This is part of a series of interviews with pastors of churches whose attendance has grown 20% or more in 5 years. We hope this series will be a resource of ideas to help increase worship attendance at your church.

Experiencing growth almost every year for 20 years

Cornerstone UMC was founded in 1990 as a result of an intentional parachute drop church plant in the West Michigan Conference. The phrase “parachute drop” is not entirely accurate in this case. While there was not a “sponsoring” church officially recognized by the conference, I was serving as an associate pastor about 10 miles from the launch area. Approximately 25 friends and committed Christ followers decided to engage in this adventure with me and my wife Colleen.

We launched a first worship experience within 6 months of the appointment. By the end of year one, we were able to charter as a UM church with 129 charter members. Cornerstone met in a high school auditorium that had seating for over 700. At first I thought that perhaps 120 people might feel lost, a visitor came in and exclaimed, “It looks like you’re expecting a crowd.” I decided that his phrase would become our motto. We were a church who “expected a crowd.” That invitational spirit became deeply embedded in Cornerstone people and continues now 20 years later.

I announced a capital campaign within six months of the first service. I wanted people to have a vision for moving to the next stage. That campaign plus consistent growth in numbers, depth, and stewardship, helped us manage to save $700,000 after 6 years. By 1997 Cornerstone had moved into a first facility with about 25,000 square feet of space. Two more additions came to expand the building to 36,000 sq. ft. in the next few years. The church was located in a suburb of Grand Rapids, MI, and development around the area continued to grow. The only downside of the site was its perimeter of 12 acres with no more available space to purchase.

Image Courtesy MLive

After 12 years on that site, Cornerstone decided to relocate 2 miles away on 38 acres. We completed this $12 million facility in 2009 during one of the worst recessions in Michigan for many years. God has been faithful with miracle after miracle in providing necessary funds, sale of the older facility, and generous givers at the right moment. The church has experienced an average of 10% growth almost every year of our 20 year existence. If you were to ask me why some churches do not grow and others do, I would point you to three obvious growth obstacles:

1. Space. You must have adequate space and functional space to continue to grow. Many churches settle for limited access, unusable space, or space that is unwelcoming to outsiders. After 10 years in the first building, our Trustees had the foresight and courage to recommend a relocation. Speaking of Trustees, we do not invite only “fix it” people as some churches do. We ask our Trustees to be strategic thinkers looking beyond the average church attender for vision and direction. Between deciding to move and the actual move itself, 2-3 years transpired and overcrowding became a serious problem. Crowded hallways, classrooms, gathering area, and worship space are all turn offs to newcomers. During the last 6 months in the old facility, our attendance dropped by 1%, the first decline in the history of the church. After moving, attendance grew by 35% in the first 6 months! Is your space adequate? Is it inviting? Is it accessible? Is it contemporary? These are all tough questions churches must ask thinking of how the person “outside” feels about it.

2. Service Times. Most churches who stay the same or decline in growth, have static service times, the wrong service times for the mission field, or service times that are set for the comfort of those already attending.  A new service can be a catalyst for growth if planned and approached well. It may involve a brand new time, a new day, or even a new style. Some churches insist on protecting the “sacred Sunday school hour” at the expense of growing their attendance. I even heard of one pastor who refused to lead a second service because he was “not going to work that hard.” Times should be selected based on the mission field and “who is not here yet.”

3. Leadership development. A turning point came at Cornerstone when we hired a consultant to come for one afternoon and spend it with our key staff. He challenged our staff to stop doing 95% of the ministry. He said that to get to the next level, staff must begin to recruit leaders who then recruit volunteers. We needed to add that middle level of management. When that began to happen, our impact grew exponentially. Most key staff people are hired because they are “good at what they do.” They often fail to transition to management as the church grows.

Of course, I didn’t touch on relevant worship, music, life groups systems, kid’s ministry, student ministry, hospitality, and outreach, all of which are vital to sustained growth. But the three mentioned above are three that Cornerstone successfully faced and moved beyond. You can do it as well.

Dr. Brad Kalajainen – BradK@cornerchurch.org
Lead Pastor
Cornerstone UMC, Grand Rapids, MI
Church website:  http://www.cornerstonemi.org