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Small church ministry isn’t less, but it is different. Read on to learn about the 4 reasons why small churches are awesome.
Small churches don’t have to grow big to be successful. In fact, many times it’s not God’s plan at all. With smaller numbers and smaller budgets, many small churches struggle trying to keep up with the big church next door, when they really should start embracing the gifts God’s uniquely given them instead. Small church ministry isn’t less, but it is different.
I want to invite you on the journey of discovering why small churches are awesome and, if you’re in a small church, how you can embrace God’s call right where you are.
4 Reasons Small Churches Are Awesome
1. God loves small.
Think about the one lost coin, the one lost sheep, the few loaves and fishes. God’s all about small!
He could have made analogies about anything He wanted, but He chose small. Think about how often He did that in the Bible.
How about the story of small little David up against Goliath? God didn’t have to use David. He could have found a big guy comparable to Goliath, but He didn’t. God chose small. He’s all about how bigger isn’t always better.
What about Gideon’s army? God actually made it smaller and smaller before He used it. When the Israelites were hungry in the desert, God could’ve rained down boulders of bread, but He didn’t. Instead, He sent little flakes of manna. And later in the New Testament, Jesus used a few loaves and fish. He told parables of one lost coin and one lost sheep. God loves small!
2. Relationships happen in small numbers, and lives are changed by relationships.
Another great thing about small churches has to do with relationships. One of the biggest desires of people is to be seen and loved. Attending a small church is so different from a large church. You don’t blend into the masses in a small church. You can’t be anonymous. Relational greatness happens in small numbers of people. There is a reason big churches break up into smaller groups for Bible studies or dinner groups; it’s because that’s where relationships happen.
In small churches, we don’t have to divide into small groups because we’re already there!
3. Small churches are intergenerational playgrounds.
Unlike big churches, where people are broken in demographics and lots of separate age groups, in a small church, you can’t help but mix the old and the young! And this is a good thing!
It’s ideal for living, loving, and learning about God and each other. It’s the way God created us to be. The Bible is full of examples of the older teaching the younger and different ages being together. God set up this intergenerational environment, and He did it on purpose. We are meant to do life with mixed ages.
4. Small churches are a great leadership training ground.
And the last thing I’ll mention here is there is so much room for growing leaders in small churches. Small churches have space for everyone to learn, serve, and lead. Large churches have opportunities to learn and serve too, but they just don’t develop leaders in the same way small churches can. There’s just not as much room.
Take worship leading for example: In a large church, they often hold auditions. A lot of people who want to play and sing don’t get chosen. In a small church, we’re like … I need a drummer! Who can learn? There’s lots of room for leadership training in small churches –– Sunday school teachers, ministry leaders, and more.
Small Churches Aren’t Better – Just Different
Now, I love small churches, mid-sized churches, and large churches. I believe God works in them all. So I’m not saying small churches are better –– they’re just different. And there are beautiful blessings when we embrace what God’s given us in small churches.
The gift of small churches is amazing. Mentoring, discipleship, being seen, being loved, doing life together in an extended family, growing in leadership, being a significant part of a community, being missed when you are gone, and each person being needed.
What Small Church Success Looks Like
So if small churches are so great, why do so many feel like they’re failing? One of the reasons many of us feel like we’re failing in small churches is because we’re trying to do things God didn’t create us for and we’re using resources never meant for us –– resources created for larger churches. It can look like we’re failing because the things we’re trying aren’t working. But often that’s because we’re trying the wrong things.
Instead of being the unique place God designed us to be, we’re trying to look like the big churches. Why? Because somebody told us that’s what successful ministry looks like. But it’s not true. It’s not biblical.
Think of the story of little David going up against Goliath again. God chose David on purpose.
Do you remember the story? Saul wanted David to wear armor so he’d be bigger and stronger. Can you imagine how silly David would’ve looked in armor that was too big and a helmet that wasn’t made for him? It would’ve been disastrous, awkward, and ineffective. Instead, David uses a slingshot and some stones. And he wins! Now, who gets the glory? God.
The beauty in small churches isn’t found when we’re trying to look like something we’re not. We need to embrace what God’s given us … relationships, discipleship, intergenerational relationships, a place where people are seen and heard, a leadership training ground!
That’s what we’re about at Small Church Ministry. Encouraging and equipping small churches to be exactly who God designed us to be.
Me & The Small Church Ministry Podcast
A few years ago, when I started the blog, smallchurchministry.com, I thought I was doing this cool thing, just sharing ideas we were using in my small church.
The more I connected with others in small churches, though, the more I realized the gap that existed in resources, training, and even in the truth about small churches.
Here’s the reality: Until now, the resources available in the marketplace are for large churches. Publishing houses and businesses need to make money –– larger churches have bigger budgets. So the majority of curriculum and resources out there are written for churches that have the budgets to pay for them –– large churches. But that’s not where most of us live.
You see, 80% of churches on the planet are under 100 people! Yet, those in small churches feel like they’re alone because they were never connected with other small churches –– until now. I never imagined that starting a blog would snowball into an entire community of 1000s of people in small churches craving to connect! People in small churches worldwide who are excited to join God at work and to connect with others who have the same struggles and the same successes too. We’re engaging in sharing creative solutions and finding what works, rediscovering the joy of being in a small church, and realizing the significance we have in our communities.
So join us if you’re ready to embrace a new way of serving in your small church.
- Wear fewer hats, but the right ones instead.
- Fall in love with the people at your church.
- Start using strategies that actually work in small churches instead of awkwardly adapting programs that were never designed for smaller numbers and smaller budgets.
- Find God in the middle of it all –– right where you’re planted.
Find us at the Small Church Ministry website, The Small Church Ministry Podcast, Small Church Summits quarterly online conferences, and in The Small Church Academy. Also, come and join us in our free Facebook community! We’re providing resources and a growing community of support for small churches all across the globe!
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