Tag Archives: Karl Vaters

Book: 100 Days to a Healthier Church (A Step By Step Guide for Pastors and Leadership Teams) by Karl Vaters

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100 days to a healthier church

This book 100 Days to a Healthier Church, by Karl Vaters is written in a devotional format, and the principles laid out here are not the usual one-time, quick-fix solutions. They are long-term principles—nudges, not jumps (think of the tortoise and not the hare). The book is divided into four main steps over 14 weeks.

Healthy change can be your new church normal. Health carries its own momentum—the momentum of hope. Getting healthy isn’t about numerical growth. It’s about striving to increase our capacity for effective ministry no matter what size we are now—or what size we may become.

The underlying principles of church health – namely, the Great Commandment and the Great Commission – are more essential now than ever. How we make disciples will always be a greater reflection of a church’s health and vitality than how well-produced our online video content is.

There are few things in life as encouraging as having a parent, coach, or teacher put their arm around you and point you in the right direction, and this book will help churches of all different sizes become more intentional about maintaining their spiritual health.

How to get this resource:

Book: The Grasshopper Myth (Big Churches, Small Churches and the Small Thinking that Divides Us) by Karl Vaters

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When the Hebrews were at the edge of the Promised Land, ten of the twelve spies come back with this report: “All the people we saw there are of great size… We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” Numbers 13:32-33

The grasshopper myth is the false impression that our Small Churches are less than what God says it is because we compare ourselves with others. The solution is for Small Churches to see themselves the way God sees them.

A church of innovation, not stagnation. A church that leads instead of following. A church that thinks small, but never engages in small thinking

If big churches are the cruise ships on the church ocean, small churches can be the speedboats. They can move faster, maneuver more deftly, squeeze into tighter spaces and have a ton of fun doing it. They just have to see themselves that way.

We’ve come to realize that our small size is not a problem to be fixed, but a strategic advantage God wants to use. We’re heading out with vision, faith and courage into places God wants us to go. Places giants cannot tread.

If you read this book you’ll find your thinking challenged, your heart encouraged and your life and ministry transformed.

How to get this resource:

For Innovative Leadership from a Small Church Perspective check out the Christianity Today Blog called pivot by Karl Vaters

Book: Small Church Essentials (Field-Tested Principles for Leading a Healthy Congregation of Under 250) by Karl Vaters

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Did you know that big churches are a small part of the church landscape? In fact, more than 90 percent of churches have fewer than 200 people. That means small churches play a big part in what God is doing.

Isn’t Bigger Better? We’ve all heard this phrase and it’s crept into the church culture too. There is an unhealthy obsession with growing bigger churches in America. Building the church is clearly Jesus’ job, not ours. Jesus said “I will build my church”. But he did not say “I will build bigger churches.”

If God says our church fellowship is big enough to do what he wants us to do, no matter how few of us there are, who are we to argue? It’s time to stop worrying about what we can’t do because we’re small, and start asking what Jesus can do with us because we’re small and healthy.

The giant coffee company Starbucks only builds small coffeehouses with a mission to create a culture of warmth and belonging, were everyone is welcome. Small does not mean unhealthy, insular, poorly managed, or settling for less.

Both big and small churches play vital roles in the kingdom of God, but they each require a different set of tools. Most church resources are produced by big churches that works well for big churches, yet most churches are small.

“Small Church Essentials” is for those who desire to be fruitful as a smaller congregation. You’ll find this book will encourage you, debunks myths, and offers principles for leading and helping a dynamic, healthy small church.

How to get this resource:

For Innovative Leadership from a Small Church Perspective check out the Christianity Today Blog called pivot by Karl Vaters