Eric Camp for MS House District 111

In Church Growth, there are lids at various numbers and levels. The 200 lid, the 500 lid, the 800 lid,  the 1000 lid, etc… I have often wondered about these lids and why they occur. Being that Oasis Church is around the 700-800 mark now I think I can see somewhat of a lid forming. So what causes these lids? That I have given great thought about and think I have come up with some of the lids that we create.

1. Worship Facilities. The facilities can be a lid if we dont start running multiple services when we get 70-80% full. This includes your children’s area, your parking area, and your auditorium space. People want room and room is needed. So many pastors are scared to go to multiple services, but I promise you it will allow for at least a 20% growth. I was that pastor. When we started multiple services a year ago, we great another 20-30% within 6 months. MAKE ROOM! By the way, I love having multiple services. We dont do Sunday nights because we focus everything on the Sunday morning experiences!

2. Staff. Yes, I said staff. As the pastor, you have the primary responsibility of preaching and empowering. You must constantly preach vision to your staff and church and empower the staff to execute. Too many pastors dont release staff and want to take total thumb print control and will never grow. On the other hand, sometimes staff arent wired and geared to go where your vision may be leading you. Not that they are bad people, but sometimes they just cant take you to the next level and thus a lid gets created. You can tell this if the Pastor is constantly having to follow up with leaders. If you are a leader and your pastor has to follow up with you and constantly stay on you about doing whatever, you are the lid. You are not completing your arm of the vision and the pastor cant stay focused on leading to the next level because he is constantly having to pry the lid off and thus wasting time doing the job himself that he is paying you to do… just sayin…

This is a touch subject for many pastors and it is difficult because we love our people, we love our staff, but albeit, there comes a time when the best thing you can do pastor is let someone go. Full-time and compensated staff have to be led, but also have to managed like a business. We are in the people business. We are in the sin business. A youth pastor might could handle 50 in their youth group, but not 150. Guess what? You’ll never see 150 in that youth group.

Personally, I love what Rick Warren has always said, “pastors, you must lead your church as if you are 5 times larger than it already is.” Are you doing that? If not, YOU have created a lid. Most lids in my opinion are not the result of any spiritual dynamic, it is what we create. Many people like being small and alot of people dont want to reach more people… “Everyone wants to reach people until you start reaching people…” Let me remind you, if you are a pastor or Church Leader… YOUR JOB IS TO REACH PEOPLE. No matter what Susie Bell on the front row has to say about it!

So my encouragement to you if you are a pastor or church leader, dont allow lids to be created. Challenge yourself to initiate and do more than you have done. Get behind your pastor and EXCEL! I tell my staff all the time, “Dont bring me a problem without a solution. I will not do your job for you.” Take as much off your pastor as you can, I promise, unless you have been there, you dont know the pressure and struggle that being a Sr. Pastor really is!

I will be adding additional discussion on lids in the coming days.

Have a great weekend!