28 | 😮 Four ways churches should grow (and how we often start— and end— at the “wrong place”)

A reminder = my friend Jennifer Davis (editor of The Alabama Baptist AND executive director of the TAB Media Group) recently hosted me on her podcast. I asked her if I could cross-post to my platforms, and she agreed…

So, here’s a 1-2-3 punch on Healthy Church,” a new project I helped my Dad reboot and release.

💙

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Paul uses the analogy of a human body when talking about the church (see 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4:11f.). Well, to say it a better way, he doesn’t say the church is LIKE a body, he declares the church ACTUALLY IS a body— the Body of Christ.

So, let’s affirm this about human size AND about church size…

While you DO need a certain “mass” for a human to be viable, there are far more indicators as to how healthy the human is than just mere size.

Think about it—

🤷‍♂️ You can have a healthy 150-pound man OR an unhealthy 150-pound man.

🤷‍♂️ You can have a healthy 300-pound man OR an unhealthy 300-pound man.

A lot depends on the KIND of weight that man has (read: the kind of size, muscle or fat) AND other indicators we don’t see…

❤️ the condition of his heart and his blood

💥 the amount of stress he has— and how he handles it

😴 the rhythm of rest, recovery, and the working hard…

🚽 the capacity he has to eliminate toxins while storing nutrients

See?

The same is true with churches— with the body of Christ…

The numbers DO tell some of the story, but only SOME. The numbers are one of many indicators.

In this talk we walk through FOUR indicators—

🕊️ Spiritual growth = awakening to who God designed us to be and walking in relationship with Him

⚙️ Ministry involvement = discovering the unique part we play and deploying into that area of stewardship

🌎 Missions advancement = taking the energy of the church outside the four walls of the building and inviting others to experience the presence & power of the Kingdom (not the church, the Kingdom)

🔥 Outreach effectiveness = people are impacted and begin the journey of spiritual growth…

(Then, they can start the process.)

Bottom line: churches grow in multiple ways— especially if you want them to be healthy.

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Relevant links

📻 Access the FREE 2-4-6 framework / audio course = https://www.lifelift.online/246 

📺 Purchase the Healthy Church mini course = https://www.lifelift.online/HCMC 

⚙️ Grab the Healthy Systems mini course = https://www.lifelift.online/HSMC 

⭐️ See all resources = https://www.lifelift.online/store 

Upcoming events + training opportunities on this resource

✅ Events for church + ministry leaders via LifeLift Ministries = www.LifeLift.online/events 

Links to TAB Media Group / The Alabama Baptist

⭐️ Catch-all home page = https://tabmedia.group 

📺 YouTube for TAB = https://www.youtube.com/@TABMediaGroup