If it was easy to grow a church, then 8 out of 10 would not fail in the first year (at least that is what I hear). If it was easy to grow a church, there would be a megachurch for every grocery store. If this church planting thing was easy, we wouldn’t have to work so hard.Â

There is a reason that even the most evangelistic churches stop growing. It may be a lack of room, lack of leadership, or a lack of vision. It may be a frame of reference for what the church should look like. It may be preconceived notions of what the church is according to our “parent’s churchâ€? or even the biggest and most successful churches in the country.Â

The first question is how do you measure growth? At Elevation, we are very objective. We like to set goals that are measurable and quantitative. We say often that we are all about the numbers and that is the truth- we are all about the number of lives changed in Charlotte.Â

Different seasons of church growth require different metrics. We measure our growth by the attendance numbers and ask ourselves; “are we reaching new people?â€? We count salvation and baptism totals to hold ourselves accountable to seeing people far from God filled with life in Christ. We measure the number of adults in our small group structure to see if we are getting people involved in community and the discipleship process. We count our volunteer numbers to make sure we see growth in people serving. We also gauge the culture of generosity we are creating as a church through tithes and offerings. Different seasons bring growth in different areas but these are the primary objective ways we quantify growth at Elevation.Â

But it is hard to grow a church. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. You have to make tough decisions that effect people’s lives but if you are not willing to make them then the church may not advance. You’ll have to lose people that got you where you are, you’ll have to move from the location that you feel like contributed to your growth, and you’ll have to raise a lot of money because growing a church ain’t cheap. Every time the church grows, the level of your decision making goes up. If you study church growth, you’ll see the natural attendance barriers of 300, 500, 1000, and 2000. Each one has a reason but it’s the church leaders’ responsibility to find a way to get past these barriers that are primarily defined by comfort.Â

It sounds like fun, but don’t forget the other words that describe growing a church: grueling, hard work, painful, sacrifice, lonely, and challenging. All things that you must go through to experience the reward, fulfillment, satisfaction, and joy of seeing people far from God filled with life in Christ.Â

Chunks Corbett, Executive Pastor

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I like to play golf, workout, and cheer the Florida Gators on to multiple
national championships. But my new #1 hobby is talking about church
planting. I guess I’m really no different than anyone else who enjoys their
job. Even when I’m not “on the clock”, my conversations these days always
involve church stuff. One of the things we do at Elevation that I love is
bringing in church planters from all over the country to see what God is
doing here and sharing thoughts and ideas on ministry.

I really enjoy it- it’s not a burden but a calling. The heart of Elevation
is to equip and help other churches. And I really like it. In some ways I
guess it has become a hobby of mine more than a part of my job description
to spend time with other church planters.

I used to wonder why when Pastor Furtick and I spent time together outside
of the office we still talked about the same things we discussed at the
office. I used to feel like it was somewhat unhealthy that my conversations
outside of work always seemed to focus on the church.

Then I realized that my job is to be the Executive Pastor of Elevation
Church but my hobby is church planting. I’ve never really had a job that I
talked about and thought so much about outside of the 8-5 work day. And it’s
no coincidence that I’ve never had a job that I also enjoyed talking about
as a hobby.

This weekend I was able to spend some time with the guys at Oakleaf Church
in Cartersville, GA.- Michael and Anthony even gave me a free golf lesson.
Next week we’ll have the gang from Ridge Stone Church coming down (we
probably won’t pick a fight- they’re Georgia boys). I think that Gary Lamb
would be voted most popular in the church planting world if someone took a
vote. Everybody likes Gary including Elevation Church. We’ll also have
Daniel Floyd in from Lighthouse Church in Virginia- another guy who’s
getting it done. And to complete the weekend we’ll have the guy who’s going
to revolutionize Burlington NC- Tadd Grandstaff and his crew.

Not a bad lineup over two weeks- We should have planned a round table
discussion or something. God has given Elevation Church a platform to have
national influence. We have been able to join some great churches in kingdom
work by sharing ideas and doing my new found favorite hobby- Talking about
Church Planting.

Chunks Corbett, Executive Pastor

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This post is by far one of the most important concepts that has affected the overall atmosphere on a Sunday morning at Elevation Church. It’s really pretty basic and probably something on every church planter’s checklist. But I think it’s also one of the first things that may lose its priority especially when there is no easy solution. We’ve learned that it’s not free Starbucks coffee but rather room seating dynamics that dictate the energy level in our Sunday Morning Worship Experiences. And this is something that we are very intentional about controlling.

I know- here they go again; the church is manipulating people by controlling the environment on Sunday morning. No- the church is actually using their brains to create a distraction-free environment for the God of the universe to speak to those who may not know him. Why not control a room? What’s more distracting than an empty room and empty seats?

The golden rule in church planting has always been that a room that is 80% full is done growing. And there is a lot of truth to this but I’d argue that a room that is less than 80% full is not only a distraction but a reason for a visitor not to want to come back. Guests feel alone and singled out in a sparse room. They wonder why nobody else is there. Today’s culture likes to blend in when placed in a new environment. 75 people spread over a 250 seat venue is not only disturbing for those in the seats but try being the preacher.

Why not be creative and somehow shrink the room to 100 seats to achieve critical mass. Or better yet somehow start with 60 seats (liked you planned it) and then when 75 people show, all they’re talking about is how you had to free up more seats because “that placed was so packed��?. The rule of thumb is to always look like more people showed up than you were expecting. This is a fundamental principle to maintaining momentum.

So, our golden rule is to always set out too few chairs, block off more seats than we need to, and have everybody leave talking about how crowded the room was. We pack the rows tight and hope that the only empty seats (if there are any) are behind the people. Of course this offends some that like to sit in an aisle seat and those that want to sit in the back because the music is too loud. (So we do things like put an earplug dispenser in the lobby and risk offending the easily offended.)

Sure, it’s inconvenient to have ushers ask people to squeeze in, and to move pipe and drape back as more people come in. And we have people say “Why don’t you just open up all of the seats��? or “set out all of the chairs��?. It would be easier not to have to do these things but nothing is more important than doing our part to create a distraction-free environment for God to move in people’s hearts. We believe that empty seats lead to distractions and a lack of anticipation. Most non-Christians understand packing a house for things like concerts and movies. These events tend to be crowded when they are worth going to but somehow church is supposed to be boring and you sit wherever you want because there are plenty of seats.

For those who are filling up one service- add a second service. Some need to add a third. Some churches need to move to a bigger venue and make it feel small initially by controlling the seating dynamics and shrinking the room. Whatever you do, never settle for not being able to grow as a church. You should always strive to have some empty seats. Just get creative in how you hide or block off those seats while maintaining critical mass in the available seats for every worship experience.

Chunks Corbett, Executive Pastor

Filed under: Church Planting, Creative Elements, Growth | Comments Off

The following is intended for the church plant that doesn’t have a
congregation, office or an idea where to begin. I’m not a non-profit
attorney and don’t claim the following is by the book. But this is what I
found to be the best way to establish the church as an organization. And my
life would have been a lot easier if I would have had it put this simple.

Organizational Establishment - Part 1

a. Select Church Name

b. Obtain PO Box (address)

c. Prepare and Obtain Federal Identification Number

d. Prepare and file Articles of Incorporation with state

e. Establish Church Checking Account

Organizational Establishment - Part 2

f. Prepare bylaws

g. Prepare IRS 1023

h. Submit and process 1023

i. Obtain non-profit bulk mail permit

j. Obtain state sales tax exemption

a) Church name-make it good! I’m partial to Elevation Church myself.

b) PO Box- It’s important to get a PO Box in the city you are planting.
People giving to a church plant are more comfortable when they know it’s at
least headed to the right state.

* You may have to use a physical address for certain documents (ie.
Articles of Inc.). I would highly recommend using an address other than the
lead planter.

c) The Federal ID Number is also called the EIN (employee
identification number) or tax-ID number. You must fill out an SS-4 form
which can be downloaded at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fss4.pdf.

d) Included in your Articles of Incorporation with the state, you must
include the church’s dissolution policy or distribution of assets- They want
to know where the assets are going if you close the doors. This can be cut
and pasted from your bylaws. Some states require other things such as
purposes and duration. Try to google your state + incorporation.

e) Get the checking account with the PO Box on it or the home address of
the church administrator- not the Lead Pastor. It’s wise to set the account
up requiring two signatures for accountability but I will warn you- this is
difficult when you don’t have any offices.

f) Bylaws- Not the easiest step but maybe the most important. Whatever
structure you adopt should be clearly defined in the bylaws. There are
numerous churches in America functioning in a manner not consistent with
their bylaws. Take your time, consult with other churches, and get it right.
I’ll post later on specifics to include in your bylaws.

g) The 1023 Form is the infamous 501(c)3. Download a 1023 form at
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1023.pdf or you can search 1023 on the IRS’s
site. This is the tough one. It cost $500 to file and attorneys typically
charge at least that to file for you ($1,000 total). What makes it so hard
is that they want so much data that you may not have as a plant. I would
tell every church plant to read through the 1023 to see the things they are
looking for even if you aren’t ready to apply. People want to know you have
your 501(c)3 before they give. This is true even though you don’t
technically need it as a church for their gift to be deductible.

h) To submit your 1023 simply follow the directions on the form and pray
it is accepted the first time.

i) In order to obtain a bulk mail permit you have to have your
501(c)3. Download 3624 form at http://www.usps.com/forms/_pdf/ps3624.pdf.
The application will need to be accompanied with several pieces of the
churches print material and a copy of your Articles of Incorporation. It’s
all in the instructions.

j) Each state is different in this area. I’d suggest going to your
state’s Department of Revenue website and searching sales tax exemption.
They’ll have a form you can download to get a certificate of exemption.

Chunks Corbett - Executive Pastor

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