TRENDS & Thom Rainer’s 15 Church Trends for 2015 #ThomRainer #LifeWay

Commentary by Dr. Whitesel: “Thom Ranier is a first-rate researcher as well as a friend. We both have received the Donald A. McGavran award for leadership in church growth. So when Thom comes out with his annual ‘trends for the year’ – everybody should take notice. Listen to this podcast for the details, but here are the major points.”

Some highlights from the episode include (taken from the website):

  • The Millennial generation is almost insisting on smaller worship gatherings.
  • A larger percentage of church attendees are attending larger churches.
  • The multi-teaching pastor trend we are seeing in churches is a healthy trend for pastors and churches.
  • In 2015, less than 5% of churches in America will continue to hold a separate Sunday evening service.
  • The majority of churches in America have been isolated from their community in recent years. But that is changing.
  • Denominations are becoming more streamlined with more money going to the mission field.
  • A church that does not put an emphasis on small groups is likely not a healthy church.

The 15 trends to look for in 2015 are:

  1. More partnerships between denominations and churches.
  2. Continued increased in the number of multi-site churches.
  3. Smaller worship gatherings.
  4. Continued flow of people from smaller churches to larger churches.
  5. The tipping point for a plurality of teaching pastors.
  6. The tipping point of churches eliminating Sunday evening worship services.
  7. Congregations growing in favor in their respective communities.
  8. The beginnings of prayer movement in our churches.
  9. More emphasis on congregational singing.
  10. More focus on theological education in local churches.
  11. The waning and reconfiguration of denominational structures.
  12. A rapid increase in bivocational church staff.
  13. Increased difficulty in matching prospective pastors with churches with pastoral vacancies.
  14. Growth of verbal incarnational evangelism.
  15. The tipping point for small groups.

Listen to more at … http://thomrainer.com/2015/01/23/15-church-trends-2015-rainer-leadership-092/