#5 – Is there a problem with your systems? Just like the human body, every church has systems. But sometimes we have to see what these systems are producing and ask if we like the result. If we don’t, here’s some things to consider: – What do you want your systems/ process to produce and work backwards – What do you think is the Biblical model for this part of the church (evangelism, discipleship, ministry, etc…)? – Who is doing this well in your area? Ask them questions.

#4 – Is there a spiritual problem? The children of Israel lost the battle of Ai because there was sin in the camp. I’m not saying that’s the reason you’re stuck. I’m simply saying it’s something to consider. A few things to consider: – Before you blast your staff and leaders, search your own heart. Ask God is there is any wicked way in you that needs confession and repentance. – If you think there’s a problem in your staff or leadership, then have the tough conversation sooner rather than later. You’ll be glad you did. – Keep an open … Read More

#3 – Is a there a physical issue that’s causing you to be stuck? Many times the reason we’re stuck is because there aren’t enough seats, enough parking, or enough nursery workers. Think through your church and see if there are any bottlenecks. If people finding it hard to sit themselves, they probably won’t invite their friends. If it’s a fight to get their kids checked into your children’s ministry, they probably won’t be back. If they have to park 2 miles away, they may do it once, but they won’t regularly. Sometimes God want to bless your ministry, but … Read More

My assumption is that if your church is stuck, you want to get unstuck. Here’s #2… #2 – Is your staff able to go to the next level? Some people can only take you do far. Some people only have a certain level of leadership capability and God brings them into your church for a season and they serve well, but then they can’t turn the corner. This is a reality. If a person isn’t deeply committed to growing as a leader, hitting a leadership lid is inevitable. Here’s some thoughts to keep staff growing: – Keep a book in … Read More

This series of posts may not have a lot of use if your church grew from 5 to 5,000 in 8 weeks, but if your church has ever been stuck, I’m hoping to share some things I’ve learned over the last couple of years. #1 – Are you growing as a leader? I believe there’s a correlation between a leader’s growth and the growth of a church. Many times, God doesn’t bless because we simply can’t handle it. The blessing would hurt us more than help us. Here’s some questions to ask yourself: What books have I read that have … Read More

– Today was really good! – Mark taught and did a great job. – I love that he told his story and encouraged singles in our church to commit to a life of purity – Our youth band led worship and were awesome! – I got to do some MBWA (managing by walking around) – I enjoyed hanging out in our children’s ministry and seeing all that goes on there (I don’t get to go in there often enough) -I was amazed at the 9:30AM crowd. I thought for sure it would be a ghost town with the time change, … Read More

I had a great time meeting with all of our volunteers last night. We had some pizza, talked for a while, and then I shared a teaching about church systems and why we do what we do. It’s always fruitful when we get together with our team. We walk away on the same page and excited about what God is going to do. We probably need to do this more than we do. I’m going to make sure that we have more contact with those who are the core of our church.

85 people came out to our Assimilation seminar! It was great to meet some local Pastors for the first time and to connect with some old friends again. It was an awesome time as we shared our story and what we do at CF, but what was really exciting was seeing pastors bring their whole teams and begin to talk about how to tweak their own strategy for helping 1st time guests connect to the church. I’m looking forward to hearing great stories about what happened on Easter! Update: Travis posted his notes from the seminar on his blog…

We have gotten an incredible response to our assimilation seminar on March 6th from 9AM-12PM., but if you haven’t registered yet, you can by clicking this link. You can register at the door tomorrow, but it’s more expensive. So if you know you want to go, sign up here! What excites me about this is that not much by way of training comes to Miami, so I’m excited we can be part of this and help churches in our area.