Articles for tag: Megachurches

April 18, 2011

Christian Standard

Christian Living

Making Disciples?

By Kent E. Fillinger What about small groups? Should they be “euthanized,” as Brian Jones asserted (January 23) or promoted, as all the writers in Christian Standard”s March 6 issue suggested? We asked the churches we surveyed for their answer. For the first time, the churches that participated in this study were asked: “What is the primary method for adult discipleship (spiritual formation) at your church?” Churches were given these three choices to select from: Sunday school classes/adult Bible fellowship classes, small group Bible studies, or a combination of classes and groups. Here are the findings. Not a single megachurch

April 17, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Planting

Interview with Justin Miller

By Brad Dupray At an annual growth rate of 65 percent, Real Life Christian Church of Clermont, Florida, was the fastest-growing megachurch in Christian Standard”s survey a year ago. Justin Miller came to Christ at age 9 at First Christian Church, as Real Life was formerly known. As Justin describes it, he came into ministry “through the “˜doggie door” of church leadership.” Asked to serve the youth of the church as a volunteer, he eventually was called to serve as senior pastor in 2002. Since that time the church has grown from about 200 to its current attendance of about

April 11, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

2|42 Community Church

By Kent E. Fillinger Bob Smith was eager to see a new church planted in his hometown of Brighton, Michigan. Brighton is located in Livingston County, which at the time was one of the fastest-growing counties in America. Smith believed a new church was needed to reach the new people who were moving in. But Smith was neither a preacher nor a church planter. Smith classified himself as “just a cop.” Smith raised $50,000 in seed money. He created homemade brochures touting the need for a church plant in Brighton, and he started to attend Exponential, the national church planting

April 10, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

The Crossing, A Christian Church

By Kent E. Fillinger An apple doesn”t fall far from the tree. The Crossing, A Christian Church, located in the southwest quadrant of Las Vegas, Nevada, embodies this idiom. The Crossing was planted by Canyon Ridge Christian Church on September 24, 2000, and is the youngest megachurch with an average worship attendance of 2,224 last year. Canyon Ridge, located in the northwest valley of Las Vegas, was birthed by Central Christian Church in 1993 and averaged almost 6,000 in attendance last year. Central Christian, also in Las Vegas, averaged close to 18,000 in worship last year. Those are some great

April 8, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Numbers Matter

By Edward Sanders While I was in school, I paid the bills by selling men”s suits. At the end of my shift, it was rather easy to see whether we had a good day selling. Every night at closing, someone would count the suits. A dozen fewer suits meant we were successful and our efforts had paid off. I no longer sell men”s suits. I work at a church. One Monday I was sitting at my computer when the attendance and offering numbers for the weekend services came through. I opened the document and tried to grasp the trend for

April 7, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Megachurches: The 2010 List

Our annual megachurch chart is one of CHRISTIAN STANDARD”s most popular features. This year there are more than 100 churches listed as megachurches (those with 2,000 or more in weekly attendance) or emerging megachurches (those with average attendance of 1,000 to 1,999). Click here to look at the chart of the 2010 Megachurches and Emerging Megachuches.

April 6, 2011

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

God Is Giving the Increase

By Kent E. Fillinger A Dilbert cartoon recently featured Dogbert, the consultant, standing in front of a projection screen asking, “Where does your company fit on this comprehensive list?” The list on the screen included, in order: “Facebook, China, Irrelevant.” The next frame showed three bug-eyed employees, followed by a third frame in which Dogbert says, “Now let”s form breakout groups to fantasize about being relevant.” Just as Dilbert”s mythical company is identified as being irrelevant in the business world, the church has been declared irrelevant by our culture, and even by other Christ followers for decades. A quick scan

April 6, 2011

Christian Standard

Christian Living

Counter Culture

By Mark A. Taylor “I”m an editor. I work with words.” I”ve used that excuse more than once when I”ve miscalculated or misunderstood or misapplied some list of numbers. (My wife says she hopes I don”t die before her, because it would take her a month to figure out what”s going on with our checkbook!) So if you prefer ideas and expressing them over numbers and analyzing them, I understand. But I urge you not to ignore all the facts and figures in posts we”re planning for the next few weeks. Here”s why: We serve a God who keeps track

March 13, 2011

Christian Standard

Mission & Evangelism

Beyond Borders

By Mike Schrage Every once in awhile I read (as I am sure you do) something that stops me in my tracks! An article in the April 11/18, 2010, issue of CHRISTIAN STANDARD was just such a heart-stopper. The article was titled “Mega See, Mega Do,” by Kent Fillinger. Kent, a friend of mine, has for several years undertaken the study of megachurch growth, an American religious phenomenon that has been quite spectacularly manifested inside the Restoration Movement. How, where, and why it is occurring are very important issues, and Kent has gathered and processed tons of statistics surrounding these

February 23, 2011

Christian Standard

Book Reviews Reviews

A Troubled Continent, a New Dream

By LeRoy Lawson The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence Martin Meredith New York: Public Affairs, 2005 Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles Richard Dowden New York: Public Affairs, 2009 Radical: Taking BackÂ Your Faith from the American Dream David Platt Colorado Springs: WaterBrook Multnomah, 2010 Returning through Amsterdam”s Schipohl Airport from Kenya last year, I picked up a couple of books on Africa that, once I started reading, I couldn”t stop. Not that I enjoyed them. I didn”t. But I had just been to Africa and am fascinated by the people and countries I”ve visited. What these

February 19, 2011

Christian Standard

Why I Participate

By Herb Botts “If you build it, he will come!” You might remember that line from the movie Field of Dreams, a mystical presentation about a novice Midwestern farmer who loves baseball so much he builds an actual ball field in the midst of his cornstalks and watches the “greats” of the past gather and play. I believe I can honestly say the folks of the North American Christian Convention are in a similar building process, creating something wonderful and inviting all of us to come. The NACC is offering a program that mirrors God”s Holy Word, to draw “people

February 2, 2011

Christian Standard

So Long to Good-Byes

By Cal Jernigan Perhaps you heard the story of the man who was stranded alone on a deserted island for a number of years. One day a ship appeared on the horizon, noticed him, and sent some men ashore to rescue him. While helping him gather his scant belongings, the rescuers noticed three huts clustered together and asked the man about them. The man pointed to one of the huts and explained that it served as his house, and then he pointed to another and explained that it was where he went to church. The man stopped without mentioning the

January 26, 2011

Christian Standard

Stewardship & Generosity

Calculating Our Generosity

By Mark A. Taylor David Campbell and Robert Putnam got it right when they commented on the generosity of Evangelical churches. “Local congregations are often on the front lines of providing charitable services to the poor and needy through food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters,” they wrote in the December 10 Wall Street Journal. “Many congregations also sponsor missionaries overseas.” A visit to the National Missionary Convention underscores the truth of their conclusion, especially among Christian churches and churches of Christ. This week”s NMC review article mentions that at least 300 missionaries and other ministries brought displays to the convention

December 12, 2010

Christian Standard

Book Reviews Reviews

Blind Copies

By Mark A. Taylor Maybe you”ve noticed, as I have, the remarkable sameness greeting travelers at each stop along United States Interstates. Parachute a blindfolded visitor before the assortment of franchised restaurants assembled at any random exit, and ask him whether he”s landed in Kansas or Kentucky. He probably won”t be able to tell you. With a few regional exceptions, the same stuff is on the menu just about everywhere. And it”s true in churches too. Every October churches large and small, from California through the Bible Belt, promote Trunk “n” Treat as a Halloween alternative. Soon Christian Standard will

October 5, 2010

Christian Standard

Restoration Movement History

“Nondenominational” Wins the Day!

By Mark A. Taylor “We in the Christian churches are radicals,” Marshall Leggett told a group gathered for the daylong Congress of Elders hosted at Central Christian Church, Carmel, Indiana, October 2. “We are radically congregationally governed.” In his closing session message, he expounded on a long list of answers to the question, “What”s RIGHT with us?” The freedom enjoyed by independent congregations in our nondenominational family was one of them. Leggett said, “I don”t know anyone who wants to change that.” Indeed, it would seem that churches from many different backgrounds are walking away from denominational labels, if not

September 8, 2010

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

LARGE-SIZED CHURCHES: A New Name and New Numbers

By Kent E. Fillinger What”s in a name? Abram became Abraham and Sarai become Sarah in the Old Testament, and Simon became Peter and Saul became Paul in the New Testament. Name changes were common in the Bible when God altered the purpose or role of an individual. Christian Standard has reported the average weekly attendance and the total number of baptisms annually for churches that average 1,000 or more in weekly attendance since 1997. Several years ago, the size designation of a megachurch shifted from 1,000 to 2,000 in attendance. Therefore, the term emerging megachurch was developed for churches

June 13, 2010

Christian Standard

Christian Standard Updates News & Updates

Responses to Lawson and Alexander’s Articles

By Our Readers These letters are in reaction to two articles that appear in the June 13, 2010, issue of CHRISTIAN STANDARD: “Two Views About the Future of the Restoration Movement: Let”s Keep Moving!” by LeRoy Lawson “Two Views About the Future of the Restoration Movement: Dissolve or Thrive?” by Dick Alexander OfÂ Principles andÂ Principals TheÂ principles of the Restoration Movement have remained firm and strong, but many of theÂ principals of the Restoration Movement have not. A quote from Carl Ketcherside of some 30 years ago: “The Restoration Movement has become the Restoration Monument.” Why was/is that? We have pursued the leadings

June 13, 2010

Christian Standard

Restoration Movement History

Two Views About the Future of the Restoration Movement: Let”s Keep Moving!

By Leroy Lawson This January, Standard Publishing”s Publishing Committee, CHRISTIAN STANDARD”s contributing editors, and a few other key leaders met in a retreat to discuss the future. Key questions included, “Why does the Restoration Movement exist? What do we contribute? What is our vision for what Christian churches and churches of Christ should be and accomplish in the next decades? What do we want to look like 50 years from now . . . and what can we do today to begin painting that picture?” Although much time was given to freewheeling dialogue, two speakers set the tone with their

June 9, 2010

Christian Standard

Restoration Movement History

Never More Movement, Never More Questions

By Mark A. Taylor I don”t remember the author of the essay or the year it appeared in CHRISTIAN STANDARD. I know it was decades ago, probably in the late “60s or early “70s. And I remember the question the writer raised: “When will the Restoration Movement startÂ movingÂ again?” The essay was a plea for our churches and leaders and institutions to step out of their lethargy and isolation and to actually make something happen in our world for Christ”s sake. Maybe someone listened, because no one in Christian churches and churches of Christ today is pleading for something to move.

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Church & Ministry Church Growth

Megachurches: The 2009 List

Our annual megachurch chart is one of CHRISTIAN STANDARD’s most popular features. This year there are 114 churches listed as megachurches (those with 2,000 or more in weekly attendance) or emerging megachurches (those with average attendance of 1,000 to 1,999). The chart/pdf that is accessible below contains the entire, 114-church listing. Click here to look at this chart of the 2009 Megachurches.