How to increase membership in your church

This next Sunday I am sure you must be very concerned about the numerical strength of your church. For sometimes now the numbers of attendant has been dropping and you are not quite comfortable at all. I remember you once called together the church workers and expressed your disappointment. The response from some of them was just like what you also felt but nothing since has change.

As a minister called by God you don’t really need to panic. It’s true that the side of your church can tell if your CALL was genuine or not, at least, from the people’s eyes. Of course the Bible is not viewing issues from that angle. Church growth from Gods definition is about spiritual multiplication of souls. How many souls that were saved and how they are winning spiritual battles daily. That’s true!

However from what we all know the physical multiplication of church member cannot be overlooked when considering how far a church is progressing. People are not going to continue coming to a church where the numbers of worshipers is stagnant or out rightly diminishing. Man, by nature loves progressiveness. The Bible has it on record that from the 12 disciples who assembled in the upper room after Christ ascended to heaven the numbers grew tremendously that even the men in authority became scared. The experience was both spiritual and numerical. That is what the church stand for.

I know your mind is now on miracle. That could be true. But not exactly the way you are thinking. Miracles are essential for church growth. People want to go where it is happening. People want to go where their problems are being solved. The societal challenges have not helped matters as the economy get poorer and crime go on the increase. Perhaps that is why some fake pastors are doing the unimaginable.

Nonetheless, this is not removing the fact that genuine miracles still exist and God is still using genuine pastors to perform miracles today. It’s a question of where you belong, afterall during the days of Elijah there were fake miracles and fake prophets.

The nitty-gritty here is that as a minister called by God you need to do more home work. You have been praying and fasting for increase, you also need to balance your information. Your ministry needs sanitation. Let look at some of the areas.

The place of your evangelism:

 The strength of a church lies in the effectiveness of evangelism. Evangelism should be a passion in the church. No matter the side of the congregation the pastors and members must be aggressive in winning souls. All the church machineries should be put in seeing the unsaved people being reached out to regularly. Even the old method of one-on-one street evangelism must be seriously encouraged.

The place of your church programmes:

The type of church service you have can influence your membership growth. Gone are the days when people go to church as if they are attending funeral service. The spirit must be lively. From the beginning to the end of the service people must derive joy and happiness. Don’t ignore good prayer session, music ministration and exciting messages. As long as people desire to come to church they also want to be at their homes before the day is over. So save the time but let it be very rewarding.

The comfort of your new comers:

Coming to church might be cheap for members of a church but not so with the unbelievers. It takes the extra grace of God for people to make up mind to attend church service. So when they come visiting the church must ensure that their visit is highly appreciated. Many are there for different purpose. It’s the duty of the church to address their purposes objectively. They shouldn’t be ignored or rejected. And there must be serious follow-up.

The relationship between you and the members:

There are lots of stories where the minister of a church lives like cats and rats with the members. What they have going for them is just gossip, envy, jealousy, animosity, hatreds and bitterness. The senior pastor is viewed as semi-god, even if not God. He decides all issues and go away free. Some members are not helping matters. They are only after what they can benefit from the church and not the other way round. But to experience growth, the ministers must carry every member along. He must have the mind of Christ. And the members must be willing to work together as one.

The administrative structure in the church:

 The church might not be seen as a business but it should have the characteristics of a good business venture. What you put into it determine what you get. Every arm must be properly handled with the right tools. There is no need of favouritism or mediocrity; people should be allowed to work according to their callings or gifts.

Fulfilling the mission, vision and objective of the church:

There is a purpose God called you into the ministry. Whether you are the founder of the church or an associate pastor your calling must work in line with the church vision and mission. Serious emphasis must constantly be laid on them. In fact, make the members to understand the reason the church is existing through your messages, teachings, counseling and other programmes.

The issue of MONEY:

One thing that easily takes people’s mind away from church is MONEY. This can happen in two ways. That is, how ministers handle church money and how members view money.

 Believe it or not, people want financial prosperity but don’t want to make sacrifice. All the church offerings, levies, pledges and tithes are serious challenges.

So the church must find a way to balance the issue. It’s okay to encourage members to give - at least that is the main door to financial breakthrough. But don’t cajole people. Let them witness more of God’s blessing upon their lives and watch what they will do.

On the other hand, the church must be transparent in the ways money is being spent. The fact that you are the senior pastor doesn’t guaranty you to spend the church fund the way you like. Learn to be a good money manager. That is one way to gain respect among members and increase membership.