Growth and Expansion in Church Population - Assignment Example

?CHURCH GROWTH Introduction The issue of church growth is a very sensitive one. In fact there are several schools of thought what it comes to what church growth should constitute. There are for instance, those who believe that a drastic increase in the membership of a church over a certain period of time should be enough justification for determining church growth (Adair and Evon, 2009). There are also those who view church growth from the spiritual content of the church (Benedict, 2004). In the opinion of those who hold the latter, they argue that increase in number should not merely be enough for a church to be said to be growing. Rather, it is important that the members of the church, no matter how small they may be to have a dramatic transformation in their relationship with God. For the present action plan therefore, a combination of ideas and thought from both sides of the argument are being considered. In its totality therefore, this is going to be an action plan on how to map up ways of increasing the physical quantum of the church’s membership and there after find means of equipping the spiritual content of the members who are won into the church. This shall be done by following the planning process steps to come up with a comprehensive way of guaranteeing a paper-work church growth formula. Planning Processes Step 1: Purpose and Goal Setting The very first step is for the church to have a purpose and set out goals on what it wants to achieve. Already, it has been indicated that as far as church growth is concerned, there are two major schools of thoughts as to what church growth constitutes. For this reason, it is important that the church comes clear on which of the two ways it wants to pursue as it sets out its purpose and goal. The goal setting ought to have some key conventional qualities. For instance the goals ought to be specific, time bound, achievable, relevant and measurable. The purpose should also have some key features such as the fact that it should have alternatives and monitoring and evaluation components. Giving the background of the church therefore, there could be a purpose and goal that seeks to increase the membership of the church by one hundred (100) souls in three (3) months and leading the new members through various spiritual activities that will help them become born-again Christians after two months of joining the church. Step 2: Surveying After the purpose and goals have been set, the way will be paved for surveying to take place. Surveying will particularly involve the act of going to the grounds to measure the real ‘size’ of the job at hand. By size, reference is being made to the length of work that will be involved should the action plan be eventually implemented (Bunzel, 2002). The surveying should therefore have several considerations that include the amount of money needed to carry out a perfect job, the scope of places to go, the kind of people to approach, the schemes and strategies to use for the soul winning exercise and the expected feedback that will result from the eventual work. Timing should also be another key aspect of the surveillance. This is because when the church implements its action plan within a very conducive time frame, there are several conditions within the timing that can affect the results. In a typical example, it is common knowledge that during occasions like Easter, 31st Night and Christmas, a lot of people become very religious. Because of this, they respond to church activities more quickly. Such a time would therefore be a better timing season to implement the church’s plan. Step 3: Planning Undoubtedly, the best time to go about planning for the church growth concept is after the surveying is complete. This is because the surveying will come out with tangible results and responses on the actual steps that need to be taken in the course of the implementation of the action plan. At the planning stage therefore, the church growth team will be dealing with a more realistic approach to getting the action plan underway. For instance there will be very minimal room for guesses and estimations because the surveying might have given them better ideas of actual values and figures. It is therefore expected that at the planning stage, specific objectives will be set. The difference between these objectives and the goal is that the goal is a broader aim while the specific objectives will be made up of smaller events that need to be achieved in order to realize the larger aim. Some of the specific objectives should therefore focus on events to be organized, follow up programs for new converts, as well as welcoming activities. Specific Objectives Events The major set of events that can be used by the church in winning souls to grow the size of the church include open air crusade, house-to-house evangelism, institutional preaching and camp meetings. These events should be very unique in their themes and sermon messages. For instance instead of concentrating on materialism, it is highly recommended that the church focuses on sermon messages that has to do with salvation and the love of God for them. As the bible indicates, once we focus on the Kingdom of God, all other things will be added. The events should also have a lot of focus on its leaders. Jesus made it clear that when a blind person leads another blind person, they all fall into a pit. For this reason, it will be very prudent to use people who are of good reputation and exemplification to the society in carrying out the events of the church. Follow up Follow up should be directed at souls that are won after each and every event of missions. This is because the absence of follow up activities would only leave the newly saved souls as sheep without a shepherd as Jesus indicated. Following up on the new converts would be a very great indication for them as to how much the church focuses on them and has an eye on their well being. The follow up activities would also give the new converts an indication that the church’s activities for them were actually instituted as a process but not just as an event that came not to last again. Indeed, follow up programs will also be an excellent way in which the church will be giving the new converts supplements of spiritual meal needed to keep them in shape for their new spiritual identity (Cushing, 1941). Welcoming activities At the early stages of their joining the church, the must indeed have activities and programs that will focus on the new converts and make them “feel at home”. For this reason, it is important to set out objectives that focus on designing very welcoming activities for the new converts. As a strategy, a lot of these welcoming activities should focus on the new converts and include them. For example there would be an objective of making as many of these new converts discover their spiritual gifting as possible. For this reason, a lot of them can be made to take up church programs and activities including song ministration and bible studies assistance. Conclusion and Recommendation The present action plan has been a very ideal avenue for understanding the options available for the church as far as church growth is concerned. It has been established that the church will have a common focus that looks at growth and expansion in church population as a first step and then building on to equip the spiritual life of the new converts. To do this, a number of processes have to be fulfilled. These processes should be implemented to the latter. As a recommendation however, it is advised that the church does not focus only on new converts to the disadvantage of existing members. This means that there should also be activities and programs that will focus on the need of making existing members continue to stay in the church. Indeed as much as members become active members of the church, they are going to play their own roles in winning souls to expand the church. CITED WORKS Adair, John, and Evon Z. Vogt. "Navaho and Zuni Veterans: A Study of Contrasting Modes of Culture Change," American Anthropologist, LI (2009), 547-561. Benedict, Ruth. Patterns of Culture. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. Bunzel, Ruth L. "Introduction to Zuni Ceremonialism," "Zuni Origin Myths," "Zuni Ritual Poetry," "Zuni Katchinas," Forty-seventh Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1929-1930, pp. 467-1086. Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 2002. Cushing, Frank Hamilton. My Adventures in Zuni. Santa Fe: The Peripatetic Press, 1941; also with an introduction by Oakah L. Jones, Jr. by Palmer Lake, Colorado: Filter Press, 1967; both reprinted from series in The Century Magazine, XXV-XXVI (1882-1883). Read More