Indiana Ministries of the Church of God
Annual Meeting, October 2-3, 2023 | Anderson, IN
Menu of Karl Vaters' Sessions
Session 1 | Three Ways A Small Church Can Be An Effective Church
The impact of small churches is more about influence than attendance
- Influence leverages small numbers for big impact – it doesn’t scale for crowds
1. Realize your small church can be an effective church
Over 90% of our churches are under 200, over 80% are under 100
- First Reaction: Oh no!
- Second Reaction: So what?
- Final Reaction: Now what?
People will come to small churches, but they won’t give up quality to do so
2. Discover how small churches function differently from big churches
Many big church principles don’t translate well to a small church context
The law of large numbers: the bigger the crowd, the more predictably they behave
3. Understand and use the unique DNA of your small church for God’s glory
The smaller the crowd, the more impact each person has – for good and bad
Big churches emphasize process, systems & programs
- Small churches prioritize relationships, culture & history
Don’t do what our founders did, think like our founders thought
Pastoring a small church is not a penalty for doing something wrong
- It’s a specialty, and it’s worth doing well
Session 2 | How to Discover and Use What Your Church Does Well
The pastoral prime mandate: to equip God’s people for works of service (Eph 4:11-12)
The three essential elements of a healthy, effective church
- Great Commandment
- Great Commission
- Equipping God’s People
Do what you know to do, pay attention to what works, and why
After you discover what your church does well, do it on purpose
- Front-load the value: feature what you do well
Use the “closet rule” for ministries: Don’t add a new one until you’ve dropped an old one
- What does your church do well, that you would like to do more of?
- What does your church do poorly, that you would like to do less of?
Move out of a destination mindset and into a process orientation
- Churches can handle change, but they don’t like to be surprised
- Give the leaders time to ponder big decisions
When thinking small changed the world (You can read this story in the final chapter of Small Church Essentials)
Session 3 | Leading The Post-Pandemic Church
Keys to post-pandemic recovery
- Don’t try to go back to what was
- Build on what you’re learning
- Define your current reality
Churches that thrived during & after the pandemic had:
- Resources in reserve
- Team-based leadership
- Adaptability
- Unity
We’re all experiencing multiple levels of severe trauma
When people are in trauma they can’t hear explanations
- They need familiarity and stability
Everyone has a default reaction to trauma
Denial >> Anger >> Bargaining >> Depression >> Acceptance
Recognize your own trauma first
- Don’t let your trigger become your truth
When times are normal, leaders inspire change
THRIVE NOTES (Tuesday, Oct 3)
Decision-Making and Vision-Casting
How most of us were taught vision-casting
Top-down vision-casting can be helpful in three situations:
- In crisis/sin
- In times of rapid change
- When a church is really big
The Acts 2 model for vision-casting
Hearing God’s heart together
1. The Sweet Spot: God, the Church & the Pastor’s Hearts Meet
2. The Default: God & the Pastor, but not the Church
3. The Listening Place: God & the Church, but not the Pastor
4. The Danger Zone: The Church & the Pastor, but not God
De-sizing the Church
Q1: What is De-sizing?
- The process of assessing the value of something without obsessing over numbers.
- In the church, choosing to evaluate the health & vitality of a congregation, a denomination, or a movement without using attendance figures, percentages, or numerical comparisons as the primary consideration.
Q 2: Why Do We Need To De-size?
We’ve become obsessed with bigness at almost all costs
Q 3. Where Did Our Obsession With Bigness Come From?
There were two Church Growth Movements
- The McGavran stream
- The American stream
We’re swimming in the American “How I did it” stream, while using the language of the McGavran “How to do it” stream
Q 4: What Are The Dangers Of Pursuing Bigness?
1. Overconfidence in our abilities
2. Over-simplification of our goals
3. Over-reliance on metrics
Q 5: How Do We Fix This?
- Discipleship Fixes Everything
- Integrity Is the New Competence
Church Life Cycle
Conversations on Faith & Ministry
Every two weeks Karl interviews a church leader about the topics that concern pastors, especially those who minister in a small church context.
Most of our real-life conversations about faith and ministry happen in church lobbies, both as a congregation and pastor-to-pastor. In The Church Lobby podcast, that’s what we do.
Available on all major platforms, including:
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