If you build it…will they come? The ups and downs of church growth
According to a survey conducted by Natural Church Development (NCD), 85 percent of U.S. churches are on a plateau or declining, with Protestant denominations declining by nearly 10 percent in the past 10 years. NCD is a standard process used to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a church and then develop a plan of action to improve the overall health of the church.While the idea may sound logical at first, one can't help wonder why there's a need for such a service to begin with. Is it necessary to bring in outside organizations to study and research a congregation so church growth can be implemented? What makes one church grow and another one plateau? Unfortunately, there's no real answer or formula, but churches that are growing can share their advice and possibly help others. There are many local churches that are consistently growing. One case in point is NewPointe Community Church, which has grown at a phenomenal rate in recent months. Lead Pastor Dwight Mason feels very blessed and said there's not "one particular thing" that a church can do to grow, but hard work is a definite element.
"There's really not one thing," he said. "It's more like a recipe with lots of ingredients all mixing together properly. At NewPointe we are more outwardly focused toward the community and we work tirelessly to get our people to focus outwardly. We exist here to reach people and the moment we reach them we work to help them focus on reaching others."
According to Mason, the goal at NewPointe is to "cut against the grain" and win people to Christ by showing them Christ and His love first.
"Our values are different," he said. "If we focus outward and we trust God, He will do something phenomenal. We've learned that and it has been amazing to watch God work."
Pastor Bill Anderson facilitates the NewPointe Millersburg campus and he believes another important part of a growing church is relevance.
"It's essential for a church to be relevant," Anderson shared. "We work really hard at NewPointe to make sure that everything from the message to the kids' programs is relevant. For example, we teach the principles of God's Word to our children and we focus on how they can apply that Word to their lives today. When our kids go to college or get out on their own from their parent's homes, they know how to face a temptation, they know what the Bible says to do in today's situations. Even with our adults, God's Word is relevant and it hits them where they live today."
Anderson compares God's Word and the messages at NewPointe to a compass instead of a road map and believes that statement sums up the relevancy that NewPointe works so hard at.
"If a person has a compass it will work anywhere they're at, and it will show them the way to go," Anderson said. "A road map only works if you are in that vicinity and can get to one of those roads."
Mason agreed and said that people who have come to NewPointe experience a life change that is relevant.
"We present God's Word in a way that makes sense," he said. "It impacts them and changes their lives. Marriages, families, individual lives have been changed. Then those impacted go out and share their story with others that are struggling and that's what makes a church grow, people sharing with other people they know and caring enough to reach them."
"When Jesus was on earth he was very interesting and contagious in a way," Anderson said. "Sinners wanted to hang out with him, the religious people didn't really like him but were still interested in what he was saying and doing. He was relevant and brought a relevant message. Making those that don't attend church regularly feel comfortable and welcomed is a very important part of church growth for every denomination and church."