Beyond the Ordinary

Growing congregations keep pace with changing times

By David Briggs

Longer services. More substance abuse counseling. And a greater emphasis on the environment.

Add to the mix a presence on Facebook and Twitter.

What you get are some of the traits more likely to be found in fast-growing Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations in 2011, compared to the practices associated with fast-growing churches in the denomination in 2002.

Navigating the challenges posed by an uncertain economy, growing Presbyterian congregations appeared to embrace new opportunities to meet the needs of contemporary worshippers, Ida Smith-Williams reported in a study presented at the recent annual meeting of the Religious Research Association.

Smith-Williams, a researcher with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the U.S. Congregational Life Survey, compared survey data from 114 fast growing Presbyterian churches in 2011 with responses from 93 fast growing Presbyterian congregations in 2002.

In the post-recession period, the fastest growing congregations are doing more with less. In 2011, about three in 10 growing congregations reported increasing finances; in 2002, nearly three-quarters of growing churches said their finances were on the way up.

But fast growing congregations in 2011 continued to lead the way in using technology to reach out to potential new members.

In 2002, 70 percent of growing congregations had a website, a percentage similar to the average
Presbyterian congregation according to the 2008-2009 wave of The U.S. Congregational Life Survey. But 97 percent of fast-growing congregations in 2011 reported having a website.

While 73 percent of growing churches in 2002 reported placing an ad in the paper and 61 percent
advertised in the phone book, the evangelism strategies of six in 10 fast-growing churches in 2011 included following up with emails and using social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

Among other changes, nearly half of the fastest-growing congregations in 2011 used visual projections in worship services, compared to 26 percent using those devices in 2002. Today's growing churches were also almost twice as likely to offer substance abuse counseling and four times as likely to offer animal welfare or environmental activities.

As some activities were added, others were cut back. Consider also these findings:

• Longer services:  Even in an era of decreased attention spans, 89 percent of worship services in the fastest growing congregations in 2011 lasted more than an hour.  In 2002, just 55 percent of worship services in the fastest growing congregations were longer than an hour.
• Missing teens: Six in 10 growing congregations in 2002 said participation by teens was part of the worship service. Just four in 10 of growing churches in 2011 reported teen participation.
• Exit laughing: Ninety-one percent of growing churches in 2002 said laughter was part of their worship service. But that dropped to 80 percent of growing congregations in 2011.
• Fewer sports: A quarter of growing congregations in 2011 reported offering sporting activities, compared to 38 percent of growing congregations in 2002.

It should not come as a big surprise that fast-growing congregations change over the years.

What is consistent throughout research on church growth is that openness to change and a commitment to embracing the future are key indicators of successful congregations.

 

10 Spiritual Resolutions for the New Year

by Ida Smith-Williams

Adapted from original post on 2/8/11

People often make resolutions regarding health and finances at the beginning of a new year to improve their life.  Consider comparing yourself to benchmarks from the U.S. Congregational Life Survey to find ways you might make changes in your spiritual life.

1)      Attend worship services.  Increase your frequency of attending or start attending.  Overall, 65% of attendees are in worship usually every week.   Studies suggest that religious people are happier and that it might be due to friendships with others in the congregation.

2)      Get more involved in group activities. Nearly half of worshipers are not regularly involved in any group activities in their congregation.  Three in ten are involved in fellowships, clubs, or other social groups; one in five attends Sunday school, church school, or Sabbath school; and one in five are involved in prayer, discussion, or Bible study groups.  When asked to compare their participation in activities at the church now to two years ago, half (51%) said they participate about the same amount.   The USCLS found that many congregations with high levels of worshiper involvement also have worshipers who are growing spiritually, are inviting others to worship, and share a strong vision for the congregation’s future. 

3)     Become a leader.  Six in ten worshipers do not play a leadership role in the congregation.  Yet there are many ways to be involved (ushers, church school teachers, choir members, committees, etc.).  A pastor cannot do all the things a church needs to function.  How can you help?  

4)     Spend more time in private devotional acts (prayer, meditation, reading).  Only half of all attendees spend time every day or most days in private devotional activities.   It is these activities that will help you grow in your faith. 

5)     Grow in your faith.  Half of attendees have grown much in their faith over the last year (49%).  A third report growing mainly through activities of their congregation, 12% through their own private activities, and 6% with the help of other groups or congregations.

6)     Talk to others about your faith.  Invite friends to your congregation.  Nearly six in ten feel at ease talking about their faith and do so when it comes up.  Yet only four in ten have invited friends or relatives to their congregation in the past year.  Inviting others is an important first step
toward increasing the number of new people.  Most people attend a congregation for the first time because someone they know invited them. 

7)      Get more involved in your congregation’s community service, social service, or advocacy groups.  Two-thirds of worshipers are not involved with such groups.  Strong congregations balance their attention inside their congregation and outside in the wider community.  This is the mission of many churches, if not all—to help others in need.  There are many benefits to working towards this mission.  Getting involved can help you learn or develop a new skill, find new interests or hobbies, experience the “real” world, meet new people, give you a sense of achievement and purpose, and make you feel good about giving back to your community.     

8)     Make more friends in the congregation.  Two-thirds of worshipers have some close friends in the congregation.  Close friendships among churchgoers, rather than theology, seem to be the key to happiness among religious people, according to the findings of the Faith Matters Survey of U.S. adults.

9)     Pray.  Three-fourths of worshipers pray every day or most days for themselves or for their family.  Three-fourths pray more often than in the past.  Beyond connecting you to God, there are many proven benefits of prayer.  Prayer relieves stress, calms fears, reduces anxiety, stabilizes your moods, and gives you a feeling of well-being. 

10)   Support your congregation financially.  Fewer than one in five worshipers are tithers, giving 10% of their income to the church.  Three in ten give between 5% and 10%, and about as many give less than 5% regularly.

Do any of these give you ideas for personal change?

Interested in learning how your congregation’s worshipers compare to these averages?  Give the U.S. Congregational Life Survey.  Learn how. 

 

Joy to the world: Spending private time with God linked to benevolent love

By David Briggs

It is one of the most intense experiences in the lives of individuals, but a major new research project indicates spending quality time with God also may hold a key to benevolent love for all of humanity.

The Godly Love National Survey, led by researchers at the University of Akron and the Institute for Research on Unlimited Love, found people who most often reported feeling God’s love were more than twice as likely as the average American to give time to those in need more than once a week.

In addition to being generous with their time, talent and treasure, people who experienced God’s love most frequently also were far more likely to strongly agree all people share an unbreakable bond of humanity, a strong predictor of benevolence. Scholars Matthew Lee, Margaret Poloma and Stephen Post share the survey findings, along with related research, in their new book, “The Heart of Religion.”

So it seems to be an especially good practice that so many Americans spend a great deal of time in prayer and other devotions, according to findings from the U.S. Congregational Life Survey.

About half of U.S. worshippers said they spend time in private devotional activities such as prayer, meditation or reading the Bible alone every day or most days. Two-thirds said they engaged in devotional activities at least a few times a week. 

We pray most often for ourselves and our families, according to a random sample of 846 Christian adults asked about their prayer practices as part of the 2008-2009 survey.

Three-quarters of respondents, including 81 percent of conservative Protestants and two-thirds of mainline Protestants, said they personally pray for themselves and their closest loved ones every day or most days.

But we also pray for more universal concerns. Consider these findings:

• More than half of respondents, including two-thirds of Catholics, said they pray at least once a week for world peace or an end to war.
• About half of respondents, including 59 percent of Catholics and 52 percent of mainline Protestants, reported praying at least weekly for an end to world hunger or poverty.
• Some four in 10 respondents, including 42 percent of conservative Protestants, said they prayed a great deal or quite a bit more often than in the past because of world and national events in the
  past five years.

The idea that communion with God leads to love of neighbor is deeply rooted within the Christian theological tradition.

What the latest research appears to affirm is that the stronger the connection individuals have with the divine, the more likely they are to move beyond caring for loved ones to embrace the world.

“As you come to know the depths of God’s love, it’s easier to give that love away,” Poloma said in an interview.

More good news: Getting closer to God is also a win-win proposition, researchers found. Individuals who reported experiencing God’s love more than once a day were far more likely to say they have a strong meaning and purpose in life and to both find “great joy” in helping others and to recognize the “great kindness” other people have shown to them, researchers found.

As we enter 2013, many of us may want to consider having one of our resolutions be to work on our spiritual lives. You, your loved ones and your neighbors near and far may all be better off.