Help for leaders of smaller membership churches

by Mark Kelly

One of the loneliest, most difficult jobs in the world is pastoring a smaller membership church. A pastor mediates chronic tension between members and wrestles with church traditions that prevent new outreach efforts – all the while working an outside job to provide for his family.

In a congregation of 35 people, a pastor rarely feels he can turn to anyone in the church about his frustration and discouragement.

Because his congregation isn’t large, a pastor may feel his local association or state convention staff is busy with "more important" issues and can’t be bothered by the problems of one pastor in a "little" church, says Mitch Martin, bivocational ministry specialist for LifeWay Christian Resources.

"A group of bivocational pastors was on their way to a meeting at their Baptist state convention office," he said. "As they approached the front door, one of them stopped and said, ‘You mean we can just walk right in there?’"

Martin said that misperception is disappointing. "Most of our state conventions have someone on staff whose ministry is focused on helping pastors," he said. "These pastors need to know that their churches and ministries are not substandard. They need to understand how to lead their congregations into the significant, effective ministry God created them to have."

For that reason LifeWay is collaborating with state conventions and local associations across the country in a new initiative called "Significant Church FOCUS," a leadership development process designed to help pastors break the deadlock in their churches and find the unique strategy that will breathe new life into the congregation.

Smaller membership churches are not inferior ministries; they are actually the norm in Southern Baptist life, said Ray Gilder, bivocational ministries specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Convention. And their problems are the entire convention’s problems, he added.

"Only 1 percent of Southern Baptist churches averages more than 1,000 in Sunday school. About 75 percent of them average less than 100," Gilder said. "Most of the churches that are plateaued or declining are bivocational and smaller membership churches. "Helping bring new life to these struggling congregations is strategically very important for building the kingdom of God throughout Southern Baptist life," he said.

In a weekend pilot-project workshop at Cookeville, Tenn., held in mid-September, pastors and their wives from several smaller membership churches got a sneak peek at Significant Church FOCUS. Similar workshops were held in June and September in Louisiana; others are planned for coming months in New Mexico, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia.

Significant Church FOCUS introduces a simple process called "The Leader’s Cross," which guides a pastor through evaluating his church’s situation, making decisions about its values and priorities, planning to achieve a few key goals, and engaging the congregation in the work of ministry. The effectiveness of the initiative lies in helping pastors understand who God created them to be as leaders, then showing them how to enlist and work with core ministry partners in their church.

"Pastors basically do three things: lead, care and proclaim," Martin said. "My research indicates that pastors feel their greatest need is knowing how to be more effective leaders. Too many pastors find themselves in the situation of being Lone Ranger ministers. Although they don’t talk about it openly, many are quietly unhappy in their ministries.

"The subtitle of this effort is FOCUS, which stands for Finding Our Church’s Unique Strategy," Martin said. "I want pastors to know how to develop ministry teams in their churches and work together under God’s leadership to discover their unique ministry approach. I want these pastors and teams to have a tool they can use to lead their churches forward."

Many pastors mistakenly believe that preaching by itself will solve a church’s problems, said Billie Friel, interim director of missions for Wilson County (Tenn.) Baptist Association.

"After the conference, one pastor told me he had thought he could preach his way out of pastoral needs and problems," Friel said. "You won’t get there just by preaching; you have to be a leader.

"Significant Church FOCUS helps you understand that church leadership is a team effort between the pastor and his people," he said. "The only Lone Rangers in the Bible – Jonah and Samson – did not have effective, happy ministries."

Martin believes Significant Church FOCUS has great potential to revitalize congregations.

"There are approximately 30,000 Southern Baptist churches that average 125 or less in Sunday school," he said.
"If all those churches started just one new Sunday school class with an enrollment of 10, that would mean 300,000 new people reached for Bible study.
If they baptized just three additional people next year, that would mean almost 100,000 souls for the kingdom!

"Smaller membership churches are not only the backbone of the Southern Baptist Convention, they are the heart and soul, arms, legs, and feet of our work," he said. "When God renews the leadership of 30,000 churches, we’ll see lives and communities transformed all across this country."

For information about Significant Church FOCUS, contact your associational director of missions or state convention office, or contact Mitch Martin at mitch.martin@lifeway.com.