1. Unbelievably easy. Pastors shouldn’t be expected to know code or advanced website design. If you know how to turn a website on and follow some simple instructions, you’re in. We believe in making these basic, simple, and straightforward. We’ve taken care of the tech (we’re good at that), so you can take care of the rest (the stuff that you’re good at).
2. Insane setup speed. Want to save time? No, really. Hours and hours (and hours) of time? Sharefaith church website do it for you. We’ve designed it, refined it, and set it all up. Now, it’s up to you to change the content a bit. Of course, you can do more—as much customizing as you want. But we want you to have a complete, megachurch style, church website up and running, in two hours or less. Who couldn’t use an extra few hours to do stuff? Bells and whistles included.
3. Amazing support. If you get stuck, you can get help. We’ve got people literally waiting by their phones to help you work through any problem, any pain, and any pet peeve. These guys are good. Oh, and did we mention that this is live support, and entirely free. (Chuckle in near-disbelief, and read on…)
4. Ridiculous low-price. Speaking of free, Sharefaith websites are free for Sharefaith members. Talk about membership perks! Of course, it’s up to you to pay the hosting fees, which are at a rock-bottom low price. This is dedicated Christian hosting, tons of storage, thousands of email addresses, and other very cool tech things, making it a deal worthy of the most penny-pinching, budget-conscious church. Don’t be ashamed about a shoestring budget. We’re on your side. Relax. That’s what we’re here for.
5. Stunning designs. Let’s not dismiss eye candy. Beautiful websites are a non-negotiable. (For real. Look at these websites to see it.) Plus, with a gargantuan library of jaw-dropping banners and sidebars, you’re never going to run out of beautiful designs.

We believe in our websites. So, as we’ve learned, do one-thousand four-hundred churches. A church website is a really big deal, and we’ve crafted a comprehensive, beautiful, easy, fast, and blazingly powerful solution that no church could refuse. This, friends, is a no-brainer.

Get started on your Sharefaith church website now. (And have it up and running by this afternoon.)

Staying Connected with Your Congregation the Email Way

These days, electronic communication is essential. For churches, maintaining a close connection with members is a must-have. Weekly newsletters give you the chance to provide encouragement, build rapport, and simply stay connected. But you’re going to need something a bit more robust and secure than, say, Gmail, Yahoo, or Juno. Standard email providers are not designed to maintain the kind of connection you need. There’s something better.

The Power of Constant Contact

Perhaps the most reputable and powerful email service available today is provided by Constant Contact, Sharefaith’s email partner. Constant Contact gives you the ability to stay connected with your congregation in a powerful way. Consider the following:

1. Unbelievably simple to use. It’s as easy as sending an email, but so much more powerful. (Of course, if you’re a power-hungry coding monster, it works for you, too.) Constant Contact is a simple, hassle-free email solution.
2. Ridiculously cheap. With special ministry pricing, and unlimited emails, you’re about to save a ton of money with Constant Contact.
3. Free templates. Your emails will not only be good; they’ll look good, too. In addition, Sharefaith has hundreds of headers, footers, and images, all optimized for Constant Contact, that will add some serious style.
4. Free support. We don’t recommend services that don’t provide helpful support. Talk to a real, live person whenever you need help.
5. Know everything. Constant Contact informs you how many people opened your email, tweeted it, shared it, or just trashed it. Getting reports on your email campaigns is valuable knowledge, finding out exactly how many people opened your email, and tons more.
6. Safe and spam-free. Nobody likes spam. Not us. Not you. Not the companies that provide email newsletter services. That’s why Constant Contact takes serious measures to make sure that people can opt-out of the email list at any time.
7. Never lose an email address. Have you ever lost an entire collection of phone numbers or email addresses? Yeah, it pretty much stinks. You can keep that precious collection of addresses safe with Constant Contact…an unlimited number of them, if you so please.

Simply put, email newsletters are one of the best ways to stay in touch with your congregation. But staying in touch via email requires using email to its greatest capacity. That’s where Constant Contact comes in.

Check out the feature-rich and absolutely affordable power of Constant Contact, and see how it will work for your ministry.

“I sat down and wept and mourned for days.” Have you ever felt that way? Maybe you didn’t actually have a multi-day weeping period (or, maybe you did), but perhaps you felt as if the discouragement you were facing warranted that kind of grief. It’s totally understandable. Ministry is tough. Really tough. Sometimes, you may feel like searching for some random job on Monster.com, rather than sticking with the toilsome task and ornery people of your ministry.

That weeping quote above comes from Nehemiah. He said it when he heard about the condition of his home city of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:4). He was facing a daunting discouragement, an insurmountable task, and one that would bring endless problems. Nehemiah contains 13 chapters of problems. Through it all, Nehemiah gives us insights into how we can find strength even in the difficulty of our situation. It’s not enough to simply “be like Nehemiah.” We must look beyond Nehemiah to the mighty, enabling, infinitely-powerful, and ultimately-sovereign God who is with us every step of the way.

1. Pray. The book of Nehemiah begins with a prayer. There is no action at first, other than Nehemiah’s confession of crushing grief. No. He hears the news, then fasts and prays. In his prayer, one that is worth our taking as a pattern, he acknowledges God’s greatness, prays for God’s favor, confesses sins, and pleads for success. His prayer is grounded in the solid facts of God’s character. As you face your own difficulty work, it is essential to contemplate the character of your God, and to turn to him in prayer.
2. Plan. Often, we become fatigued, because we’ve lost sight of the very task we’re supposed to be facing. We tend to get bogged down in the terror of the details and the oppressive minutiae (not to mention the “annoying” people). The result is a total loss of perspective. What you need is a fresh look at the situation, and the formulation of a plan. Nehemiah (Nehemiah 2) records how Nehemiah began a process of careful planning. He approached the king (his employer), he requested supplies, he made a journey, he inspected the wall, and he prepared to work. Nehemiah realized that all his careful planning and meticulous preparation was not a result of his amazing skills. You may have read Getting Things Done, and have a sweet system for being more productive, but that’s no measure of your success. Nehemiah sums up the reason for success in planning and preparing:  ”The good hand of my God was upon me” (Nehemiah 2:8, 18). “The God of heaven will make us prosper” (Nehemiah 2:20). Even though the chapter records Nehemiah’s planning, the message is pervasively about God’s enabling. “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
3. Do. Nehemiah acts. In utter reliance on God, he embarks on a task—a big one. He must mobilize a small army of rag-tag refugees, inspire them, instruct them, and set to work on the walls of Jerusalem. The city hadn’t just been abandoned for many years, it had actually been destroyed. Rebuilding the walls was somewhat like trying to rebuild a housing development flattened by a hurricane. The job seemed insurmountable, but it was a job that had to be done. Staring at the work we have to do can be an appalling thing. The amount of work is shockingly disturbing. Yet there is only one thing to do about it:  perform the work that God has given you to do.
4. Persevere. Nehemiah’s challenges weren’t over. Far from it. He faced major problems. Some of the local establishment weren’t all that happy about the returning Israelites, who were eager to reclaim their plot of pillaged land. So, they paid Nehemiah a little visit. (It wasn’t a friendly one.) Nehemiah must not buckle to the pressure, in spite of the fatigue that he and his men were probably already experiencing. Instead, Nehemiah went through the cycle of regaining strength. He prayed (4:4, 9), they planned (e.g., 4:16-18), and worked. “So we built the wall,” Nehemiah says flatly (Nehemiah 4:6). Sanballat or no Sanballat, the work had to be done. Persevering may very well be the hardest part of ministry. Just going on, just putting one foot in front of the other, just facing yet another Monday morning. It’s not easy. For Nehemiah, whose discouragement and opposition were probably on par with yours, prayed (repeatedly), planned (frequently), and got right back to work, persevering.

There is no mistaking the fact that ministry is hard work. There are massive responsibilities. People are at stake. Lives are being affected. But we serve a God whose infinite power and incredible wisdom blows away the chaff of our discouragement. He is greater, mightier, more majestic and glorious than we can ever conceive. He is God, and there is no other.

Looking to God is exactly what we need in times of discouragement. That look will turn in to prayer, which will lead to planning, which leads to work…which leads to success—all because of God (Nehemiah 1:11, Nehemiah 7:1)

1. Is it from the Bible? Most importantly, preaching must be from the Bible. Without the Bible, there is no such thing as meaningful preaching. What are you left with? Your opinions? A self-help seminar? Financial advice? A science lesson? Maybe there is a place for financial advice, scientific facts and some self-help tips, but ultimately, everything must come to rest upon the Bible. This is God’s Word. This is what we have to rely on, believe in, and proclaim. As you analyze your preaching, ask, “Am I telling people what the Bible says?”
2. Is it clear? You may have a crystal-clear outline. You may have a beautiful idea of what your sermon is going to sound like. Is it coming out okay? Clarity of communication is more important than the elegance of communication. There is a place for adding finesse, but it is more essential to effective communication that you are being clear in what you say. Ask yourself, “Is what I’m saying making sense? Is it logical? Is it forthright? Is it plain?”
3. Is there an obvious theme? When someone actively listens to a good sermon, they should be able to walk away with a clear idea of what that sermon was about. They may not be able to recall the exact outline, or specific wording, but they should be able to remember the theme. For this reason, it’s important that your sermon be designed to communicate just one theme. One. Not three. When someone asks a listener what the sermon was about, the wrong answer would be, “Uh. Well he talked about Christian liberty, and then about love. And then there was a bunch about evangelism, or missions or something.” One theme. Make it obvious.
4. Is the length appropriate? There is no law about the length of sermons. Some people will tolerate one-hour sermons. Others will tune you out after twenty minutes. Don’t attempt to impose your own idea about how long your people should endure your preaching. You should be able to sense this. If you’re dissatisfied with their sermon-endurance level, perhaps you can build up their stamina over time. But you’ve got to have something meaningful to say. Make sure that you’re identifying the right length, and sticking with it. You may have a lot of material prepared, but people are only going to listen to so much.
5. Does it connect with people where they are? Preachers are legendary for their ability to talk right over people’s heads. Whether they’re using lofty vocabulary, reading from dry commentaries, or discussing esoteric themes, some preaching styles are notoriously detached. How about yours? Does your congregation of, say, working-class attendees care about what you’re discussing? Is there a connection with their daily lives? Does your vocabulary match their own? Do you identify with their needs and struggles? If preaching is to be effective, it must connect with people. Don’t preach to a congregation you wish you had. Instead, talk to the people that you do have.

The good news about preaching is that it’s a work in progress. Whether you’re a golden-mouth orator, or are hardly able to hobble two sentences together, you can always improve. Your public speaking ability is important, but not nearly as important about the content of what you’re speaking. The most important thing is that you are faithfully teaching and living God’s Word.

1. Warmth. This has nothing to do with your thermostat setting. Church attitude can be felt, and if a newcomer experiences a detached or clique-like atmosphere, they are not likely to stay long.
2. Welcome. Closely related is the idea of receptivity. A person wants to feel welcome. The church ought to be a place where people will be welcomed, regardless of they way they look, smell, or act. This can be difficult for some churches to achieve, especially if that church is characterized by uniformity of race or socioeconomic level. Being welcome to all people may be hard, but it is extremely important.
3. Real people. Some churches can foster a spirit of artificiality. Somehow, people act differently at church, putting on a veneer of spirituality. People can see right through this, and visitors can sense the inauthenticity. Being artificial implicitly encourages others around you to be artificial in turn, creating an entire atmosphere of plastic people and shallow relationships.
4. Substantial teaching. Most likely, the bulk of a visitor’s time will be spent listening to the preacher. Is the preaching clear? Does it connect with people where they are? Does it faithfully reflect what Scripture teaches? The last thing you want to hear a visitor mutter on the way out is, “I had no idea what that guy was talking about.”
5. Whole-person care. Churches are rightly concerned with people’s spiritual lives, but this should not mean the neglect of other facets of care and responsibility. Scripture is replete with references to the church caring for the physical needs of others. It is important that visitors are aware that the church is not simply a weekly spiritual recharge, but is a caring community of people eager to help in whatever ways are possible.
6. Ministry and outreach. The introchurch is a problem. People often leave churches if they sense that the church is not actively seeking to make a difference in the community. It is easy to allow the church to become focused on its own needs, concerns, and preoccupations, but this is something that is neither Scriptural nor inviting to “outsiders.”
7. Involvement. Does your church afford an opportunity for people to be involved? Many people visit churches, not because they are looking for a place to melt into anonymity, but because they are looking for a place to connect, to use their gifts, and to develop a ministry.
8. Growth and vibrancy. A church doesn’t have to be big to be appealing to a visitor. What is important is a sense of purpose, action, and life. Few people, if anyone, are looking for a church characterized by sleepy inactivity. A truly welcoming church is a church that puts off an atmosphere of life and energy.
9. Leadership integrity. Like it or not, churches can be places of abuse—spiritual abuse, which leaves long-term scars and lasting damage. Perhaps one of the most important factors for newcomers is the sense of integrity that they sense from the leadership. They may wonder, “Is this person honest? Will they be willing to meet with me for counseling? Will they be cruel or heartless in the way that they respond to my sin problem?” The integrity of a church leadership is felt, not expressed, and usually, it’s hard to fake it.
10. Adjustment period. Generally speaking, visitors don’t want to draw attention to themselves. Take a hint. Don’t draw attention to them, either. I’ve been to churches where the visitor stands while everyone else sings a song (bad idea). Another church I visited, all visitors were given a rose sticker and asked to wear it after the service (also a bad idea). Some visitors may love these gimmicks, but for the most part, visitors would prefer to watch, to observe, to sit back and take it in, at least at first. Let them do so. A visitor packet or a word of welcome or something may be appropriate, but try not to be too obvious about out who the first-timers are. Give them some space.

Having a church that is open to visitors isn’t simply a matter of having nice-looking facilities and greeters with smiles. It’s about so much more. A truly welcoming church is a church that is characterized by genuine, growing, Christians seeking to minister to others. This kind of attitude should pervade every aspect of ministry, including the testimony and life of the leadership. Rather than becoming obsessed with the color of the bricks or the quality of the church signage, pay attention to your own heart. People come to churches because of people—people who are growing and loving.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “the devil is in the details.” The phrase is derived from an earlier idiom, “God is in the details.” Whatever you think of assigning the presence of Satan or Deity to details, it’s an inescapable fact:  details are important.

Details are also details, meaning that some of the less detail-oriented among us are prone to miss them at times. If details are important, and if you’re prone to miss them, then here are ten reminders of details in your church ministry that are too important to overlook.

Details aren’t nearly as important as doctrine, but these “little things” could have some consequences.

1. Missing letters from church signs. Your church letterboard (if you have one) is often the only part of your church that people will see. Take a look at your church sign to check for missing letters, dangling letters or (worse even) corny messages.
2. A church website that hasn’t been updated. If your church website hasn’t been updated in ages, it’s obvious. If your website looks as if it was designed in 1986, or is dysfunctional in any way, make some changes. 
3. Lawn care with “the jungle” look. Grass grows. Vines get longer. Mulch gets scattered. Sidewalks crack. Bushes expand. As a result, you’ve got to do something to tame the foliage. If not, your church runs the risk of looking primal. Not good.
4. Hymnals that have gone through the war. Hymnbooks, if you use them, have a tendency to experience intense usage, sometimes being repurposes as coloring books, or suffering the loss of pages and covers. Do a once-over of your hymnal stash, and assess the condition thereof. Better yet, simply use worship media and software.
5. Dysfunctional water fountains. People actually use water fountains at church, Because this is the case, you should check on the condition of your water fountains. Two problems may be present. First, the water fountain may dribbling water out of the spout, leaving no hope for slurping it from mid-air. Or, secondly, the water may be shooting forcefully onto a wall, a face, or the floor.
6. Greeters. Does your church have greeters? If not, this may be something to consider. Greeters simply show up at church early, open doors for people, shake a few hands, and smile the whole time. It creates a warm and inviting atmosphere. It’s a detail, sure, but a pretty good one.
7. Outdated contact information. If people want to contact the church, make sure they have access to correct information. Imagine that a person in need of counsel dials the phone number printed on the church bulletin, and hears “We’re sorry. This number is no longer in service.” This is something you must change.

Little things can be a big deal. No church is perfect, nor should any church expect to be perfect. However, by paying attention to those details, you can shore up some pretty important things that you may not have thought about for a while.

The following article is from Jeff Brewer, pastor of Hope Fellowship.

Mark 9:30-50 teaches us about “the heart of a disciple.” From this passage, we see that a disciple looks to the cross, serves, is humble and takes sin seriously.

Concerning serving others, the over-arching question we could ask ourselves is about our understanding of how the gospel informs our service of others:   ”Do I see the gospel as both the remedy for my sin of selfishness and the motivation for Christlike service?” When we see the gospel as the solution for our sin and the motivation for serving others, we can then ask ourselves other practical questions.

10 Questions to ask yourself about serving others:

1.  When I serve others, do I do it so that they notice what I have done?

2.  When is the last time I served someone at great cost for myself, and not kept track of the cost?

3.  Are there people in my life that I am resisting serving due to selfishness?

4.  Are there people I avoid serving in order to help others that will give me something I want?

5.  Is my motivation for serving others guilt or the great love that I have been shown in the gospel?

6.  What are other motivations in my heart for serving others?

7. Am I aware of needs in my community that God might have equipped me to help fulfill?

8.  Am I serving wholeheartedly when I serve others?

9.  Do I complain in my heart or to those closest to me after I have served at great cost?

10. Do I seek out ways in which to serve others joyfully?

Jeff Brewer is the lead pastor at Hope Fellowship in Lombard, Illinois, an Acts 29 church planted by College Church in Wheaton. In addition to reaching out to students at Hope Fellowship, he and his wife, Jen, were on staff with CRU, and Jeff has served as a college baseball team chaplain in the Chicago area.

“It’s okay,” I told her reassuringly. “Daddy’s right here beside you. We’ll be okay.”

“But I’m afraid, Daddy.” She continued. “I’m afraid.”

I looked at her, and began to quote, “When I am afraid, I will….”

“Trust in you,” she finished, remembering the verse we memorized.

“Trust in who?” I asked.

“Trust in God,” she responded with a smile, then asked, “Daddy, what does ‘trust’ mean?”

“Well, it just means to think about God and know for sure that He is strong, and powerful, and amazing!”

“Daddy,” she asked finally, “Do we pray?”

We prayed. And after our conversation, my daughter was apparently assured enough to be able to drift peacefully to sleep in a few more minutes.

When I first became a parent, I had a fear moment. This child is mine to take care of. I’m responsible. But what about me? Who is going to take care of me, as I try to take care of her? Who can I cry out to? Who can I run to when I’m afraid?

Let’s face it. There are times in life when we face fears—real, powerful, and even paralyzing fears. It’s not just three year-olds who become afraid. When our own fears come, what do we do? If fear can paralyze us, cripple us, and reduce us to a trembling, whimpering mess, it is important to respond in the right way.

1. Admit that you are afraid. David, the ancient king of Israel, faced some fearful situations. At one of those moments, when captured by his enemy, and hounded by a deranged pursuer, he called out to God, fully admitting his fear (Psalm 56:3). It is necessary to realize that we are afraid, if we are to respond correctly in the face of our fear. It’s okay to just admit to God, “Daddy, I’m afraid.”
2. Trust in God. The only fitting response to our fear is to trust in God. In Psalm 56, after facing up to his fears (56:1-3), David declared his trust in God: “I put my trust in you…In God I trust (56:3-4). David’s response was not simply a Ra-Ra! cheer-em-up kind of slogan, or a mere religious expression. It was the sole hope of his heart. He turned from his fear to trust in God, and declared, “I shall not be afraid…I shall not be afraid.” (56:4, 11). There is, of course, a kind of fear that is appropriate and healthy. In fact, this good fear can help displace other fears. That ‘good fear,’ is to fear the Lord. This is not the cowering, trembling, whimpering fear of dread and woe. If we have been justified by His grace, we can rest in his goodness and transfer the fear of our circumstances to fearing the Lord, which is a reverent and humble response to His character. Yes, fears will come. Rather than trying to be brave our courageous in our own strength, we must trust in God.
3. Pray. Prayer is the natural response of a trusting heart. As my daughter reminded me, we should pray to God when facing our fears. His presence may not always be tangible, but He will hear our prayers and answer them.

What are you afraid of? When you encounter that fearful thought, or that fearful situation, or that fearful person, simply trust in God. Realize that you’re Father is right beside you. He’s with you. He’s in control.

Before you rally all the young men in your church to go to BIble college, or to hold a special meeting to call them all to the ministry, keep something in mind:  the church needs more than pastors.

1. Pastoral training and preparation may not adequately qualify someone for global ministry. Church planting and evangelism are still the crying need of the hour. However, many people are finding it difficult to access some countries with merely a Bible degree in tow and a request for a missionary visa. It simply doesn’t work. If your target ministry is Iran, you won’t get in as a card-carrying, seminary-trained, Bible-toting, ordained minister. It’s not just the Muslim countries that don’t welcome missionaries and pastors. Increasingly, countries in Southeast asia and Europe are doing the same. As the border protectors of these countries see it, you need to have something more to offer them than your Western religion.
2. Worldwide ministry demands more than verbal proclamation. In a similar vein, there is more to ministry than good Bible training. It is important to address physical needs as well as spiritual needs. In many cases, it is impossible to address the spiritual needs without also addressing issues such as malaria prevention, the need for clean water, medical attention, sustainable energy, irrigation, education, microloans, etc. In order to enact this kind of operation, ministry needs businesspersons, agriculturalists, civil engineers, physicians, and skilled organizers and administrators. Ministry must be carried forward on the shoulders of the person with an M.Div. and the person with a P.E. (Physical Engineer).
3. Ministries lean heavily on talents and training that are non-ministerial. When you think about all that goes into a church or mission endeavor, you quickly realize that there is a lot that can’t be done by a pastor. Obviously, the pastor’s gifts and calling are essential, but the pastor may not be able to set up the church network, organize and register a nonprofit, administrate a crisis pregnancy center, teach free financial recovery seminars for the community, and write high-quality worship songs. (If you know of such a person, let us know.) You get the idea. Churches need lots of people with lots of talents.
4. Non-ministers have a greater ability to have influence secular spheres. In a recent article on Christian celebrities, we observed that such people can have an influence for Christ farther and wider than, say, a pastor. In a recent Time magazine article on Tim Tebow, the author made this statement:  ”If the measure of evangelistic activity is the number of eyes and ears one reaches, than Tebow is possibly a much more influential Christian messenger than any active Protestant cleric.” You know, he may be right. Admittedly, it is under the care and proclamation of such “Protestant clerics” that the Tim Tebows arise, but the truth remains:  a pastor won’t be able to garner as many “John 3:16″ Googles as Tebow. A pastor won’t have as much influence in the accounting department of a Fortune 500 corporation. A pastor won’t be living out the gospel on the construction site or on the factory line. A pastor won’t be growing a thriving business built on Christian principles. Those roles are for other people, whose testimony, talents, gifts, and calling are just as important to the body of Christ.

You probably don’t not to to entirely quit encouraging people to consider ministry. But you may not need to call people into ministry yourself. (God is better at calling people than you are.) Instead, give some encouragement to the aspring non-pastors. They are no less spiritual, no less necessary, and no less valuable to the Kingdom than pastors and missionaries. In fact, they are in their own right, pastors and missionaries who carry on God’s work in God’s world. Encourage them. Exhort them. Support them.

When thinking about managing your shrinking pains, your first thought may be to seek counseling or get involved in some grief management program. That may not be a bad idea. On the other hand, there are a few ways to consider your shrinking in a more proactive way.

1. Recognize your role. The Bible indicates that the church is a gathering place of redeemed people, regardless of their age, socio-economic status, gender, background, race, or sin issue. Nonetheless, when it comes right down to it, some churches find themselves ministering to a rather distinct group of people. If your church is shrinking, it may help to understand who your “target audience” is—the people who are nearest and closest to the church. Perhaps you could focus on this demographic, rather than forcing yourself to try to make adaptations to a smaller and dwindling group of people. Alternately, you may need to realize that the church might just be shifting its focus. Often, a change in leadership will contribute to such a shift. Both dynamics could be at play, but fundamentally, the way forward starts with this: recognize your church’s role.
2. Help others. A church is to be a helping institution, not merely concerned with its own internal affairs. Admittedly, when facing the crisis of a shrinking church, it can be hard to focus on outreach. However, this is what a church needs to be doing, regardless of the attendance or offering numbers. Focus on your community, the few blocks surrounding your church’s location. Find people in need, and seek to show to them the gospel, lived out in good deeds and kind behavior.
3. Make adaptations. What might be keeping people from attending your church? What might be making people leave your church? Focus on these issues. For some churches, it may be as simple as having facilities that are too small, or pews that are too hard. Other churches must deal with the complexities of family feuding, an odious nursery superintendent, or the inability to supply parking to parishioners. The issues will vary. A church shrinks for some reason. Find the reason, and assess what you can do to adapt.
4. Stretch, but don’t stoop. It’s okay to do new things, but don’t stoop to new lows. Don’t jettison doctrine or do weird things just to bring people in. Sure, you want to bring more people into your church, but the way in which you do so is important. Recently, some evangelicals have increased their boldness when talking about sex. Sure, there’s nothing wrong with talking about sex. But when these themes get more salacious than Scriptural, and more exhibitionist than expositional, we’ve got a problem on our hands. There is nothing wrong with stretching one’s self to adapt to the changes and invite more people, but there is everything wrong with crossing the line of Scripture to do so.

When considering a shrinking church, your primary goal is not to reverse the shrink. That would be great, but there may be other things at play, too. Your best response is to face the situation with courage, creativity, and a goal to honor Christ above all.