The Top Five Reasons Churches Don’t Grow
from Bill Tenny Brittian
When the author gets called in as a consultant to work with stuck, plateaued, or declining churches, he has a couple of things he looks for right off the bat. In the vast majority of the cases he discovers that their inability to grow, let alone sustain, their membership is caused by several issues. In this article, he provides the top five reasons churches don’t grow. More

Survey: Pastors Preach Stewardship but Unaware of Church Members' Debt
from the Baptist Press
While nearly two-thirds of Southern Baptist pastors have preached on stewardship in the past year, a new study shows that some of those pastors may have a disconnect with the financial struggles of America's families. The survey of 3,500 Southern Baptist senior pastors was conducted by LifeWay Research on behalf of the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention between November 2007 and February 2008. The study revealed that 65 percent of pastors had preached on financial stewardship during the previous year but only 25 percent said their church members have "a significant amount of personal debt." More

Lufkin, Texas, Churches Say Members Continuing to Give Generously with Money, Talent
from the Lufkin Daily News
Despite the worsening economic conditions in the world and layoffs of hundreds of employees locally, Lufkin, Texas, church members continue to give generously. Local churches not only managed to meet their budgets in 2008, but some even ended up with a surplus of money that will go into this year's budget planning to allow for more ministry opportunities. More

The Role of Design in Modern Church Marketing
from Site Point
There has been a recent rise of hip, high-quality church Web sites. A non-churchgoing designer might wonder how places of worship fit in amongst software startups and cutting-edge businesses; yet, these churches are branded as intensely as any business and supported by savvy church-marketing communities on the Web. The author interviewed some of the industry’s top church designers and marketers to understand how design helps communicate the spiritual life. More

Effective Summer Outreach is More than Just a Vacation
from Church Executive Magazine
Vacation Bible school (VBS) has long been a fixture on ministry calendars at most churches for decades. However, there have been changes in our culture that might be signaling a need for your church to rethink the shape of its summer outreach. More

Churches Seek Ways to Keep Tithing Up
from the Geneva Republican
While the economic downturn is causing some to rein in their budgets, several Kane County, Ill., churches are seeing their parishioners do just the opposite when it comes to church contributions. “This year we’ve had a number of folks who have stepped forward to give additional gifts because they recognize people are really hurting in this economy,” said the Rev. Michael Stoner, pastor of Batavia United Methodist Church. More

Pastors Unite to Create Directory of Help
from Suburban Journals
Shortly after being elected to his first term as mayor, Paul Lambi established the Pastors' Alliance, an organization that connects residents with pastors of local churches and also serves as a support group for those pastors. Since its inception, many churches from Wentzville, Mo., and throughout St. Charles County, Mo., have volunteered to assist residents needing a helping hand. More

Ministry Resource Provider Reveals 'State of the Church'
from The Christian Post
A faith-based company that provides resources and services to ministries ranging from children’s ministries to pastoral ministries has released a landmark research study that aims to help Christian leaders get the information they need to increase the impact of their ministry in the New Year. Focused on the Church as a whole, as well as content specific to Youth Ministry, Children’s Ministry, Volunteer Ministry, and Women’s Ministry, “The State of the Church 2009” study reveals what Group Publishing found when it went out and talked with “people in the trenches.” More

Gallup: Americans See Religious Influence Waning
from Religion News Service via USA Today
Two-thirds of Americans think religion is losing its influence on U.S. life, a sharp jump from just three years ago when Americans were nearly evenly split on the question, according to a new Gallup Poll. More

The Micro-church: Making Small Groups Smaller
from Church Central
How big should a church group be? Church growth specialist, C. Peter Wagner, used to talk about the three "Cs" of Celebration -- unlimited size; Congregation -- up to 100 or so; and Cell -- small group, fewer than 20. Church planter, author and consultant, Neil Cole, has a different answer: three. More

Increase the Donation Appeal of Your Church
from Church Solutions Magazine
Donors are trimming back their spending and choosing more carefully what they use their hard earned dollars for. This cutback trickles down to churches, requiring them to focus more on the donor than normal. When the going gets tough, churches need to be thinking about how their donors think. Following these simple steps will have a big impact on your church’s next appeal. More

In Hard Times, Houses of God Turn to Chapter 11 in Book of Bankruptcy
from the Wall Street Journal
During the past holiday season of hard times, not even houses of God have been spared. Some lenders believe more churches than ever have fallen behind on loans or defaulted this year. Some churches, and at least one company that specialized in church lending, have filed for bankruptcy. Church giving is down as much as 15% in some places, pastors and lenders report. More