Church Growth Resources
Small Church
Explore valuable resources and engaging webinars designed for small churches.
Recorded Webinars
Discover how small churches can thrive. Our webinars cover key topics on small church’s strengths and challenges.
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Additional resources
About Small Churches
Small but Steady Witness: Big Lessons from Little Churches
This article on The Presbyterian Outlook site describes one pastor’s experience at a small church and the benefits of small churches.
The Small Church Primer: Strengths, Weaknesses, Worship, and Music in the Small-Membership Church
The intent of this article is to examine some of the problems encountered by small churches as discussed by small church leaders and members.
Community Ministry
Doing Community Ministry in the Small Church
This article by Joy Skjegstad discusses how the small church can make a big impact in the world through partnerships, creative use of resources, and a focus on relational ministry.
Five Ways Small Churches Can Have a Big Impact
You’ll read here how small churches can have a big impact on their congregation and their communities.
Resources for Small Churches
Small Church Resources
The Episcopal Diocese of Northwest Texas offers this list of compiled for small churches.
Websites and Tools
The Missouri Conference of the UMC offers links to useful websites, funding sources, and tools related to ministry in small church or rural ministry contexts.
Small Church Vitality
5 Ways Forward for Very Small Congregations
The percentage of U.S. churches with attendance of 100 or fewer increased from 45 percent in 2000 to 70 percent in 2020. Lovett H. Weems Jr. shares relevant data while also considering the distinctive calling of very small congregations and ways they can embrace a more positive future.
A New Way to View Small Church Vitality
This article describes a dynamic equilibrium for small to mid-sized congregations suggesting we hold that condition before them as a measure of vitality.
Thriving in Rural & Small Town Churches
This 3-part Nurture the Soul series featuring the vitality and thriving experiences of rural and small-town church settings. UCC church members and pastoral leaders share their personal experiences of life in rural and small towns and the innovative ways of doing church and ministry in these settings.
Worship
Build on Your Strengths: Worship Advice for Small Churches
This article discusses how worship is typically central for small church congregants in a way that it may or may not be for those attending a larger, more programmatically oriented church, along with ways for small churches to introduce changes in worship.
Small Church, Big Worship
This article talks about the struggles and positive aspects of small church worship.