I’m sure there are more, but in my short experience I have noticed at least 3 different types of churches. Often times these churches reflect their pastors, but in reality their culture can be so ingrained that it would take many years for a pastor to ‘undo’ or ‘redo’ anything that needs a little bit of a change. It is another reason why it is so imperative that a church hire a pastor that they can follow and trust – because it is difficult to move forward without a leader.
My names are pretty lame, but you get the idea nonetheless.
1. The Dead-in-the-water Church. This is the church that hasn’t seen ‘life’ in a long time. They are doing the same thing they did 50 years ago with no results. The church is shrinking because the congregation is dying out. They have no desire to change and are otherwise ignorant to the fact that they are largely ineffective not just in reaching their community, but in reaching their own congregants. This type of church is happy not making waves and their primary goal is to stay afloat and pay the bills.
2. The Struggling-to-breathe Church. This church has seen better days, and often speaks of those days with fondness. There is sometimes a desire to break out of their shell and other times a willingness to do whatever it takes. Often the struggling church struggles because everybody isn’t on board with the same vision. There is a tension because there is a desire to grow, but not a desire to change in order to reach that growth. Many don’t understand that changing in methods is not a change in theology or philosophy in ministry. Another version of this church could be ‘the fluff’ church. One that may be growing numerically, but they aren’t grounded and solid in the Word. It’s not just enough to get warm bodies in the door – it’s a matter of what we DO that defines our direction here.
3. The Solid and Growing Church. Probably the least common (unfortunately) church is the solid and growing church. This is a church that trusts their leadership, that is faithful to the task of fulfilling the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. They are often the ones found doing the ministry, and not just talking about it. This church is not to be confused with a fluff church – as often they appear to be solid and growing but truthfully it’s built on the fame of the pastor, methods, or something beyond the Gospel. While it’s easy to measure a church by it’s tangible growth, a solid church will also have intangible growth as more and more people become disciples and further commit to following Christ.
Just a few thoughts I’ve had lately that probably aren’t worth much!