My biggest research project for 2008 is something we're calling the Field Study of North American Megachurches. I'm joined by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research's Scott Thumma, one of America's leading scholars on very large churches. Together we're going to a carefully selected cross section of 12 churches ranging in attendance from 2,000 to 10,000, located across the continent, and covering a wide range of denominations and traditions.
Our first stop was earlier this week at Living Hope Church in greater Portland (technically Vancouver, WA). Attendance has grown in 8 years from several friends to 5,200 people. They did 1,542 baptisms, mostly adults, in 2007. Over our January weekend there, then did over 150 more baptisms. (On Easter 2006, they did 700 baptisms at an all-church gathering in a huge arena -- which might just be a national record for one church service in one day!)
Our task on these visits is to explore something that can be summarized through four questions:
- Why do people go to very large churches?
- How do they get involved?
- How do they grow spiritually?
- Why do people leave a big church?
John Bishop, founding pastor (who prefers to describe himself as "one of the pastors"), along with his team, rolled out the red carpet for us. We went Saturday through late Tuesday evening with ministry observations, interviews, and focus groups. Surveys are another aspect of the project -- with staff and the congregation. The idea is to learn a lot about the DNA and history of the church.
What impressed me most from our weekend?
1. Refreshingly they truly emphasize conversion growth. The pastors report that "about 90%" of those who are baptized say that they have received Christ into their lives that very day!
2. The church, like so many really big churches, grew out of a thriving youth ministry. There were other growth factors too, but it's intriguing that Willow Creek grew out of a youth ministry, Saddleback's Rick Warren was a young minister before starting Saddleback, and a bunch of other high-visibility churches had their roots in youth ministry, including Chuck Smith's Calvary Chapel, Don Wilson's Christ's Church of the Valley, Cal Jernigan's Central Christian Church, Dan Kimball's Vintage Christian Church, and Andy Stanley's North Point Community Church. Likewise leaders of many of today's most pioneering churches have strong youth connections, such as Danny Kyllonen's Crossover Community Church, with strong outreach to the hip-hop generation, which started as an urban youth ministry. Of course it doesn't always work out: one-time youth evangelist and Chapel Hill Harvester founder Earl Paulk was indicted this week for lying about his extra-marital affairs!
3. The facility is absolutely inadequate, with fire code limit of 652 in their worship area and having only one viable parking-lot exit onto the main drag. They pack in the crowds by using overflow rooms, multiple services, and regional campuses -- 13 total services each weekend! Small offices house multiple staff, and then get used for classrooms over the weekend. They do 3 Saturday services and 3 Sunday services, plus a 5 regional campuses. Yet every weekend over a hundred first-time visitors are willing to brave the odds to experience the life-transforming services. Living Hope is yet another example where the buzz is so powerful that it overcomes amazing obstacles.
4. Seekers as well as those who have been followers of Jesus for many years have found ways to grow spiritually. Our focus groups -- with newcomers, lay leaders, and long-term leaders -- illustrated this dynamic in many ways. Seekers tend to find enough spiritual stimulation in worship services. Longer-term believers affirm that they've found good friends at the church and with them they're part of small groups, Bible discussions, and other ways of deepening their faith. All are unified by a great passion for being the kind of church that wildly and passionately works to be accepting of anyone who needs Jesus.
Our next stop is Austin Stone Church in February. What do you think we'll discover there?
Warren Bird, Ph.D., is Research Director at Leadership Network, and co-author of 19 books on various aspects of church health and innovation.
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