What do I think? Stay the course, stay the course, stay the course. I grew a church from 50 to 80 and then back to 30. While I was gone last month on a gracious, generous, unlooked for, much needed sabbatical, two families with small kids showed up—and then came back again. And then again when I got back. Now we have a nursery problem. :-)
And I'm sure you know this, but some of those bigger churches are on our side. The bigger church down the street supplied our pulpit for two of the Sundays I was gone. They have blessed our church in numerous ways over the time I've been here. All that to say—God is in the business of doing the unexpected. Stay the course.
Smaller, faithful congregations are the backbone of the church. Staying the course, even when it’s hard, is a testament to the faithfulness of God in a small community. Steadfast, unwavering, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
I don't know the small (I prefer 'normal-sized') church or the large one but here's where I'm at. First, I'm not in 'competition' with another orthodox, gospel-centered church. We're co-laborers. Do people sometimes leave my church for the big one? Rarely. But we're not competing for limited resources. The kingdom is a kingdom of abundance, not scarcity (John 4:35, Matt. 9:38).
Second, there are things larger congregations can do that smaller ones simply can't. We don't have the resources: human, financial, or facilities. But there are things normal-sized churches can do that larger churches struggle with; mostly relationships. Large churches I know well focus on home or affinity groups and often say "you can't get that kind of fellowship if you only attend a Sunday morning service." They're trying to maintain the small-church experience at scale.
Some people will prefer greater anonymity in church so they'll go to a larger congregation and not join a small group. By attending our church, you ARE part of a small group by default. If a family doesn't show up for a few weeks, we ALL notice, not just their small group leader. So I say, stick to what you’ve been given and use it well. "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master."
Third, I (try to) pray (regularly). I ask Jesus why he has our church where we are and what gifts he's given us to complete our commission. We can't run a food bank or a drug and alcohol rehab ministry. That doesn't appear to be our calling even if it is our desire so we support others who are doing it well. What do we need to do, Lord? We preach the word and practice the sacraments and we're trying to make disciples. Where else can we serve? We'll see what the Lord provides.
Fourth, I try to keep a kingdom mindset. Jesus' church is larger than my small (normal-sized) congregation and isn't confined to only large congregations. If my church one day has to close, the kingdom will continue to grow like a mustard seed or yeast hidden in a lump of dough.
We're starting a Hispanic church plant even though it is costing us money we've saved and may well cost us our worship leader and a few key families. There is a need in our area is for a healthy, authentically Hispanic-cultured, Christ-centered church. So let's help one start. Again, the kingdom is bigger than us.
Finally, I wonder about the future of larger congregations. I don't mean that in a "rubbing my hands together and cackling" kind of way. The future of America seems less certain than it has since I was a child in the 60s so I'm curious. If we become a "Christian nation" and our Christ-centered, third-way, gospel-focused churches are not what the government means by "Christian," larger churches will be larger targets. Also, if America loses its dominant economic position to China or India and our economy sags, churches with smaller budgets and buildings can have more flex than churches with large staff and big campuses. Large churches seem bulletproof, but if they have to cut staff and therefore ministries it will really affect them. If their income shrinks and they facilities budget can’t, that will be hard too.
This went longer than I'd planned. I’ll leave it here. Thanks for your newsletter, Andrew.
Stay the course. Teach a firm foundation from scripture. Creation. Fall. Redemption. Restoration. Love people. Have some of he men to simple needed home repairs around town. Have the ladies take meals to families that need food. Stay a church family, but reach the community.
Invite talented musicians to play and advertise all over.
"Take meals to families that need food." I think if Paul was writing about the American church he would say a lot about casseroles. That is us at our best. When anyone shares the beautiful memories from their church it usually involves a casserole when they needed a friend.
It’s all about efficiency. And working with people is rarely efficient. I’m inclined to think that once churches hit capacity for one service, they should break off and plant a new church. The community isn’t meant to be clean and efficient and broken down by age and interest.
It’s easy to think about community and justify the programs at a larger church but it’s rough when you have to introduce yourself to the pastor every time you interact.
I worry about the consumerism of mega churches and I am increasingly skeptical of the attractional "Saddleback Sam" model of church growth. BUT I've lived in small towns. I've mostly attended small churches. Be careful of romanticizing them. Small mom and pop churches can be incredibly harmful places or wonderful life giving places. There is also just economic principles at work here: it takes a lot more families to sustain a full time pastor than it used to, so there's an advantage to scale. Secondly those iconic red brick and white steeple buildings are actually pretty expensive to maintain and arent very adaptable. Checkout Karlvaters.com for some interesting and helpful stuff on small churches and my podcast! www.lastservicepodcast.com for stories of churches finding good endings and new beginnings
Faithfulness doesn’t make the headlines. Maybe the small churches aren’t failing. Maybe they are preserving en masse something that can’t be measured. The small churches are more numerous than the corporate ones, and I feel they will outlast them too. Jesus only made 11 disciples so 20 is 9 better than Jesus.
I really need to see video from those Tom Petty sessions.
Also, I’m looking for something small and something real. I’ve said so many corporate churches do a great job, but that’s not me. I’m not sure what it is, but the good news is preached.
My husband is the pastor of a small church. It is not fast growth and the growth isn’t seen in numbers of people. We rejoice in every new member. The truth is that not everyone wants a big church. Our church feels like a family and so we’re continuing to plod along. TBH it sucks sometimes and it’s also beautiful.
Better 20 saints that loves Jesus with their whole hearts and that are deeply rooted in Jesus than a mega church full of shallow lonely Christians that gets lost in the crowd.Jesus is not afraid of the "few". If this pastor is faithful with his 20 saints, God will give him more. Here in South Africa people are starting to leave big churches with their wide variety of ministries, excelent sound systems and disco lights, and looking for smaller, plainer churches, because they are looking for something deeper and real. But I guess he should hear from God for himself.
I was raised in and currently attend a church of 2-3,000 people in Northern Virginia. It's a faithful church, although the music is generally shallow, and there are lots of opportunites for me to serve and get connected. But even though I know so many people, staying connected is a choice that I have to make every week, and it's not an easy one. It's far easier to listen to the sermon once a week and walk out the doors.
I can't imagine what it's like for the new arrival, or for the pastor at the tiny church down the road from us, a Baptist church founded in 1962. And to be honest, I don't think about them very often.
What do I think? Stay the course, stay the course, stay the course. I grew a church from 50 to 80 and then back to 30. While I was gone last month on a gracious, generous, unlooked for, much needed sabbatical, two families with small kids showed up—and then came back again. And then again when I got back. Now we have a nursery problem. :-)
And I'm sure you know this, but some of those bigger churches are on our side. The bigger church down the street supplied our pulpit for two of the Sundays I was gone. They have blessed our church in numerous ways over the time I've been here. All that to say—God is in the business of doing the unexpected. Stay the course.
Beautiful.
Smaller, faithful congregations are the backbone of the church. Staying the course, even when it’s hard, is a testament to the faithfulness of God in a small community. Steadfast, unwavering, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
I don't know the small (I prefer 'normal-sized') church or the large one but here's where I'm at. First, I'm not in 'competition' with another orthodox, gospel-centered church. We're co-laborers. Do people sometimes leave my church for the big one? Rarely. But we're not competing for limited resources. The kingdom is a kingdom of abundance, not scarcity (John 4:35, Matt. 9:38).
Second, there are things larger congregations can do that smaller ones simply can't. We don't have the resources: human, financial, or facilities. But there are things normal-sized churches can do that larger churches struggle with; mostly relationships. Large churches I know well focus on home or affinity groups and often say "you can't get that kind of fellowship if you only attend a Sunday morning service." They're trying to maintain the small-church experience at scale.
Some people will prefer greater anonymity in church so they'll go to a larger congregation and not join a small group. By attending our church, you ARE part of a small group by default. If a family doesn't show up for a few weeks, we ALL notice, not just their small group leader. So I say, stick to what you’ve been given and use it well. "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master."
Third, I (try to) pray (regularly). I ask Jesus why he has our church where we are and what gifts he's given us to complete our commission. We can't run a food bank or a drug and alcohol rehab ministry. That doesn't appear to be our calling even if it is our desire so we support others who are doing it well. What do we need to do, Lord? We preach the word and practice the sacraments and we're trying to make disciples. Where else can we serve? We'll see what the Lord provides.
Fourth, I try to keep a kingdom mindset. Jesus' church is larger than my small (normal-sized) congregation and isn't confined to only large congregations. If my church one day has to close, the kingdom will continue to grow like a mustard seed or yeast hidden in a lump of dough.
We're starting a Hispanic church plant even though it is costing us money we've saved and may well cost us our worship leader and a few key families. There is a need in our area is for a healthy, authentically Hispanic-cultured, Christ-centered church. So let's help one start. Again, the kingdom is bigger than us.
Finally, I wonder about the future of larger congregations. I don't mean that in a "rubbing my hands together and cackling" kind of way. The future of America seems less certain than it has since I was a child in the 60s so I'm curious. If we become a "Christian nation" and our Christ-centered, third-way, gospel-focused churches are not what the government means by "Christian," larger churches will be larger targets. Also, if America loses its dominant economic position to China or India and our economy sags, churches with smaller budgets and buildings can have more flex than churches with large staff and big campuses. Large churches seem bulletproof, but if they have to cut staff and therefore ministries it will really affect them. If their income shrinks and they facilities budget can’t, that will be hard too.
This went longer than I'd planned. I’ll leave it here. Thanks for your newsletter, Andrew.
Well said!
Stay the course. Teach a firm foundation from scripture. Creation. Fall. Redemption. Restoration. Love people. Have some of he men to simple needed home repairs around town. Have the ladies take meals to families that need food. Stay a church family, but reach the community.
Invite talented musicians to play and advertise all over.
"Take meals to families that need food." I think if Paul was writing about the American church he would say a lot about casseroles. That is us at our best. When anyone shares the beautiful memories from their church it usually involves a casserole when they needed a friend.
It’s all about efficiency. And working with people is rarely efficient. I’m inclined to think that once churches hit capacity for one service, they should break off and plant a new church. The community isn’t meant to be clean and efficient and broken down by age and interest.
It’s easy to think about community and justify the programs at a larger church but it’s rough when you have to introduce yourself to the pastor every time you interact.
I worry about the consumerism of mega churches and I am increasingly skeptical of the attractional "Saddleback Sam" model of church growth. BUT I've lived in small towns. I've mostly attended small churches. Be careful of romanticizing them. Small mom and pop churches can be incredibly harmful places or wonderful life giving places. There is also just economic principles at work here: it takes a lot more families to sustain a full time pastor than it used to, so there's an advantage to scale. Secondly those iconic red brick and white steeple buildings are actually pretty expensive to maintain and arent very adaptable. Checkout Karlvaters.com for some interesting and helpful stuff on small churches and my podcast! www.lastservicepodcast.com for stories of churches finding good endings and new beginnings
Faithfulness doesn’t make the headlines. Maybe the small churches aren’t failing. Maybe they are preserving en masse something that can’t be measured. The small churches are more numerous than the corporate ones, and I feel they will outlast them too. Jesus only made 11 disciples so 20 is 9 better than Jesus.
I really need to see video from those Tom Petty sessions.
Also, I’m looking for something small and something real. I’ve said so many corporate churches do a great job, but that’s not me. I’m not sure what it is, but the good news is preached.
I want authenticity and community.
While she doesn’t say so explicitly, Karen Swallow Prior’s latest article at RNS is working on this question: https://religionnews.com/2025/10/15/a-word-for-the-small-churches/
My husband is the pastor of a small church. It is not fast growth and the growth isn’t seen in numbers of people. We rejoice in every new member. The truth is that not everyone wants a big church. Our church feels like a family and so we’re continuing to plod along. TBH it sucks sometimes and it’s also beautiful.
Better 20 saints that loves Jesus with their whole hearts and that are deeply rooted in Jesus than a mega church full of shallow lonely Christians that gets lost in the crowd.Jesus is not afraid of the "few". If this pastor is faithful with his 20 saints, God will give him more. Here in South Africa people are starting to leave big churches with their wide variety of ministries, excelent sound systems and disco lights, and looking for smaller, plainer churches, because they are looking for something deeper and real. But I guess he should hear from God for himself.
I was raised in and currently attend a church of 2-3,000 people in Northern Virginia. It's a faithful church, although the music is generally shallow, and there are lots of opportunites for me to serve and get connected. But even though I know so many people, staying connected is a choice that I have to make every week, and it's not an easy one. It's far easier to listen to the sermon once a week and walk out the doors.
I can't imagine what it's like for the new arrival, or for the pastor at the tiny church down the road from us, a Baptist church founded in 1962. And to be honest, I don't think about them very often.
I don't have any answers.
On another note - love the book!! Love that I can randomly open to a chapter and read it.
Now. I need a playlist so I can listen to each song.