April 6, 2016

“I don’t like small churches.”

Yes, people have said that – and things like it – to me.

I get that small churches aren’t for everyone. But saying “I prefer big churches” is the way most people state it.

To tell a small church pastor that you don’t like small churches isn’t just a statement of preference. It’s rude.

It also betrays a massive misunderstanding of the realities and challenges of pastoring. Not to mention the value of small churches. So when I hear statements like that, my knee-jerk feeling is to want to strike back.

But I’ve learned that the root cause behind such arrogance and prejudice is usually a combination of pain and ignorance – so I sympathize a bit. And I’ve come to a very different conclusion about about the dangers of valuing churches according to their size.