Some thoughts on church growth

I have been a Pastor since 1997. Over the course of those years, a phrase has emerged that drives the thinking and philosophy of church work: “Healthy things grow”. That phrase is well-intentioned but has left us with a confusing narrative. The implication is that the health or growth of a church is similar to a healthy tree. A growing tree is healthy and a dying tree is bad. Using biology in this example is reasonable. Yet, this is not the full picture.  I am 5′ 9 1/2″ tall (yes I add the 1/2 inch, don’t judge me). Biologically, I will never grow any taller and will probably even shrink a little. The only growth I can expect to have will be around my waist, unhealthy growth from eating too much. I can try and try and try, I will never be six feet tall.

When we are children we look forward to growing taller and stronger, to being a big kid.  Our physicians measure our growth, parents measure our growth with the little line and age on the frame of a door. As an adult, I talk in terms of health, not growth. I try to manage what I eat, exercise regularly, stand more than I sit, all in an attempt to live a healthy thriving life. The question of physical growth is not one that ever enters into the equation.

I am not writing this from the cheap seats of an envious critic, in 9 years the church I pastor grew 77%. Numbers mean an expansion of God’s kingdom, for that I am grateful. The question that has been circling in my head is “have we put so much emphasis on growth that we have diminished the value of health?” I have seen too many great but discouraged pastors give up because their church was not “growing”, yet they were making a significant impact on the lives of people.

Don’t start gathering stones, I still get excited when our church has a numerical increase. However, what happens when it’s not growing? In the past when growth lagged, I found myself falling down the hill named success into the valley of depression and the pit of despair (see Princess Bride). The numbers at times determined my mood and the way I behaved at home. Let’s just be honest, the success elephant has taken all the space in the room leaving us deformed and disfigured. In the church world, success is defined as a large growing church, preferably with multiple locations. Think of any church conference you have ever been to where the speakers are pastors whose churches started in a basement and now have 10,000 people and 27 campuses across the galaxy. Why not the pastor who has faithfully served his “small” church for 45 years relying on God’s wisdom to navigate the challenges of leading a faith community without the resources of a larger church.

This past year we have been experiencing a plateau and we have been asking “why?”. This leads to questions about strategy, bell curves, hiring consultants (not opposed to that), in an attempt to jump-start the engine of growth. Are we missing an opportunity in our plateaus, to rediscover the weightier eternal matters of life and faith. Using this time to focusing on growing in spiritual disciplines, kindness, justice, compassion and becoming like Christ. I am not diametrically opposed to words like strategy, entrepreneurship, and metrics, however, I fear we are in danger of making them an idol. Most of us would say “of course not”, but if we look closely into the hidden places of our hearts, what would we find?

I had an experience some time ago. I was driving home from my office and I heard, as best as I can explain and understand, the voice of God, saying “you worship numbers and they are your god”. It was terrifying and I needed to repent. At that moment my heart and perspective began to change. Of course, I would like our church to grow numerically, I would be lying if I denied that. From that experience, I have gotten in touch with a deeper pastoral calling. To love the people I serve and the community I live in with the love Christ modeled.

May we seek God’s wisdom, guidance, and heart.  Let’s celebrate the small-town pastor who loves his people and community as much as the megastar pastor in a major metropolitan area with 10 campuses.  After all, both have accepted a weighty calling to care for people and that is what matters most.