things to purchase so I suppose that if we would have won in those days we would have just had to purchase a large vault to pile full of the leftover cash.

Since only one of several million people win and since I don’t buy tickets I just kept my day job, continued my mortgage payments, and offered a little help to my recent college graduates.

Now, if I were to buy a ticket and if it were to be a winner we couldn’t pay off the mortgage so I guess we’d have to purchase an even larger vault to store the cash. Perhaps we’d need our own armored car for transport.

Church leaders often have a power ball mentality of church growth. They assume there is one thing they can do to bring the crowds back to worship. The four areas I run across most often in this church growth sweepstakes are

  1. Worship Style. I often hear people advocate a return to traditional worship as THE key to church growth. I hear even more often people bemoan their lack of contemporary worship as THE missing ingredient to bring about church growth. Neither a reactionary return to keyboard-driven worship nor a proactive investment in a praise team will result in a crowd at church. The lesson here is that what-we-do is not as important as who-we-are as we develop relationships with people and invite them to join us on the journey of Christian faith.
  2. Technology. It is rare these days to find a church without a sound system and it is almost as rare to find a church without a projection system. These technological tools will not, by themselves, reach people. If the culture of a congregation does not value reaching and caring for people, no amount of technology will do the job.
  3. Décor. New paint and carpet may be sorely needed but new décor cannot by itself attract people. Since the vast majority of unchurched folks have never entered a church building the color scheme, while important, will not be decisive in reaching them.
  4. New Preacher. Pastoral leadership is a key factor in a church’s growth yet in a congregational system of church government it will almost never be THE major factor in a church’s lack of growth. Long before lay leaders plan for the pastor’s replacement the honest question of “Who is really in charge here?” needs to be answered.

While there is no one thing that will result in the sweepstakes win of a record worship attendance, there are four core processes that will always be effective in winning people and growing the church. I like the way Bill Easum and Bill Tenny-Brittian identify them: invite, assimilate, disciple, and commission.

  • Invite — we encourage and give opportunities for folks to invite others to worship with them. For a church that has never encouraged this behavior it is helpful to plan for at least two but not more than four of those seasons when the focus becomes inviting someone to worship with you.
  • Assimilate — once new folks have begun attending it is vitally important that they find a place to belong and feel a genuine sense of connection with the ministries and programs of the church. Church growth experts used to advocate making friends in the early connections to the church as absolutely necessary to retain a high percentage of newly attending folks.
  • Disciple — people need to be taught the essentials of the faith and the components of a faith walk.
    • Discipleship happens one on many when the pastor uses occasional teaching series of messages to provide instruction.
    • Discipleship happens one-on-some when small groups function and class groups allow personal interaction.
    • Disciple happens one on one when mentoring and equipping programs partner a senior member with a junior member so that service that begins as I-D0 and You-Watch becomes I-Watch and You-Do.
  • Commission — folks that have come into the fellowship are then sent out to do the ministry and make the connections that continue the process. You tell one and I’ll tell another!

These processes when repeated and sustained will attract a crowd and grow a church.

What core processes need attention in your church as we cope with the new normal?

10 Growth Restricting Habits
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July 21, 2020

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Church Growth, Congregrational Ministries, Leadership

10 Growth Restricting Habits

by Franklin Dumond, Director of Congregational Ministries

While churches fail to grow for a number of reasons there are several habits that restrict growth. Now that we are re-imaging our gatherings and now that we have resumed in-person worship with social distance we have a new opportunity to identify some old habits we might put aside and to develop some new ones in their place.

Habits that restrict growth can be broken or relearned without official action by the congregation. Obstacles that restrict growth generally are enshrined in the bylaws and require a specific action to change. Habits are learned behaviors taken collectively they become the church’s culture. Culture is not required performance mandated in the bylaws.

Culture can be changed without a vote but new ways of thinking and acting take time to develop.

Habits that often restrict growth include:

  1. Seating patterns. When the congregation huddles in the back one-third of the auditorium it not only emphasizes emptiness it also takes all the best seats that would often be preferred by visitors. One of the advantages of social distance in our worship settings is that we have spread more evenly through the room.
  2. Announcements. Need to be reduced or eliminated unless they apply to everyone. Reminders that are targeted for a smaller group should be shared directly with that group.
    Verbal announcements should be limited to features that impact everyone. In a smaller church, most information that cannot be written or projected can be transmitted by word of mouth.
  3. Proofing. The tendency these days to use projection systems and word processors that save files for future use introduces the need to be especially vigilant regarding errors. Errors in lyrics where words are misspelled or misused or when stanzas do not match what is being sung cannot be corrected just by saving the file for next time.
  4. Guest Friendly Atmosphere. Everything must be filtered through what a first-time guest would expect/experience. If it is confusing or boring to the first time guest then it should not be said or done.
  5. Décor. Most church décor should be simplified and targeted more toward men with fewer flowers, ornaments, and pastels.
  6. Too many hats by too few people. Often willing volunteers are few and far between. Capable volunteers may then take on too many responsibilities leaving them tired and frustrated while not making a place for new folks to serve. One of the advantages of gradually resuming ministries is the possibility of sharing the lead among a larger group of volunteers.
  7. Solo rather than team ministry. Capable volunteers forge ahead knowing it is easier to do it yourself. This results in solo ministry rather than team development and thus long term service by the same volunteers.
  8. Status Quo. Doing what we’ve always done out of habit (because we’ve always done it) rather than doing what we’ve always done because it works is a habit that restricts growth. With several months of not doing it at all, it should be easier to try something new.
  9. Dust, clutter, decay. We get accustomed to dust, clutter, and decay but fresh eyes see it and often avoid return visits.
  10. Loss of Celebration in Worship. Where there is no celebration in worship a sense of duty and obligation makes growth unlikely. Do people smile during worship? Do AHA moments happen at least once in a while? Are answered prayers reported and celebrated?

What do you think? Have you noticed now that we have returned that some habits in congregations restrict growth? What can you do to change these habits? Will your activity become a pace-setting so that the culture of your church begins to change?