Welcome From The Office of Leadership Department Florida Baptist Convention 1230 Hendricks Ave Jacksonville FL 32207 8

6. Workshop Objectives As a result of this workshop you will be able to: Explain why the 200 barrier exists Identify causes of the 200 barrier Develop a strategy for leading your church beyond 200

7. So What?! More people can be exposed to the gospel message (Matthew 4:19) More people can choose to become fully devoted followers of Christ (Matthew 28:18-20) More corporate opportunities for God to use our lives as platforms on which to display His glory and goodness (Matthew 5:16-18)

10. Laying The Groundwork For Navigating Barriers The size of a congregation is the most critical variable in predicting how it behaves. Leaders must take seriously the importance of their church�s size, if we mismatch size and leadership systems, it will likely lead to conflict, dysfunction, and paralysis of the local body of Christ.

11. Laying The Groundwork For Navigating Barriers Leadership systems The way change is initiated The way decisions are made The way the church is organized The way staff is called The way the pastor is expected to lead

12. Laying The Groundwork For Navigating Barriers Growing congregations, like individuals, develop through predictable stages over time. Releasing the potential of your church to �make disciples� requires a willingness by the pastor and people to address organizational issues that will hinder their disciple making ability.

13. Laying The Groundwork For Navigating Barriers The Journey to the church of the future that is the longest, hardest and yet most important begins in the pastor�s heart and mind.

14. What Are Barriers And Why Do They Exist? A barrier is any non-biblical obstacle that limits your church�s ability to expose people to the life-transforming message of Jesus Christ.

15. A Growth Barrier�

16. What Are Barriers And Why Do They Exist? Physical Barriers Parking limitations Lack of educational or worship space Too few new units Too few leaders Ministries that do not match community needs

17. What Are Barriers And Why Do They Exist? Attitudinal Barriers Small church attitude Ineffective evangelism Inadequate/unevaluated programming Negative momentum Ingrown fellowship Low passion or energy in key leadership

18. What Are Barriers And Why Do They Exist? Barriers exist because congregations of different sizes have different value systems. A value that is a strength at one size becomes a weakness at another size. Our values drive our behavior.

19. 3 Basic Church Sizes Small � Under 200 in worship (82.%) Medium � 200 to 400 in worship (12.2%) Large � Over 400 in worship (5.8%)

21. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

22. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

23. The Small Church

24. The Truth About Churches Under 200 In Worship

25. The Medium Sized Church

26. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

27. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

30. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

32. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

33. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

34. What Needs To Be Embraced To Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier?

39.  How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? Embrace the fact that �healthy things grow� Go to school on healthy leaders and healthy churches that are one or two tiers ahead of you and in a similar setting Lead your church to focus on becoming healthier not just bigger

40. Studies Show Church health cannot be achieved or maintained without:

41. Your Job Is Not To Make Your Church Grow, But To Remove The Barriers That Keep It From Being As Healthy As Possible

42. How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? Pray for and communicate a sense of urgency that answers the question, �Why should I use my time, talent, influence and resources to help our church move past the 200 barrier?�

43. How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? Pray for God to surface and help you identify people in your ministry who have the influence, passion, skills and energy to come along side of you and help your church navigate the 200 barrier. Unite and commission these people to be the team that will help you create a �vision path� that will guide the church through the 200 barrier.

44. How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? Use a proven process that will equip you to systematically create a vision path to help lead your church through change. In the change process you will need to move toward shaping the values of your church from a �small church� value system to a �medium church� or �large church� value system.

45. Your Vision Path

46. How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? As you lead your church through change, the vision path you develop will be uniquely yours. We certainly learn from other ministries but we cannot copy our way to effectiveness. There are however, some basic steps that many churches have used as a launching point in the creation of their vision path:

47. How Can I Help My Church Effectively Navigate The 200 Barrier? Renew a sense of congregational purpose Begin new ministries Cultivate an evangelistic/outreach focused mindset Celebrate victories along the way Start new small groups/classes Involve new people in all areas of church life