Outreach Lessons
From the
Fastest Growing
Megachurches
Scott Thumma
Hartford Institute For Religion Research
www.hartfordinstitute.org
Basic Definition:
A megachurch is any Protestant Christian
congregation with a sustained average
weekly attendance of 2000 persons or more
in its worship services.
The over 1200 Protestant
megachurches in the United States
share many other traits.
Virtually all megachurches have a
conservative Christian theology, a large
number are nondenominational, most have an
active small group ministry, and the majority
have multiple services with a contemporary
worship style.
Growth of Megachurches
1400
number of churches
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
2005
The bottom line for the success of megachurches is
they attract and retain more persons over time
than do other churches.
How Do They Grow?
It is not what megachurches “do”
in terms of Evangelistic Programs
and Outreach,
that makes them grow.
Megachurches grow because
excited attendees tell their friends.
Church structures and programs assist
in promoting this excitement
and responding to new people, but
Programs DO NOT Create Growth!
They Evangelize
Nearly all megachurches emphasis evangelism and
No
recruitment activities
Minor
Emphasis
37%
Emphasis
5%
Key Activity
58%
And Their Members Evangelize
To what extent are your congregation’s members
involved in recruiting new members?
50
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Not at all
A little
Some
A lot
Over 6000 attendees of Very Large churches were asked,
Are you ready to talk about your faith?
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Don't like Hard to Easy to Seek
to talk express express times to
talk
And they were asked,
Do you invite your friends and relatives?
70
60
Percent
50
40
30
20
10
0
No
Yes, not in Yes, in past Don't know
past year
year
And The Churches Do Many Other
Things to Reach Out
Percent of congregations who did the following outreach efforts in the past
12 months.
Established or maintained a web site
Encouraged members to invite others to worship
Encouraged members to tell others about faith
Sponsored a program or event to attract visitors
Mailed or distributed newsletters, letters, or flyers
Advertised on radio or TV or in a newspaper
Developed a plan to recruit new embers
Contacted those who recently moved into area
MEGA
FACT
96%
94%
93%
84%
77%
75%
60%
41%
57%
98%
95%
70%
69%
70%
51%
48%
Then They Follow Up On The Evangelism
How are visitors contacted after they attend your
worship services?
MEGA
7% We rarely, if ever, contact our visitors
FACT
7%
77% We contact our visitors by mail
66%
70% We contact our visitors by phone
52%
38% We contact our visitors by e-mail
19%
29% We contact our visitors by personal visit 49%
They have a
strategy for
getting
people in the
door
BUT they
excel at using
intentional
efforts to
keep them in.
They Try to Incorporate New Persons
Into The Church
In the 2000 study:
96% strongly encourage new members to volunteer
in the congregation’s ministries
76% require an informational class
32% assign a “mentor” to help incorporate
new persons into the church
They Empower All the Members
To develop their gifts &
To become leaders
Percent
Encouraged to discover and use your gifts here?
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Not at all
Small extent Some extent Great extent
And include them in the direction –
decisions of the Church
37% of attendees say they are often or occasionally involved in
decision making
Percent
Minister takes into account attendees’ ideas
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Not at all
Small
extent
Some
extent
Great
extent
Don't
know
They Offer Spiritual Worship and
Spiritual Development of Attenders
That Has Real Substance
Percent
Attenders’ Spiritual Needs Are Being Met
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Strongly Disagree Unsure
disagree
Agree Strongly
agree
And A Worship Service That Helps
Attendees With Everyday Life
60
50
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Not at all
Small extent Some extent Great extent
A Service That Is Marked By
Contemporary, Exciting and Inspirational Worship
Percent
Worship And A Church Atmosphere That Creates
Excitement About The Future
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Strongly Disagree Neutral
disagree
Agree Strongly
agree
And In Turn, Members Who Want To Invite Others
To what extent are your congregation’s members
involved in recruiting new members?
50
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Not at all
A little
Mega
Some
FACT
A lot
All the characteristics mentioned are strongly
correlated to increased rates of growth over 5 years
No matter what the size of the church.
But these characteristics are EVEN
strongly related to
the rate of growth over 5 years
when looking just at the
differences in the growth
of the megachurches.
Not All The Megachurches Grew At The Same Rates
Those that grew the fastest in 5 years…
Were more likely to have their worship
described as:
• Being Informal**
•Filled with Presence of God
•Joyful
•Exciting **
•Inspirational
•And Thought-provoking
When compared to all other megachurches.
Those that grew the fastest in 5 years…
Were more likely to describe their church as:
• more spiritually vital and alive
• having a clear mission and vision
• holding strong beliefs
• being willing to meet new challenges
• and as welcoming innovation and change
When compared to all other megachurches.
Those that grew the fastest in 5 years…
DID NOT engage in more evangelistic programs
DID NOT do more:
•Advertising
•Sponsoring visitor events
•Special activities for visitors
•Contacting of people in the community
•Or follow up with visitors to the church
When compared to all other megachurches.
Those that grew the fastest in 5 years…
DID inspire members to be involved in recruitment
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
% churches
saying "a
lot" of
members
involved in
recruiting
N
o
ow
r
g
th
o
rd
...
c
e
1
0%
2
-
ow
r
g
2
th
0%
5
1-
ow
r
g
th
-1
1
5
%
00
o
gr
O
w
th
1
r
ve
%
0
0
gr
h
t
ow
When compared to all other megachurches.
Megachurch Outreach Lessons
•Evangelize in every way you can
•Challenge members to invite others
•Follow up on those who come
•Incorporate new people into the life of the church
•Empower all members to develop their gifts
and to use them
•Offer lively contemporary worship
•Preach sermons of substance and relevance to
everyday life
Megachurch Learnings
1) Don't strive for size; strive to serve God.
2) Know your audience and speak their language
– who is God calling you to reach?
3) Make it appealing and welcoming, then make it
serious and challenging.
4) Church is more than just a "Sunday thing."
5) Create participants rather than members.
6) Get new attendees/ everyone involved.
7) Intentionally inter-connect the congregation.
8) Growth in the faith isn’t just for new
Christians; it’s for the saints too.
9) Empower people to identify and live out their
calling.
10) Whatever you do - do it with quality.