Two weeks ago, we introduced the concept of the Trellis and the Vine at Hunter Road Bible Church. We’ve been asking ourselves…
“What’s the state of the trellis and the vine at our church?”
To give a quick refresher on what we mean, it’s this:
You’ve got a trellis and a vine. The trellis is designed to support the vine. The vine is supposed to get the most attention and care. In fact, without the vine, the trellis would have no reason to exist. Colin Marshall and Tony Payne write this about the trellis and the vine:
“Most churches are a mixture of trellis and vine. The basic work of any Christian ministry is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of God’s Spirit, and to see people converted, changed, and grow to maturity in that gospel. That’s the work of planting, watering, fertilizing, and tending the vine…."
On the other hand, “All Christian churches, fellowships, or ministries have some kind of trellis that gives shape and support to the work [of the vine]. As the ministry grows, the trellis needs attention. Management, finances, infrastructure, organization, governance, [programs, services, and classes]—these all become more important and more complex as the vine grows” (The Trellis and the Vine, Marshall and Payne).
Are we giving our attention to ministry in our church… to Gospel growth? Or to programs and services that support ministry? There are a lot of things that we could be giving our attention to, but what in the world should the church be doing?
To answer that, we first asked the question, "What in the world is God doing?"
The answer: He is growing disciple-making disciples through us. He’s got this grand plan that started before He ever created the world of growing His kingdom. God is growing His kingdom. We should join with His work of Gospel growth.
WE should be growing. And I’m not talking about numbers. About attendance and finances.
But let me address those numbers quickly as it seems like an appropriate time to do so. As far as attendance goes, we have about 60 people in attendance each Sunday, and that’s where we’ve hovered around since last October. And I know a lot of our people are saying and have said to me, “It would be great if we could fill this place!” The blueprints say we can hold 215 people… in reality, it holds about 200 if it was absolutely full with no daylight in between us. They say a church is full which it reaches 80% of its seating capacity. So we would be considered full at 160 people.
Financially, we are doing pretty well. We currently have around $94,000 in the General Fund. And we’ve been right around that level for most of the last 16 months. Our budget levels are great because God’s people here have been so generous. It’s also due to the great wisdom and leadership from our elders and from our treasurer.
For example, in May 2015, our total expenses were $7,839.00. Our total expenses for July of this year was $8,188.00, a difference of only $349.00. We’ve really tried to keep expenses down so that we can use our funds for what really matters.
It’s easy to think about numbers and trying to figure out how to get more people and more giving. But we can’t get bogged down counting noses and numbers. Those are real trellis issues that we must tackle with great honesty and wisdom. We cannot neglect these realities.
But more important than the seats we fill is the number of hearts here that are filled with God’s Word and His Spirit. More important than the size of our congregation is the size of our footprint in the community and the impact we have in the world.
So when I talk about growth, it’s not numbers. I’m talking about our health as a church. Are we growing spiritually?
- Are we disciples who are growing?
- Are we making disciples who are growing?
