{"id":25232,"date":"2016-10-07T06:00:11","date_gmt":"2016-10-07T10:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?p=25232"},"modified":"2016-10-06T21:12:34","modified_gmt":"2016-10-07T01:12:34","slug":"in-defense-of-small-churches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2016\/10\/in-defense-of-small-churches\/","title":{"rendered":"In defense of small churches"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Most churches throughout history and throughout the world have been small. \u00a0Today more than one billion Christians worship in small congregations. \u00a0Christianity Today<\/em> author Karl Vaters has written a series of five blog posts on the subject \u201cThe Astonishing Power of Small Churches,\u201d urging that contemporary Christians move away from the megachurch ideal and realize the unique value of\u00a0small congregations.<\/p>\n

Get started reading the first post after the jump, then follow the link for the other four.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

From Karl Vaters,\u00a0The Astonishing Power of Small Churches: Over One Billion Served |\u00a0<\/a>Christianity Today:<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

More than one billion people choose to worship Jesus in small churches.<\/p>\n

\n

Yes, you read that right. One billion plus<\/em>.<\/p>\n

This has massive implications for the church, the world and how small churches see their role in the kingdom of God.<\/p>\n

So many implications, that I\u2019ll be writing about them in a five-part series, starting today. (Click here for part two.<\/a>)<\/p>\n

A Perspective Shift for Small Churches<\/h4>\n

According to the very reputable Pew Forum, there are more than 2.2 billion Christians in the world<\/a>. Almost one-third of the world\u2019s population.<\/p>\n

Over half of them are involved in churches with less than 250 people in them. (In America, that number is 350<\/a>, but it\u2019s much lower worldwide, though exact stats are hard to find.)<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a small church pastor who\u2019s been doubting your value in the kingdom of God, it\u2019s time for a massive shift in perspective.<\/div>\n

If you\u2019re a small church pastor who\u2019s been doubting your value in the kingdom of God, it\u2019s time for a massive shift in perspective.<\/p>\n

God has placed an awesome responsibility into our hands. Small church pastors oversee the spiritual lives of over one billion people!<\/p>\n\n

[Keep reading. . .]\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/blockquote><\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Most churches throughout history and throughout the world have been small. \u00a0Today more than one billion Christians worship in small congregations. \u00a0Christianity Today author Karl Vaters has written a series of five blog posts on the subject \u201cThe Astonishing Power of Small Churches,\u201d urging that contemporary Christians move away from the megachurch ideal and realize […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,47],"tags":[489,1422,4853],"class_list":["post-25232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-church","category-theology","tag-church-growth-movement","tag-megachurches","tag-small-churches"],"yoast_head":"\nIn defense of small churches<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Most churches throughout history and throughout the world have been small. \u00a0Today more 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