This is in response to Sar's comment:
I think it depends on the size of the town and how effective the church is - plus its vision. I've lived in smaller towns in the NW and most of the churches I've gone to don't exceed 300. But if you're going to LA or San Fran, yeah, there's a lot more big churches. But there are also small churches all over the place. I think the biggest church in Eugene is aroun 1200 or so, but I know of at least four churches that run 100 or so. A lot depends on the publicity that the church gets. A large congregation with a large building is a lot more noticable than a small church that meets in a school.
Being in a larger city gives me more appreciation for the larger church because they draw off a larger population base, but I often wonder just how effective they are. They have the budget to run a good sunday service, but are they actually discipling and caring for people? Some are, some aren't. I think the ones that are effecting people are the ones that have a cell group program that gets people in a group to learn more about God.
I'm very much a relational person and I look at large churches and almost cringe because I know that the pastor can't possibly know a quarter of the congregation. I've grown up in and attended churches where the pastor was able to minister to most of the congregation and those that he didn't get to were ministered to by the leaders in the church. This really is the core of what I envision church as. I see a pastor shepherding around 100-200 people. But when you really think about it, that barely dents the surface of a city's/town's population. I read somewhere that Eugene is one of the most unchurched cities in OR, if not the US. Yet you drive down 18th and there's 15 or so church buildings. It makes me wonder why people aren't in the churches.
I think some of it has to do with the culture today. Churches are associated with boring and hours of droning. TV has priests and pastors being wishy-washy and corrupt. Even I, who grew up in church and grew up loving God, have a problem with church buildings. That's why I'm more comfortable going to a school and worshiping in the cafeteria. And I know that more and more churches are doing that.
I don't know if I've talked about this on here, but I have felt like God may be leading me in the direction of planting a church. Well, I have some what of an idea of how I want to do this. I don't want to enter a town, build a building and then get my congregation from those who have already accepted Christ and are just going from church to church. I can see myself working in a community, developing relationships with my neighbors, eventually having a home church come out of that.
But I really don't know what it'll look like when God gives me the goahead. I do know it'll be a relational church, whatever the organization of it is.
I think it depends on the size of the town and how effective the church is - plus its vision. I've lived in smaller towns in the NW and most of the churches I've gone to don't exceed 300. But if you're going to LA or San Fran, yeah, there's a lot more big churches. But there are also small churches all over the place. I think the biggest church in Eugene is aroun 1200 or so, but I know of at least four churches that run 100 or so. A lot depends on the publicity that the church gets. A large congregation with a large building is a lot more noticable than a small church that meets in a school.
Being in a larger city gives me more appreciation for the larger church because they draw off a larger population base, but I often wonder just how effective they are. They have the budget to run a good sunday service, but are they actually discipling and caring for people? Some are, some aren't. I think the ones that are effecting people are the ones that have a cell group program that gets people in a group to learn more about God.
I'm very much a relational person and I look at large churches and almost cringe because I know that the pastor can't possibly know a quarter of the congregation. I've grown up in and attended churches where the pastor was able to minister to most of the congregation and those that he didn't get to were ministered to by the leaders in the church. This really is the core of what I envision church as. I see a pastor shepherding around 100-200 people. But when you really think about it, that barely dents the surface of a city's/town's population. I read somewhere that Eugene is one of the most unchurched cities in OR, if not the US. Yet you drive down 18th and there's 15 or so church buildings. It makes me wonder why people aren't in the churches.
I think some of it has to do with the culture today. Churches are associated with boring and hours of droning. TV has priests and pastors being wishy-washy and corrupt. Even I, who grew up in church and grew up loving God, have a problem with church buildings. That's why I'm more comfortable going to a school and worshiping in the cafeteria. And I know that more and more churches are doing that.
I don't know if I've talked about this on here, but I have felt like God may be leading me in the direction of planting a church. Well, I have some what of an idea of how I want to do this. I don't want to enter a town, build a building and then get my congregation from those who have already accepted Christ and are just going from church to church. I can see myself working in a community, developing relationships with my neighbors, eventually having a home church come out of that.
But I really don't know what it'll look like when God gives me the goahead. I do know it'll be a relational church, whatever the organization of it is.
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