Articles for tag: Growth Rates

May 1, 2020

The Difference a Decade Makes

(See our related post, “2019 Fast Facts from Our Annual Survey of Churches.” Also, we have prepared a download that includes a complete listing of the 439 churches that participated in our survey; the download also spotlights the 10 fastest-growing churches in each category and those churches with the highest baptism ratios. Go here to ACCESS THE DOWNLOAD. _ _ _ By Kent Fillinger Twenty-two years ago marked the first time Christian Standard published a list of churches that averaged more than 1,000 in worship attendance. Sixteen years ago, I started analyzing the data and soon added an annual survey

October 1, 2019

Kent E. Fillinger

Church & Ministry Church Growth

The Mainstreaming of Online Church

By Kent Fillinger If Paul were still preaching, would he have an online church live-streaming from Jerusalem? It’s entirely possible. After all, Paul said, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Corinthians 9:22, 23). All that to say, Internet worship services are becoming more mainstream. In July, I provided an overview of how Christian churches and churches of Christ are using various social media platforms to communicate. I want to go

April 24, 2019

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

2018 SPECIAL CHURCH REPORT, PART 1: Megachurches and Emerging Megachurches

By Kent E. Fillinger When I started conducting megachurch and emerging megachurch research 15 years ago, there were a total of 255,179 people attending these churches on a given weekend. That number has grown 52 percent to 388,243 in 2018, which is a cause for celebration! For me, this statistical journey has always been about sharing and celebrating how God is at work in churches of all sizes in many different ways. My focus continues to be on helping churches learn from one another and providing context and clear metrics for church leaders to make better decisions based on research

May 4, 2015

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Megachurches and More: The 2014 Lists

Our annual megachurch listingÂ is one of CHRISTIAN STANDARD”s most popular features. This year 347 churches participated, including 64 megachurches (those with 2,000 or more in weekly attendance) and 70 emerging megachurches (1,000 to 1,999). This chart also includes listings for scores of large churches (with average attendance of 500 to 999) and medium churches (250-499) Click here to view and download the 2014 Charts, or click on them individually: “¢Â 2014 Megachurches “¢Â 2014 Emerging Megachurches “¢Â 2014 Large Churches “¢Â 2014 Medium Churches As a bonus, we have searched through the lists to determine the average size of megachurches and emerging megachurches in

June 4, 2012

Christian Standard

Church Leadership

Better with Time?

By Kent E. Fillinger Neuroscience and social science both suggest we are more optimistic than realistic. On average, we expect things to turn out better than they do. The belief that the future will be much better than the past is known as the optimism bias. To make progress, we need to be able to imagine alternative realities””better ones””and we need to believe we can achieve them.1 Senior ministers, especially those of large churches and megachurches, typically believe their congregation”s best days are ahead of them. But research consistently shows church growth rates diminish as the senior minister”s age and

September 20, 2009

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

MEDIUM-SIZED CHURCHES: The Leadership Factor

Â by Kent E. Fillinger What situations foster or frustrate church growth? Some statistics correlate directly to growth, while other items have an indirect effect or no apparent impact at all. But two recurring statistics directly impact a church”s growth rate in ways that deserve attention. These two statistics have held true from megachurches to medium-sized churches over four surveys in a four-year period (2005″“08). The two factors both relate to the senior minister. One is his age. The other is his tenure. Combined, they create what I call the “leadership factor.” Â The Leadership FactorÂ The average age of