10 Suggestions for the Shepherd of a Stagnant Church

By Joe KcKeever

Dr. Joe McKeever is a preacher, cartoonist and the retired Director of Missions for the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans. Currently he loves to serve as a speaker/pulpit fill for revivals, prayer conferences, deacon trainings, leadership banquets and other church events.



How many churches in this country—in your denomination, of your church-type, in your county or parish or town—have stopped growing? It depends on whom you ask. Go online and you’ll soon have statistics coming out of your ears on this subject. In our denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, the most significant number—one that seems to have held steady for over three decades—is that some 70 percent of our churches are either in decline or have plateaued.

Plateau. Funny word to use for a church. One wonders how it came to be in use. Why didn’t they say “mesa,” “plain,” “delta” (ask anyone who lives in the Mississippi Delta—flat, flat, flat!), or even “flatline.” Of course, in the emergency room to “flatline” is to die. No one (to my knowledge) is saying a non-growing church is dead, just that some things are not right.

Healthy churches grow. Non-growing churches are not healthy, at least in some significant ways. If it’s true that seven out of ten pastors in our family of churches lead congregations either in decline or stagnation, this is a situation that ought to be addressed. And to my knowledge, everyone is addressing it. Everyone has an opinion.

My single contribution to this discussion is directed toward the shepherd of a stagnant flock: “If your church has plateaued, make sure you haven’t.”
Bill Day, the numbers cruncher and evangelism professor at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (as well as pastor of Parkview Baptist Church in Metairie, LA), gives his definition of growing, declining, and plateauing: The church that increases 10% in a five-year period is growing. Decline 10% in the same five-year period, and your church is decreasing. Plateauing means your church fits neither group.
Here are ten statements to pastors of churches that are either stagnant or are in decline.

1. Some churches are easier to pastor than others.

When Bob began to pastor Easytown First Church, to his amazement and relief, the numbers turned around almost immediately. People loved him, they began responding to his leadership, the pews filled, and soon they were bringing in chairs. Bob was elated.

That’s when he made a mistake. Bob decided the great response was because of his terrific preaching and inspired leadership. And who’s to say he was wrong? After all, had he preached poorly or led haphazardly, the story certainly would have been different.

But Bob became critical of churches that were not growing and pastors who were not leading in dynamic ways. Without knowing it, Bob had become part of the problem. He was discouraging pastors of troubled churches, when what they needed was an encouraging word.

I have pastored both kinds of churches. Serving at Easytown early in your ministry can sure be nice. It can also give the young preacher a heady dose of ego. I’m afraid I pontificated on matters I knew nothing about and criticized denominational leaders for not doing what we were doing. I cringe with embarrassment over some of the statements I made.

Either because of the Lord’s sense of humor or of fair play, He let me get hold of a church that did not respond to my dynamic personality (!) or bag of tricks. At the annual associational meeting, when certificates were handed out to those who led in baptisms (a practice of dubious merit, I must say), I was embarrassed by our small numbers. As if to break me of disparaging even one person coming to Christ, the Lord eventually let me see how it felt for our church not to make that “top-ten” list at all.

Some churches are easy to pastor, some are hard, and all are different. Not all methods work in every church.

2. Some pastors have the gift.

Argue with this all you please, but I will go to my grave believing that preachers like John Bisagno could grow a huge church in the Sahara. They say “Good morning” in a way that makes you look around for an aisle somewhere to walk down.

As the old saying goes, “Some were born on third base and think they’ve hit a triple.” I’m not saying Bisagno is this way; he has helped more pastors (including me) to become Kingdom-growth-minded than anyone I know. But for some of us, those without the “gift,” turning a church around is hard work.

3. Even if my church has plateaued, I don’t have to join it.

Just because my church is not growing does not mean I have to stop growing. Don’t give in; don’t throw in the towel. Don’t stop learning and growing and looking for ways to make a difference.

4. Some churches should not grow—at least, not yet.

Some churches do not grow for good reason: They are sick. The last thing in the world they need is for a hundred new members to join them next Sunday. They need to get some matters right with God and with their neighbors before the Lord is going to allow them to grow.

I watched as a small congregation tried to self-destruct. The unhappy members ran the pastor off, along with the group which supported him. As pastor of the nearest church, I watched this from the outside and did not understand all the issues, but my personal conclusion was that the pastor was a fine man, and the ones who left would have been excellent members of any church. In fact, several joined my congregation and became just that.

As soon as the pastor left, the disgruntled few looked around, found an unemployed preacher, and made him pastor. The man of God walked in, saw all those empty pews, and decided the church needed to grow. He announced a week of revival services. They printed leaflets and hung posters, then held their meeting. But nothing happened. The community wanted none of what that little group had to offer.
The merciful Lord in Heaven clearly decreed that little bunch would not be allowed to mess up a new crop of young believers. They did not need to grow; they needed to repent.

5. The pastor’s problem is not the church members’ or deacons’ problem.

“We announce visitation, and no one comes.” “I handed out assignments, but none of the deacons made their calls.” “These people are just like the ones following Moses—headstrong, stiff-necked, hard-hearted.”
The people are not the problem, pastor; they are your opportunity. You are your biggest problem, pastor. If you want your people to minister in the community, go minister in the community yourself. If you want your people to visit in homes, go visit in homes yourself. If you want them to take door-to-door surveys or prayer-walk blocks, go do it yourself.

After you’ve done it for six months on a regular basis without telling a soul that you’re doing it, invite the rest of them to join you.

6. The most urgent task is to become a person of intense prayer.

If you love your church and have a burning desire to see it live once again and make a lasting difference in your community, tell the Lord.

The tendency for pastors with a hurting desire to help their churches grow is to look for human saviors—some pastor of a big dynamic church somewhere whose brain they could pick or whose conference they could attend. That’s not entirely wrong, but it’s out of order.

It’s prayer time—time to spend concentrated time on your face before the Lord finding out what He wants for His people. Keep reminding yourself (and Him) that these are His people. He died for them, you didn’t, and their welfare and health means far more to Him than it does to you. Seek His face; ask for His will.
The Lord may tell you His entire plan during a two-day prayer retreat. But I’d be surprised if He did. More likely, He’s going to give you some immediate direction for your leadership and sermons, but you’re still going to have to spend quality time on your knees pleading for His intervention.

Expect this to take six months, a year, several years. Some have said if the church has been stagnant for six months, turning it around will take six months. If a year, then one year. If 40 years ... well, surely it won’t take that long! (I’m not sure what I think about this principle.)

7. Go to conferences and read the books on reversing plateaued churches. But do not look for a program for your church; look for a key idea.

There are experts out there who would willingly come into your church (for a fee), take over the show, and rearrange all the furniture to get the church growing again. But then they would leave, and you would be left to deal with the consequences. You don’t need that.

When you sit before pastors with “turnaround” stories, listen in two directions at the same time: to what they are saying, and to the Holy Spirit.

When something is said and all the bells go off inside you, that’s what you came for. The Holy Spirit is fingering this principle, that story, this strategic ministry, that idea.

8. Don’t be surprised if the Holy Spirit has you start with small improvements.

Someone in our church called my attention to a needy trailer park. A seminary student in our church wanted to try to reach the people there. We sponsored him. No big deal. At first, it was just an arrangement between the student and me, the pastor.

In time, as leaders came and went, God sent us a young man with a real heart for the families in that park. He began reaching the kids, some of the parents began to respond, and our church members began to get involved.

This became the finest mission experience of any church I ever pastored. Before long, more than 60 members of our church were involved to some degree with the young pastor, his wife, and that trailer park. It’s my observation that this compassionate ministry helped make it a truly healthy congregation.

“Who has despised the day of small things?” asks the prophet in Zechariah 4:10. I think we can answer that. Our spirits despise small things. We want big numbers, big programs, big responses. Anything wrong with 3,000 people coming to Christ in one day? Not a bit. But great results often begin with tiny deeds, such as prayer-walking a neighborhood or putting someone in a leadership position who becomes a key player.

9. Start even smaller than that.

Walk over your campus. Are the restrooms clean? Do the hallways need painting or brightening up? What do the grounds look like? Never, ever pass a piece of trash on your property without picking it up and walking it to a dumpster.

Even if your sanctuary has not changed since the 1950s and looks every bit as dated as it is, and even if you can’t afford a renovation, you can get a bucket of paint and cover the fingerprints on the walls. You can scrub the floors. You can see that wastebaskets are emptied each week.

Schedule a “work day” on a Saturday. Encourage your students to brighten up their rooms. Appoint two or three of the most persnickety matrons to walk through the buildings with one of the men and make a list of improvements to be made. Talk it up, serve breakfast early that day, and make it fun.

Don’t overdo it and don’t over-expect, pastor. Don’t make this an all-day thing. Two hours on a Saturday morning with 20 or 30 adults can make a huge difference. If they uncover more tasks to be done, ask them if they’d like to have another such work day six weeks later. That’s far enough in advance that they’ll agree, but not so distant that they’ll forget about it.

Go for little improvements at first. See that the church sign represents the church well and is changed weekly, even if you have to do it yourself until the Lord raises up a responsible volunteer. If your sanctuary looks bare, ask a florist to lend you some greenery on the weekends, or even rent you some. When the congregation responds enthusiastically, see how people would feel about purchasing the greenery.

Use the word “experiment,” as in, “We’re going to experiment with this.” It won’t sound as threatening or as permanent as, “We’re making this change.”

10. Thank people. Encourage them. Praise them. Send them notes.

You have two choices, pastor. You can harangue the people on Sunday because they are not what a church ought to be, or you can applaud them as they take baby steps in that direction.

I’m in favor of the pastor calling names from the pulpit of people who did well this week. (You’ll want to work hard to not leave someone out who should have been included. If you do, be sure to include him/her the next Sunday and apologize for omitting them.)

Write thank-you notes on the church letterhead. One or two sentences are all that’s required. Tell them how much better the church looks with those new flowers in front and how it is a glorious witness for the Lord. Tell the custodian how pleased you were to hear someone comment on the clean bathrooms last Sunday.

I once wrote a column in the church bulletin thanking our custodian. Andy was not an easy man to work with. He could be curt, and more than once he’d offended some member with a sharp comment on the way she kept her classroom. But when you gave him an assignment, he carried it out well. So I wrote a note of appreciation to let church members know that Andy was responsible for the building looking so impressive on Sundays. A year later, while looking for something in the sanctuary building, I opened a closet. There was my column, taped to the inside of the door. Andy had kept it all this time.

I never forgot that lesson. It matters. As nutrients to flowers and as fertilizer to a crop, so is encouragement to God’s people.

The Lord’s people should be seen as tender plants; if you want them to grow, you must never mistreat them. Instead, handle them with care, treat them lovingly, and keep them in the sunshine with plenty of food and water. Protect them from storms, shield them from careless children, and watch for signs of disease or trouble. They want to grow, and they will—if we do it right.

6 Do-or-Die Roles for Every Senior Pastor

By Michael Warden

Michael D. Warden is the founder and president of the Ascent Coaching Group, Inc. As a Professional Co-Active Coach, he is fully trained and certified through the Coaches Training Institute, and is a member of the International Coach Federation. With over 20 years of experience working in Christian ministry and with Christian leaders, Michael brings a unique understanding of the God-driven process of authentic life transformation and the special challenges faced by those called to lead others toward the richer, deeper, truer life God created them to live. His personal passion is to inspire leaders toward a lifestyle of ongoing transformational intimacy with Christ, so that they might fulfill--both in their work and in life--all that God dreams for them.



"The task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to elicit it, for the greatness is there already." ~ John Buchan

Being the senior leader of an organization is a tough job. Of course, if you are a senior leader, you already know this. People at all levels of your organization regularly place a diverse array of expectations on you and your time. Everyone, it seems, has an opinion on how you should do your job and even what your job should be. And they don't mind telling you (and/or everyone else) when they don't think you're doing it right.
In such a cacophonous environment full of disparate and often opposing demands, it can be difficult for senior leaders to discern just where the line should be drawn between their job and everyone else’s.

Regardless of the size of the organization or the specifics of your particular org chart, what are the roles all senior leaders must fulfill in order for their organization to thrive and grow? Opinions vary—so here’s mine: a list of a few of the roles that I believe are essential for all senior leaders to hold.

1. Keeper of the Mission & Vision for the Organization:

Part of your role is to champion the mission and vision of your organization and to ensure the team is always moving toward those ends. Because vision leaks and mission slips out of focus over time, you have to make it your job to keep the mission front and center in your people’s eyes and keep casting vision for the better world you’re all trying to create by pursuing it. And while you should consistently avoid micro-managing your people, in any area where you see the vision or mission not being effectively pursued and honored, you have full authority to step in and make whatever changes are necessary to bring that area back in alignment with the mission and vision.

2. Keeper of the Values:

Another part of your role is to continually promote and champion the core values of the organization. Every action you take, every conversation you have, every request you make of your team needs to be clearly grounded in and motivated by one or more of your organization’s core values. Anything you’re doing that can’t be directly tied to your core values in this way—either drop it or delegate it to someone else. As the visionary leader of your organization, you are the embodiment of the values. If you don’t live them, who will? As with the mission and vision, any time you see the values not being honored in a process or project, you have full authority to step in and do whatever is required to see that the core values are not undermined.

3. Voice of Reality:

Many leadership experts say the chief job of a leader is to “define reality” for those they lead. Another perhaps more useful way to say this is simply “naming what is going on.” Part of the role of the senior leader is to help the team see the truth of where they are and what needs to happen next to move forward. In this sense, you become like the “red dot” on the map in the shopping mall, identifying “We Are Here.” This defining work includes several areas, such as where we are financially, where we are relationally, where we are with respect to our mission, vision, and goals, where we are in relation to our values, and so on.

4. Developer of Teams:

Part of your role is to lead, coach, and mentor the core group of leaders who report directly to you and have significant oversight over the organization as a whole—in particular, the core leadership team of the organization. For you to do this effectively, this team must be filled with people whom you believe in and trust and who (like you) think in terms of “we” instead of “me” (in other words, Stage 4 Tribal Leaders). You have full authority to choose those team members whom you know you can work with and who have the appropriate skills for this role.

5. Chief Encourager and Celebrator:

Senior leaders are typically wired to always be pushing forward toward the next challenge, so this can be a tough role for them to fill. But celebration and affirmation for a job well done is a critical part of every senior leader’s job. You must be the champion and cheerleader for those you lead—frequently encouraging them as they move toward a goal and regularly pausing to reflect on both victories and defeats and celebrate success as well as lessons learned. This rhythm of engagement and reflection/celebration is essential to your team’s overall health and critical to your role as their leader.

6. Final Gatekeeper for Hiring:

While you need not be a part of hiring every person in your organization, you need to be clear on which positions in the organization you want final say over when it comes to hiring, being careful to select those who not only have the skills needed for a particular position but also have the necessary character and willingness to live out the values, mission, and vision of the organization.

What do think of this list? What other “essential roles” would you add? 

“Leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. Leadership is about inspiration—of oneself and of others. Great leadership is about human experiences, not processes. Leadership is not a formula or a program; it is a human activity that comes from the heart and considers the hearts of others. It is an attitude, not a routine.” ~ Lance Secretan

10 Largest Global Churches

By James Davis

James O. Davis is founder of Cutting Edge International and co-founder of Billion Soul Network, a growing coalition of more than 1,300 Christian ministries and denominations encompassing more than 400,000 churches. Working together, this coalition is building the premier community of pastors worldwide in order to facilitate a global thrust to plant five million new churches and lead one billion people to Christ. Davis has written numerous books, published hundreds of sermons and prepared many life-changing training series for the Church worldwide.


In the years ahead, new global trends in ministry mean the measure of a pastor's ministry will not be the number of people worshiping at the local church, but the number of dynamic partnerships the pastor has built worldwide. God is raising up synergistic leaders to network throughout the earth.

People often ask me, “What is going to happen to Western Europe? Is there any hope that millions will come to Christ in this world region or that thousands of churches will be planted? Will America cool down spiritually like Europe? Can America be turned around before the culture passes the tipping point?”
Big questions deserve big answers. One thing we can rely on is that the global church will never be any smaller than it was yesterday!

Some missiologists today believe that the “rise Of global Christianity” will impact Europe and North America as well as the entire world. I believe this and I have seen it. We are witnessing before our eyes the rise of a Global Church that is just as committed to fulfilling the Great Commission worldwide as in each individual world region. The Great Commission will be fulfilled! God will keep His promise!

By 2030, 70% of the global missions force will not be from North America. In the single, greatest missional shift in church history, missionaries from every world region are headed to every world region.

In the last six years, the Global Church has witnessed more than 1.4 million new church plants with more than 250 million coming to Christ. The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is growing faster than in any other time in history. When one measures the global growth of the Church, we are on schedule to witness firsthand the doubling of the size of the Church, from just over one billion to more than two billion in our generation.
This missional shift for me began on a sunny afternoon in Springfield, Missouri, in 2005.  I had taken my eldest daughter, Olivia, to a nearby park to play.  While I was looking into her laughing eyes, the Holy Spirit quickened to my heart this phrase: “Look at who I have raised up all over the world.”  Since that moment, I have been on a missional pursuit to learn all I can about who the Lord has raised up on the Earth to help fulfill the Great Commission.

Bigger does not always mean better, and larger does not always mean leader.  Our measurement for success is how much we help to fulfill the Great Commission.  If our churches and ministries do not measure effectiveness based upon Great Commission fulfillment in our lifetime, then how can we know whether what we are doing really matters to our Lord?

Within this global context, it becomes understandable that great, missional-minded pastors in other parts of the world have built churches that are larger than the largest churches in the West.  By presenting these pastors and churches, we simply but clearly demonstrate who the Lord is raising up.  This strengthens the hope in all of us worldwide that the Lord will finish what He said He would do regarding the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

A tide of evangelism and church planting is rising across the Earth as never before.  Those wasting time standing on the beach of time are going to get more than wet. They are going to be washed off the beach without another opportunity to be involved in Bible-based, missional ministry.

David Yonggi Cho, Seoul, South Korea

Beginning in the 1980s, due to rapid growth, Full Gospel Central Church decided to establish satellite churches throughout the city of Seoul.  As exponential growth continued, reaching 700,000 by 1992, the need for satellite churches became more pressing. Despite the drain of members to the satellite churches, new recruits by the mother church—brought in through the vast cell network—made up for the losses, and membership stood at 780,000 in 2003. The church was renamed Yoido Full Gospel Church in the 1990s. As of 2007, membership stands at 830,000 with seven Sunday services translated into 16 languages.

Eduardo Duran, Jotabeche Methodist Pentecostal Church, Santiago, Chile

The Jotabeche Church has 350,000 members—which makes it the second largest in the world. The size and growth of this church are a prime example of an explosion of church growth in Latin America. The numerical growth alone of these churches is cause for wonder: in 1900, there were only 50,000 Protestants in Latin America. In the 1980s they had grown to 50,000,000, and by the year 2000 they reached 137,000,000.

Kong Hee, City Harvest Church, Singapore, Singapore

A Bible study group in Singapore wanted Kong Hee, as a young man, to be their shepherd and to pastor and lead them. With the support and encouragement of numerous senior pastors in the city, Kong decided to pioneer a new work, putting aside his desire to become a traveling minister.  With the affiliated Harvest Churches, the combined worship attendance has exponentially grown to more than 40,000.  Today, CHC holds its main English services on Saturday and Sunday at Suntec Singapore.

Suliasi Kurulo, World Harvest Centre in Suva, Fiji

Within the 164^th poorest national economy and coming from an even poorer background, Suliasi Kurulo has been graced by God to build one of the strongest churches in the world today.  Over the last 20 years, he has crisscrossed the globe planting more than 3,000 churches in more than 100 nations. More than 200,000 members worship each Sunday through World Harvest Centre and its daughter churches, many of which are located in formerly unreached people groups.

Ray McCauley, Rhema Bible Church, Johannesburg, South Africa

On returning to South Africa after Bible college, Ray McCauley started Rhema Bible Church in the home of his parents, Jimmy and Doreen, with 13 people attending. Membership grew and the church moved into a former cinema in Rosebank, Johannesburg. The church outstripped the cinema, then a warehouse, then finally moved to its current location in 1985 in Randburg, Johannesburg.  The 5,000-seat auditorium was then upgraded to over 7,500 seats to accommodate the congregation that currently numbers 45,000 strong, the single largest church congregation in southern Africa.  While Rhema Bible Church has continued to grow, more than 400 additional churches have been planted throughout South Africa.

David Mohan New Life Assembly in Chennai, India

Dr. David Mohan is the senior pastor and founder of New Life Assembly of God in Chennai (Madras), which has grown from seven people to 40,000 people, not counting the hundreds of satellite churches that have multiplied out of the mother church. Faith and passionate prayer are the two most important factors in the ongoing growth of this church.  Pastor Mohan is chairman of the Indian National Prayer and Church Planting Initiative and serves on the board of directors of Church Growth International. He is the first pastor to receive the Bill Bright Leadership Award for International Pastors. Under Pastor Mohan’s leadership, the Assemblies of God of India has established a goal of 25,000 new churches by 2020.

David Oyedepo, Winners Chapel, Ogun State, Nigeria

Dr. Oyedepo is the senior pastor of Faith Tabernacle, a 50,000-seat church auditorium (reputed to be the largest church auditorium in the world by the Guinness Book of Records) which averages more than 225,000 worshipers each weekend. The Winners Chapel network of churches is in over 300 cities in all states of Nigeria as well as in over 63 cities in 32 African nations, Dubai, the United Kingdom, and the United States. David Oyedepo has been seen as one of pioneers of the Christian charismatic movement in Africa. He has been referred to as one of the most powerful preachers in Nigeria and in the world.

Sergio Solorzano, Elim Central, San Salvador, El Salvador

Once known as the second largest single church in the world, the ministry has a membership that now surpasses 115,000 people and at its peak numbered as much as 200,000. Pastor Solorzano’s church has more than 500 full-time pastors in El Salvador alone. The church is known for its "Time of Restoration" events in which hundreds of thousands of people gather from all around the world to worship together. These events have sometimes been held simultaneously in all of the major sports stadiums in El Salvador.

David Sobrepeña, Word of Hope, Manila, Philippines

In 1980, David Sobrepeña returned to his homeland from Dallas, Texas, to plant a church in Manila, Philippines.  On the first day, Word of Hope only had three people attend in a movie theater—they were Pastor Sobrepeña, his wife and son. Today, Word of Hope has grown to nearly 45,000, plus satellite churches have been planted throughout greater Manila and hundreds more throughout the nation. More than 300,000 pastors and lay people have been equipped for leadership throughout the Philippines. The church trains church planters during the rainy season and plants new churches nationwide during “church planting season.” In recent years, Pastor Sobrepeña has helped to teach thousands of new church planters throughout Asia, Europe, and Africa.  

Alex Tanuseputra, Bethany Church of God, Surabaya, Indonesia

Bethany Church of God, founded in 1978, has become one of the strongest mission-sending churches in the world.  Located in the largest Muslim-populated nation on Earth, where intense persecution routinely occurs, this worship center is the largest public building in Indonesia with a seating capacity of 40,000. The congregation of Bethany averages more than 200,000, not including the hundreds of additional satellite churches that have been planted out of the mother church.  Each year, missionaries are sent to plant churches throughout the world.


Today, our Lord continues to raise up “mountains of ministry” throughout the earth for the fulfillment of the Great Commission. The phenomenal churches highlighted here represent a small portion of what the Lord is orchestrating and networking to compound the size of the Global Church.  “Honorable mentions” would be too numerous to even start to include.  Without exception, each of these pastors has chosen to lead a mission-sending church, a soul-winning church.  Most of them are planting churches in North America!

Indeed, our present generation can be the generation that finally puts the Cross of Jesus Christ on the roof of the world and lets the whole world know that Jesus died for every nation and every people group! When this is achieved, we will have a satisfaction that no previous generation has ever had. The Global Church will achieve together what no one of us can do alone.

We must be motivated about what motivates Heaven. How many people will you be responsible to win this year? How many churches will you help plant in your lifetime? How many missionaries will your church family send? We can achieve more together than we ever could alone by synergizing our efforts to bring back the King. Can you think of anything more important to accomplish with your life?

In the future, those who are not networking will eventually be not working. The co-chairs of the Billion Soul Network look forward to networking with you so we can place the cross of Christ on the roof of the world. As the great evangelist Reinhard Bonnke said, “If we are interested in soul winning, then heaven is interested in our success. God’s main purpose is winning the lost.”