What I am about to share with you is the single most important church growth principle I have ever learned for Senior Pastors of churches under 1,000 in size. I call it Leadership Evangelism. Leadership Evangelism is the process by which Senior Pastors single-handedly ignite a movement within their church that will cause it to double in size in three years or less. Here’s … [Read more...]
The Fatal Mistake of Senior Pastors Who Don’t Like Preaching About Hell
At first glance you’d probably think I’m resistant to change. I don’t drink Starbucks coffee. I’m still not used to women having tattoos. I’m not getting an earring any time soon. And my wife says I still have the same haircut I had when I was in fifth grade. I assume she thinks that’s a bad thing. By all appearances you’d think I’m someone that wants to keep things just the … [Read more...]
10 Ways To Increase Baptisms
Recently a friend in ministry shared that he was frustrated by the lack of baptisms the church he is serving has experienced. He asked for advice, and since I get asked this question a lot, I thought I’d share my response here: Hi Jason, by God's grace we see quite a few people get baptized here at CCV, just under 1,900 in 15 years in fact. I’m not sure there are any secrets, … [Read more...]
4 Reasons Why Increasing Your Easter Attendance Matters
If there's one thing we know about Easter, it's that many Senior Pastors go to great lengths to mobilize their congregations to get new people to attend on this day. Many think this is a wasted attempt to pander to "Chreasters." I completely disagree. Increasing your Easter attendance is important, but not for reasons commonly thought. Here are four reasons why doing … [Read more...]
2 Things Senior Pastors Can Do To Regain Their Passion To Reach Lost People
As a Senior Pastor you’re going to lose your evangelistic passion from time to time. That’s normal. The question is how do you get it back? Whenever I’ve lost my evangelistic passion, here’s what I’ve always done to get it back. 1. Pray this prayer multiple times a day: “God give me your heart for people in this area.” Over the years, whenever I’ve lost my passion for people … [Read more...]
If The Senior Pastor Doesn’t Evangelize, Eventually No-One Will
Evangelism and church growth begins with you. When we first started Christ’s Church of the Valley in the suburbs of Philadelphia we quickly had seven families start attending from our street alone. When it came to evangelism, I walked the talk. Unquestionably. Since we made a commitment to God to grow through conversion growth only, waking up every day and desperately praying … [Read more...]
