Moving Toward Success: Foundations for a Thriving Church

The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us there is “a time to break down and a time to build up.”

Many small membership churches have struggled to survive. Sometimes, we who live and serve in the small membership church get angry and frustrated because we feel like we are rowing upstream against the wind. Unfortunately, getting angry does not solve the problem and only makes us more miserable.

Some are frustrated because they have gone to one-day workshops, read the latest books, and tried the latest gimmick to get people to attend church, and nothing they learned seemed to work. Others are angry because they have remodeled bathrooms and social halls, put up big screen televisions, added new music, begged those who have left the church to come back, and invited their neighbors hundreds of times. Still, in the end, the congregation is smaller than when they started.

Unfortunately, these “fixes” don't work. A thriving church begins when we grow spiritually, develop healthy relationships, hear God's unique call for ministry in our mission area, and live out and share God's vision with our community.

The Academy for Small Membership Church Ministries has designed “Foundations for a Thriving Church” to help congregations thrive. You won't send the pastor away for a weeklong seminar or have members attend a one-day workshop. The program is designed so that church members and their pastor work together with small membership church coaches via Zoom and develop a working vision and mission that leads to a thriving church.

Our objectives are to:

• Help congregations and pastors develop a spiritual and numerical growth plan.
• Support the development of healthy relationships where both pastor and congregation can grow in their faith and share their faith with the community beyond the church walls.
• Hear God's unique call for ministry in their mission area and develop a shared vision and goals to guide their work together.
• Create strategies to attain those goals.
• Enable churches to evaluate their progress, learn how to fail to succeed, and keep an eye on their vision.

If you and your church are tired of being frustrated and want to build a thriving church, we invite you to be part of the Foundations for a Thriving Church program. 

For more information, please contact Rev. Dr. Carl K. Ellis.