Ways You Can Help The Church Grow

Growth is an important topic today. Many congregations are looking for ways to grow and some are spending money on every gimmick they find in order to find the "right" one. They want to motivate the congregation and spur them to growth. It is easy to sympathize with these people. Their zeal is commendable even if their methods are suspect. The answer does not lie in the program but in the people. Almost any program will "work" if your goals are biblical.

On the other hand we have the congregations that seem to think growth is impossible. They say things like, "We are not growing numerically, but we are growing spiritually." That is a possibility (at least for a little while) but too often we use that as an excuse not to reach out and try to grow numerically. It's almost as if people convince themselves that we must choose one or the other.

A congregation can grow numerically AND spiritually simultaneously. It must be the goal! Numeric growth without spiritual growth leads to apostasy. Spiritual growth without numeric growth leads to apathy and other ailments. But when you have both happening at the same time, the church is full of zeal and love grows brighter! It is exciting to be part of a congregation that is vibrant and healthy! It helps cure problems with attendance and motivates people to be lights in the community!

Let's think about practical ways you can help the church grow.

We need to stop thinking that the only way to help the church grow is to set up and conduct Bible studies! Not all of us are capable of setting up and conducting these studies. Some people need training. Some people are just not able to do it for various reasons. In an ideal world every single member might do that, but when did this world become the ideal world? Instead of berating each other about it, we ought to use wisdom and encourage them to do some things to help. So here are just a few ideas of things that you can do to help the church grow.

1. Invite people to worship with you.
2. Invite people to events sponsored by the church.
3. When you see a visitor in the assembly, make a point to greet him and invite him back again after services are over.
4. Invite people to sit with you. There is a myth that people who visit a church do not want to be bothered. We can over-do the friendliness, but most people WANT to have a small fuss made over them. They want to feel like they can fit in with the people without tremendous effort.
5. SMILE at people! 
6. Make it a point to stay on your feet before services begin. While you are up, talk to people, especially visitors.
7. Ask people to tell you about themselves. 
8. Don't be afraid to tell people that you hope they will come back. 
9. Call visitors later in the week and let them know you enjoyed meeting them. Then invite them back again.
10. Introduce visitors. When you meet someone for the first time and the conversation starts to get a little awkward, turn to someone near you and say, "Have you met _____? He is visiting with us today!" Make it a goal to introduce visitors to at least two people before they leave.
11. After services ask them what they thought of the experience. Listen to their answer. Don't argue with anything they said. You are asking for their opinion. Whether you agree with that opinion is not relevant. If their opinion is wrong, they are more likely to see the truth if they return!
12. Take visitors by the arm (if there is time) and show them around the building. Show them where bathrooms are. Show them where their classroom is. Even if they are not there for class, assume that they will return and show them the classroom they will be in when they do. Show them where the church offices are located. Show them where you normally sit and invite them to sit with you.
13. Invite friends to your home and then encourage them to come to worship.
14. More important than any of the ideas above: LIVE a Christian life so that when you invite them to worship, or if they happen to visit your congregation for worship, they will not be surprised that you attend services some place!

We all play important parts in the growth of the church. These are things that almost anyone can do to help. If you practice these things you will help the church grow!  

Have some more ideas? Please list them in the comment section below!