The Christian Chronicle (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 60, No. 11, Ed. 1, November 2003 Page: 4 of 35
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S' 55
INSIDE STORY
4 THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE
ON THE WEB
NOVEI
www.diristiandironide.org
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CLASSIFIEDS: schedule, write and
pay online.
• Online Resources: Be sure to check our
Web site for contact information on a wide
range of church resources, including
Camps/encampments, ministries, colleges
and universities, K-12 schools, missions
resources, publications, preacher training
schools, Restoration history sources.
• AIDS in Africa: Additional resources and
news about churches of Christ combatting
the AIDS pandemic in Africa.
• ICOC: Live links to web sites with news
and responses to the International Church
of Christ.
This month's Chronicle Online includes the
news and editorial material in the print
edition plus much more.To find us, see:
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Publisher: Oklahoma Christian University
General Manager: Lynn McMillon* lynn.maniHon@oc.edu
Editor: Bailey B. McBride • bailey.mcbride@oc.edu
Senior Editor R. Scott LaMascus • scott.lamascus@oc.edu
Senior Associate Editor Lindy Scobey Adams
National and Partners news • lindy.adams@oc.edu
Associate Editor Erik Tryggestad
International news and features • erik.tryggestad@oc.edu
Associate Editor Joy McMillon
Research ♦ joy.mcmillon@oc.edu
Advertising Manager: Jerry Lamb
Online and print advertising • jerry.lamb@oc.edu
Reviews Editor John Harrison
Book, musk and media reviews • john.harrison@oc.edu
Administrative Assistant: Virginia Ware
Calendar, anniversaries, birthdays, church Milestones,
and editorial questions ■ vitginia.wace@oc.edu
Administrative Assistant: Tonda Stafford
Circulation and business matters • tonda.stafford@oc.edu
How to reach us:
Delivery: 2501 [.Memorial Road, Edmond, OK 73013.
' Phone: (405) 425-5070-Fax: (405) 425-5076
Letters to the Editor e-mail chronkieletters@oc.edu or
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The Christian Chronicle* is owned and published monthly by
Oklahoma Christian University at P.O. Box 11000, Oklahoma
City,OK 73136-1100. Founded in 1943,The Christian Chronic^
is a newspaper committed to the highest standards of jour-
nalistic excellence and seeks to inform, inspire, and unite
churches of Christ worldwide.
The Christian Chronkle^s not a teaching publication, but a
newspaper with news and opinion content in sections dearly
labeled. Therefore, news coverage does not necessarily repre
sent endorsement, but rather represents statements of fact
according to the cited sources. Likewise advertisements do
not necessarily represent endorsements Signed columns and
reviews reflect the opinions of the authors and do not neces
sarity represent the views of the editors and the staff of The
Christian Chronkle*or the university. The staff holds to the
fundamental beliefs and doctrines of churches of Christ.
Distributed monthly to homes for a $20 enrollment fee, The
Christian Chronkle^lso is available online at
www christianchronkle.org. The name The Christian Chronicle*'
and the globe nameplate are trademarked symbols
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Growth: Purpose,
not size, is the key
FROM PAGE 3
reported that the average size of our con-
gregations is 97 and if you look at his list
of largest 30 congregations by size, they
• Keith Lancaster: Additional questions and quickly dwindle down from the largest, at
answers from the founder Acappella in
addition to those in our Dialogue interview.
_
about 4,000 members, to about 1,000.
Out of 13,000 congregations, we have
fewer than a dozen with more than 2,000
members.
How you feel about this may depend on
which side of the bread you put your the-
ological, economic, and social butter. Do
you cringe? Does congregation size con-
firm something to you — about success
or failure?
Barna’s study points in several direc-
tions for moving our congregations
toward health and vigor.
First, size is not a magical issue. So-
called baby busters prefer smaller con-
gregations, Barna reports. Mega-church
models are preferred by the older, baby-
boomer generation. One-fourth of boom-
ers attend churches of 500 or more, com-
pared with one-sixth of baby busters.
Second, Barna reports that mega-
churches may grab the headlines, but it is
the mid-sized and small congregations
that hold potential for growth. “We antici-
pate mid-sized churches becoming a
more significant force in the future, with
many of those churches spawning new
congregations rather than expanding to
become megachurches,” Barna writes.
Is it time to start church planting to
more neighborhoods and towns?
I’m not surprised that the appeal of size
is shaped by expectations about what a
church does and how it goes about it.
Listen to the voice of the Savior, calling,
knocking at the door. It is to transforma-
tion that Jesus calls each Christian and to
His purposes that each congregation
must listen. Growth is the natural result
of following Him.
And Barna confirms that it is this
health of a congregation that matters —
whatever the size. An unhealthy, stagnant
church can be small or large.
Go to www.christianchronicle.org for
links to more details about Barna’s
research. We’re not the only ones talking
about growth, either. Our website will
give links to what other fellowships are
saying about megachurches and models
for healthy congregations.
Barna’s study, above all, reminds us
how easy it is to slip into worldy ways of
thinking of the church.
In our lost and dying world, are you
busy cursing the darkness?
Rather, fight the culture of irrationalism
that holds “whatever” to be the best
answer to all questions.
Rather, connect with people driven into
ghettos of isolation and fear.
Rather, call those who seek privilege
and priority sg they may discover lives of
meaning through service and sacrifice.
Rather, call the world of retribution
toward reconciliation and peace.
This is a glimpse of our glorious Light
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McBride, Bailey. The Christian Chronicle (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 60, No. 11, Ed. 1, November 2003, newspaper, November 2003; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1308296/m1/4/: accessed July 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.