Church Growth

“Fifteen years ago, I wondered if mid-size churches might go extinct…. The mid-size church is still here, and I’m glad I did not publish my thoughts. Now, they have several growth advantages in North America.” - Sam Rainer

“I would argue that…. every additional service a church holds could be a new congregation that the church multiplies.” - 9 Marks

“I strongly believe that church size doesn’t matter, but I also just as strongly believe that church size does matter. I know that’s contradictory, but…” - Chuck Lawless

“Are Christians evangelizing less, leading to a decline in church membership? Or is the decline a result of rejecting pragmatic ecclesiology and shallow views of conversion?

“my concern is that there exists a celebration culture of transfer growth that is not healthy. I will elaborate, but first, we need to define the ‘good’ growth, conversion growth.” - Church Answers

“4. Non-denominational churches do not carry the ‘name’ baggage that a denominational church might carry. I think this issue can be overstated…. 5. Non-denominational churches tend to be newer churches that grow faster than older churches.” - Rainer

“Though it is difficult to estimate precisely how many megachurches remain in the United States, it’s safe to assume the large growth curves of the 1980s and 1990s are a thing of the past.” - Church Answers

“Even the largest churches stay at the top of the list for only about twenty years. Each generation has its own group of biggest congregations or fastest-growing congregations.” - Sam Rainer

“The average Christian congregation…[has] just 65 members, about a third of whom are age 65 or older, according to a 2020 pre-pandemic survey. By contrast, a separate 2020 study found that three-quarters of megachurches were growing, many at a rapid clip.” - NPR

“For a growing number of evangelical pastors, embracing right-wing rhetoric is seen as a way to put more people in the pews — and it may be working.” - RNS