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i was thinking this afternoon about what it’s like to be part of a smaller church family. with nearly three hundred people who call us “family”, north point is over twice as large as the median church size in america. but in spite of being large, compared to most, we still sit in the shadow of lots of larger churches. having intersected with churches of all sizes throughout my lifetime (as staff, speaker, consultant, or simply a friend), i am now a bona fide expert.
…of being a part of a church family.
here’s my evening dollop of wisdom. there are reasons people gravitate to smaller churches. and those same reasons can become the motivation for different people to leave those same smaller churches. check out these characteristics of smaller churches:
when you don’t make it to the big weekly church meeting, you are really missed. there will probably be a lot of people who know who you are…warts and all. your sins get magnified and it’s really hard to hide. you’ll know that your money is really needed…and you’ll probably feel guilty for not giving more. you can park close to the church building without identifying yourself as a visitor. in fact, you don’t have to deal with those pesky parking lot guys. you could seriously think the preacher was preaching a sermon about you…because he knows you personally. if you don’t do it, it may not get done at all. your involvement is genuinely needed. there are fewer choices on the program buffet line. you’ll have to learn to like people. and they’ll have to learn to like you. regular people have the opportunity to influence how things are done. you’ll get asked to help fix things. paying to get things done is a luxury. you always sit within thirty feet of the stage when the band plays. you better like your music loud. people will tell you, face-to-face…nose-to-nose…friend-to-friend, that you need to do your share of the serving.
it’s funny how these characteristics are the very things that draw some people to a particular church family, but are also the very things that cause other people to leave those same church families, in search of something bigger.
what do you think?
can you think of any more characteristics that either draw you to a smaller church family or push you away?
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