Virtually every small church I talk to tells me they want to grow. When I work with one that is seeking a new pastor they say they want a pastor who can grow their church. A couple of years ago when a search committee said that I responded, "Are you sure about that?" They looked stunned that I would say that so I continued, "If you could grow your church by doing what you've been doing you would already be growing. So, what you are telling me is that you want a new pastor who will come in here and change everything you are doing in order to grow. Is that what you really want?" They smiled at one another and said, "Maybe we need to think about that a little more."
The reason churches do not grow is because they have structures in place that prevent growth from occurring. Your church has a structure that permits it to grow to a certain point and then plateau. Unless that structure is changed more growth is unlikely to occur. The problem is that most churches do not want to change their structure which means that those churches are the size they want to be regardless of how much they talk about wanting growth. Let's take a brief look at what some of those limiting structures might be.
One is how the church views the role of the pastor. Most smaller churches seek caregivers as pastors, not leaders. Leadership is limited to those persons who have been in the church for a number of years; the pastor is called to provide pastoral care to the members. Even if a search committee tells the pastor candidate the church wants a pastor to help them grow, he or she will often find that their role is limited to that of a chaplain. Very seldom will a church grow without strong pastoral leadership.
A second limiting factor is the lack of adequate seating, parking, and classrooms. If a church wants to average 85 people in attendance it needs seating for 100-125 people. In addition, it will need parking for 40-50 cars. Without these capacities it is highly unlikely the church will grow to 85 people. This alone can be a major factor for many smaller churches that do not have the space to add either seating or parking. Unless such churches are willing to relocate they are unlikely to grow.
Many smaller churches see themselves as a family which can be either a positive or a negative. There is a family atmosphere in many smaller churches that often feels good, at least for the family. Guests may pick up on that rather quickly and decide they will never be part of the family and move on to another church. Churches that are convinced they are "the friendliest church in town" may need to realize that outsiders do not see them as so friendly. These churches need to find ways to be more inclusive and welcoming to those outside the family.
The Christian education program in a church can be a limiting factor. Smaller churches often struggle to find sufficient teachers and may combine children's classes into age groups that make it difficult to teach. For instance, first graders are much different than third graders, but some smaller churches will combine them into one class. Even worse is when the junior high and senior high students are put together. Adult classes can be just as challenging. It can be very intimidating for new people to break into a class when the people there have been together for years (decades?). Growing churches are always looking to start new classes to make it easier for people to participate.
A final structural piece we'll look at again concerns the pastor and/or staff. It is largely recognized that 120 people is about all that one person can watch over. This is why single staff churches seldom grow beyond 120. Some excellent administrators can care for more than that, but not many more. If a church has a bivocational minister that number will be reduced to perhaps 40-50. This means that without the addition of more staff a church is unlikely to grow beyond those numbers.
The challenge with this structural limitation is that additional staff has to be added before reaching the next level of church size. In other words, if your church wants to grow to 200 people you can't wait until you are averaging 200 to add an additional staff person. You have to add that person when you are at 120 to grow to 200. If a bivocational church wants to grow to 85 people another staff person will need to be added before achieving that number or it is unlikely to happen. In the case of the bivocational church, that person may be another bivocational minister or it could be an administrative assistant. What makes this more challenging is that churches often do not feel they have the financial ability to add such staff when they are still at the smaller size. What such churches must remember is their structure is perfectly designed for the results they are getting. If they want different results, they must set up different structures.
For a good book that goes into much more detail than I can in a blog post I would recommend you read Taking Your Church to the Next Level: What Got You Here Won't Get You There
by Gary McIntosh. This book examines how churches of every size needs to adjust their structures to grow beyond their current level. Whether you lead a small church or a large one, you'll find helpful information in this book for your situation.
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