Articles for tag: Traders Point Christian Church

October 15, 2018

Christian Standard

What Makes the Fastest-Growing Churches Grow?

By Jim Nieman   How do you explain your church’s tremendous growth in 2017? That’s what we asked lead ministers of the fastest-growing churches in three attendance categories from Christian Standard’s annual survey of churches: churches of 1,000 or more (megachurches and emerging megachurches profiled in May), churches of 250 to 999 (large and medium churches—June), and churches 249 and fewer (small and very small churches—July). All three churches have one thing in common—new facilities—but that wasn’t the only explanation for their growth. We spoke with and/or emailed questions to: Aaron Brockett, lead pastor of Traders Point Christian Church (Whitestown,

April 15, 2018

Christian Standard

2017 Fast Facts about Megachurches and Emerging Megachurches

These statistics from 2017 are gleaned from megachurch and emerging megachurch data collected by Kent Fillinger. Be sure to read Fillinger’s article, “Special Church Report Part 1: Megachurches and Emerging Megachurches,” and look at the accompanying tables (“The 2017 Charts: Megachurches and Emerging Megachurches”).   Compiled by Kent Fillinger AVERAGE SIZE Megachurches: 5,307 Emerging Megachurches: 1,366 Combined average weekly attendance: 390,218 GROWTH RATES Megachurches: 5.7% (up from 3.4% in 2016); overall, 71% of megachurches grew (up from 61% in 2016). Emerging Megachurches: 4.1% (up from 2 percent in 2016); overall, 57% of emerging megachurches grew (down from 61% in 2016).

December 15, 2017

Christian Standard

HEADLINES: January 2018

By Chris Moon   Church Planter Helps with Recovery in Dominican Republic Church planter Chris Hornbrook had to weather the storm last fall in his mission work in the Dominican Republic. Hornbrook is working to start a church-planting movement on the Caribbean island and watched as Hurricane Maria spun by, doing significant damage to the region. It generated a lot of work for Hornbrook and his team, according to the Daily Journal in Franklin, Ind., which wrote about Hornbrook”s efforts. “We”re working through our local churches and pastors so that they can help the people in their communities,” Hornbrook told

September 7, 2017

Christian Standard

A Heart for Our City

By Aaron Brockett Six years ago, I wasn”t sure how I felt about multisite. I wanted to believe the best about all the hype I had heard about becoming one church meeting in multiple locations, but I didn”t want to throw my support behind it prematurely. I especially didn”t want to lead Traders Point Christian Church in this direction if we hadn”t clearly established the “why” behind it. I believe God calls every church to multiply (Acts 2), however I don”t think this means every church should become a multisite church. (The many reasons for this lie outside the focus of

July 20, 2017

Christian Standard

FLYING HIGHER: The Eastpoint Story

It’s sunny but chilly this Sunday morning in Portland, Maine. That’s typical for May. It’s Eastpoint Christian Church’s final week in this facility, their fourth location in 13 years, but such is the case for many church plants, especially in the Northeast. Each location has had its challenges, but this one has been especially interesting. It’s a former DHL Express warehouse on the grounds of Portland International Jetport; worship and sermons are regularly interrupted by the roar of jets taking off and landing. Churchgoers have overlooked the noise and been thankful for the building, cramming nearly 1,500 people into 15,000

April 21, 2017

Christian Standard

Safety and Security on Sundays and Beyond

How churches are protecting property and people By Justin Horey On Christmas Eve 2012, thieves broke into Grandview Christian Church in Johnson City, Tennessee, and stole musical instruments and audio-visual equipment belonging to the church”s worship ministry. No one was harmed during the heist, though the theft created additional stress for the church staff on one of the best-attended days of the year. Thankfully, Grandview was able to borrow equipment from another local congregation in time for its worship services that evening, and most of the people who attended had no idea what had transpired earlier in the day. Churches

September 18, 2016

Christian Standard

Motivation Through Missions!

By Janet C. Smith If you”re looking for a way to motivate people to use their gifts and talents for God, CMF International has a suggestion: Get them interested in missions! Since the Indianapolis, Indiana, mission organization launched its partnership with Missions of Hope International (MOHI) in the Mathare Valley slums of Nairobi, Kenya, in 2005, scores of churches across the country have sent teams of people with all kinds of jobs, connections, interests, and abilities there to provide medical clinics, training, education, sponsorship, and more. Most people come back saying the experience changed them. But some””like those in the

April 28, 2015

Mark A. Taylor

Listening to Lead

By Mark A. Taylor Maybe you”ve seen this happen at your company. The business has been sold. The new bosses arrive, and they”re very confident they know how to run the show. If they didn”t think they could do it better than the last guys they wouldn”t have forked over all that money to buy the operation. So they wade in with firm goals and bold plans to take the business forward. In the process, these new managers announce “new ideas” with the explanation, “This has never been tried here before.” But even though the long-timers watching from the shadows

April 21, 2015

Mark A. Taylor

Heartfelt Leadership

By Mark A. Taylor When you go to a conference for church leaders, you expect to come home with a folder full of methods, strategies, and tactics for growing your church. This is especially true when a megachurch minister is the keynote speaker. What secrets does he know about growing a church? What”s working in today”s culture? What approaches are guaranteed to bring success? What techniques have been most effective where he serves? But when Aaron Brockett kicked off the Intentional Church Conference at First Christian Church, Decatur, Illinois, last week, he didn”t talk about methods at all. Or numbers.

January 23, 2015

Christian Standard

What about Church Discipline?

By Lise Caldwell Recently I sat down with three remarkable men to discuss church discipline. Howard Brammer, John Samples, and John Caldwell have 150 years of preaching ministry experience between them. All three are retired from “official” full-time ministry, but continue to teach, preach, and guide. From country churches to megachurches, they have watched church discipline succeed, fail to happen, and just plain fail. When I asked them to share their experiences, I heard wonderful stories, much laughter, great humility, and tremendous wisdom. I want to share the best of that here.  First, a word about their most recent ministries:

July 24, 2014

Christian Standard

Big Buildings, Big Holes

By Howard R. Brammer (From our series “The Best or Worst Advice I”ve Ever Received.”) A few weeks into my new ministry with Traders Point Christian Church, it became clear we weren”t growing as quickly as anticipated. We told no stories in the church newsletter of rapid growth and large worship service crowds””there were no such stories. Actually there were unprinted accounts of a few people who were leaving. My concern increased to the point that I brought the matter to the attention of church leaders. I didn”t anticipate I would receive timely advice I have applied to many ministry

March 15, 2014

Christian Standard

Collaboration Without Compromise

By Rick Grover The congregation I serve has a long tradition of cooperation in our city. We intend to continue on this path without compromising what we hold dear. John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us” (Mark 9:39, 40)1. Sectarianism is as

October 11, 2013

Christian Standard

What I Want to Tell Church Planters

By Aaron Brockett Six months after the grand opening of our church plant, I hit a wall. The combination of seeing the last of the “well-wishers” depart, watching our first disillusioned family leave the church, and experiencing the drought of summer attendance was too much. I”d given everything I had to get this young church started, and now the needle of my emotional tank was firmly planted on empty. I wanted to bail. To be honest, I was irritated with the stories of church planters turned megachurch pastors who made it look so easy (or so I thought). On paper,

July 2, 2013

Christian Standard

40 Under 40: Aaron Brockett

AARON BROCKETT Lead pastor,  Traders Point Christian Church,  Indianapolis, Indiana “Masterful” was the only word in the e-mail I sent to Aaron on a Monday morning to comment on his sermon of the day before. It was the best word I could think of to express appreciation and to convey encouragement. Actually, there are many Monday mornings that this procedure could be repeated without becoming trite or overused. Aaron”s teaching is relevant while firmly grounded in Jesus and his story . . . lengthy but highly engaging . . . delivered without notes yet extremely well-prepared. He is straightforward but

June 9, 2012

Christian Standard

Casual Conversation Grows into Citywide Event

By Jennifer Taylor Danielle Ott, a member at Traders Point Christian Church (Indianapolis, IN), began dreaming about the possibility of a citywide foster care/adoption event coordinated by several area churches. A conversation with one like-minded acquaintance grew to a small group of people from five churches meeting at Starbucks to discuss ideas. The Answer the Call Conference launched May 19. “There are so many people who feel God”s call to adopt or participate in the foster care system, but they don”t know where to start,” she says. “We wanted to encourage and equip them to move forward in a meaningful

May 17, 2012

Christian Standard

How to Follow a Great Act

By Kent E. Fillinger Succeeding a well-known, well-loved, successful, retiring senior minister is a daunting task for virtually anyone. But Aaron Brockett also faced stepping into the ministry of a church with minimal growth for five years prior to a major relocation and building project. Granted, several factors contributed to the lengthy attendance stall at Traders Point Christian Church, Indianapolis, Indiana. “¢ A prolonged relocation process kept the church idling in an undersized facility. “¢ A daughter church grew out of Traders Point”s young adult ministry””a good development that nevertheless cleared the bench of younger, upcoming leaders for a time. “¢

October 3, 2010

Christian Standard

235 Baptisms in One Weekend!

Congratulations to Traders Point Christian Church (Indianapolis, IN) for 235 baptisms this past weekend! Estranged spouses were baptized together. People confessed past sins. A man stepped into the tank of water and said it was his first Sunday in church in 13 years. One of the band members stopped playing mid-song so he could be baptized. “We may have different opinions on styles of worship and buildings and programs . . . but we can be unified on what Jesus has called us to do,” said Aaron Brockett, lead minister, in a follow-up video. “And that”s a beautiful, beautiful thing.”

September 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Christian Churches, Large Churches, Growing Churches

Mark A. Taylor Congratulations to Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, Kentucky, the fifth largest church and the 27th fastest growing church in America. Southeast was one of 17 congregations in the fellowship of Christian churches included in the two lists, published by Outreach magazine in September. The lists were based on self-reported February and March attendance weekend attendance averages in a research project involving more than 8,000 churches, according to Outreach. LifeWay Research conducted the study. Ten of the 100 largest churches in America are among the Christian churches, including two in the top 10. (The numbers here and in the

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: A Closer Look at the Numbers

By Kent Fillinger What is “Average”? The 54 megachurches” average worship attendance: 4,314 The 60 emerging megachurches” average worship attendance: 1,400 All 114 churches” average attendance: 2,781 Fastest-Growing Churches One-Year Growth Rate: Real Life Christian, Clermont, FL, 65% Generations Christian, Trinity, FL, 51% Eastside Christian, Fullerton, CA, 39% Five-Year Total Growth Rate: Parkview Christian, Orland Park, IL, 127% Central Christian, Henderson, NV, 118% Real Life Ministries, Post Falls, ID, 93% Fastest-Growing Churches of the Decade: Savannah (GA) Christian, 286% Christ”s Church of the Valley, Peoria, AZ, 234% Southeast Christian, Parker, CO, 227% Fastest-Growing Since the First List in 1997: Christ”s

April 7, 2010

Christian Standard

Interview with Aaron Brockett

By Brad Dupray Replacing a beloved minister who is retiring after 25 years in the pulpit is a daunting task””just ask Aaron Brockett. At age 31, Aaron was called to be lead pastor of Traders Point Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, succeeding Howard Brammer. The church had finished a building program shortly before Aaron”s arrival, and he helped make the most of it, growing from averaging 1,600 when Aaron arrived (November 2007) to more than 2,700 this January. Aaron is a graduate of Ozark Christian College in his hometown of Joplin, Missouri. He and his wife, Lindsay, have been married

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