Not a Megachurch? Creative Methods Toward Intergenerational Worship within a Small Evangelical Church: A Case Study

Larger churches have historically had the advantage in the realm of creative worship ministry due to larger budgets, more volunteers and dedicated professional staff. While megachurches have dominated the creative worship model, smaller evangelical churches have struggled to capture the essence of creativity in their services. There is a need to explore the obstacles faced by the smaller church along with methods that can be applied to overcome the challenges to offer effective worship experiences that include creative worship elements in a multigenerational model. In this qualitative historical case study, insight into the processes and resources necessary to move the smaller church from traditional or age-segregated services into one intergenerational worship gathering will be identified. As part of the study, historical and biblical research will be completed and applied in a real-time setting in Fairview United Methodist Church. To gain proper perspective in the specific issues that have been addressed, a brief history of the church will be shared, noting that both large and small churches have struggled with the same type of “worship wars” within their own congregations. Recent statistics suggest that smaller churches across the country are struggling to survive in this time of megachurch domination. The results of the research and application discussed in this study will be of benefit to any smaller church that is attempting to offer a single, intergenerational worship gathering as they partner creativity with established historical traditions

Modern megachurch organization in the United States (2005-2013) : an exploratory organizational study of the American megachurch phenomenon.

This dissertation study explores the applicability of two for-profit organizational theories on a non-profit sector. Theoretical concepts from organizational ecology (OE) and new institutional sociology (NIS) provide the framework for exploring modern megachurches as an organizational phenomenon in the United States between 2005 and 2013. Modern megachurches are modern in the sense they really began to be an organizational population starting in the 1970s and 1980s. These churches are distinctively from the Protestant Christian tradition having 2,000 or more attendees (Thumma & Travis, 2007; Hartford Institute for Religion Research, n.d.). Three empirical chapters test several hypotheses germane to these aforementioned theoretical paradigms. The dissertation consists of five chapters. Chapter One argues that megachurches closely resemble for-profit businesses making them worthy of organizational research. Chapter Two explores OE’s density dependence theory – how or if legitimacy and competition effects megachurch founding events. Chapter Three explores the applicability of OE’s inertia and niche width, and NIS’s isomorphism effects on megachurches with one geographic location (a.k.a. single-site megachurch or SSM) switching to a megachurch with two or more geographic locations (a.k.a. multi-site megachurch or MM). Chapter Four explores niche width interactions with concentration and their effects of being on Outreach Magazine’s 100 Fastest-growing Churches list as a proxy for church growth. The results from the empirical chapters did not support many of the hypotheses. However, Chapter Two did show that density was broadly significant as a predictor, but it operates differently for megachurches. Chapters Three and Four showed partial support for diversity measures suggesting the effects of niche width is greatly limited when applied to megachurches. Chapter Four also failed to support many of the interaction hypotheses, suggesting the transfer of generalism and specialism is not as clear for megachurches as it is for businesses. I conclude that modern megachurches in the U.S. require greater exploration using OE and NIS theoretical concepts. Nuanced application of these organizational concepts will be indicative of understanding modern megachurches as organizational populations

THE CONNECTION BETWEEN LEAD PASTORS\u27 ENNEAGRAM PERSONALITY TYPE AND CONGREGATIONAL SIZE

This study examines the relationship between the Enneagram profile of a lead pastor and the size of congregation. This study is motivated by the research question, “Do lead pastors of Protestant megachurches in the United States tend to share commonalities in their Enneagram personality types?” Previous research indicates that personality plays a role in the impact of a pastor, but to date, no systematic investigation has explored the connection between the Enneagram profile of the leader and the size of the congregation. Using a sample of 58 megachurch pastors and 56 non-megachurch pastors, the Enneagram type of each pastor was obtained through the Wagner Enneagram Personality Style Scales (WEPSS) inventory. The findings from the research indicate a significant relationship between Enneagram Type 3s (Achievers) and 8s (Challengers) as a common profile of the megachurch pastor (in 79% of the cases). The findings offer insights into potential benefits of self-discovery the Enneagram can provide pastors based on the unique roles of their leadership style. While these results do not speak to the quality of leadership in these pastors, or suggest a pastor is better suited for a church based on a personality style, these results may prompt further inquiry into the pastoral selection process to determine if the current structure favors a certain personality

Christian Volunteer Leadership in the Megachurch: A Quantitative Study of Transformational Leadership and Training

The purpose of this correlational study was to determine if a relationship exists between training volunteer leaders undergo to take on a leadership role in the Megachurch and the number of hours volunteers invest in the church, controlling for the quality of leadership for volunteers in the Megachurch who take on a leadership role. Further, this study sought to determine what, if any, relationship exists between volunteer leadership behavior and volunteer leadership quality in the select megachurches. Megachurches have developed stigmas pertaining to leadership involving its quality and the lack of quantity of leadership for attendees. This study examines if volunteer leaders possess transformational leadership behavior, how often they are being utilized in the church, and if any volunteer leaders have undergone any training in the church. The methodology of this study answered the gap in the literature dealing with volunteer leadership and provided if either a positive or negative relationship exists between volunteer leadership behavior and the amount of time invested by volunteer leaders into the Megachurch. Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (5X- Short) assisted in revealing if transformational leadership behavior is possessed by these volunteer leaders in megachurches. The data analysis used for this research was Pearson’s r (Pearson Product- Moment Correlation Coefficient). The results of this research yielded no statistically significant correlation between transformational leadership, hours invested by volunteer leaders, and volunteers who attended training. However, a statistically significant correlation does exist between volunteers who attended training and transformational leadership behaviors

Handbook of Megachurches

The megachurch is an exceptional recent religious trend, certainly within Christian spheres. Spreading from the USA, megachurches now reached reach different global contexts. The edited volume Handbook of Megachurches offers a comprehensive account of the subject from various academic perspectives. Readership: All interested in Christianity and contemporary religion, religious organisations, revivalism, and religion and popular culture

GlimmerGlass Volume 65 Number 02 (2005)

Official Student Newspaper Issue is 12 pages long

The Future of Undergraduate Biblical Higher Education: ABHE and the Bible College Movement

The Bible college movement can trace its roots to the late nineteenth century and was given greater credibility when the accreditation era began in 1947. Today, the Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) is still the leader of the Bible college movement. But a quick glance at the sixty-three ABHE institutions (64%) with undergraduate enrollment under 250 raises concern. Furthermore, 31 percent have enrollment under 100. Rising costs and escalating student debt are creating enrollment challenges. The smallness of most Bible colleges makes them particularly vulnerable, especially since many lack endowments. Adding to the problem is the changing landscape of higher education, a dying rural church, and looming governmental concerns. While many paths could lead to greater enrollment and stability for Bible colleges, proactive collaboration is the most promising. Section 1 explains the depth of the problem. The history of the Bible college movement is reviewed and key takeaways are gleaned from past examination. Also, an analysis of the current state of ABHE is explored, with current challenges revealed. Finally, a critical list of concerns is explored. As other proposed solutions to the thesis are investigated in Section 2, the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities model is used as a successful case study. Additionally, shorter programs, competency-based education, online education, and adult learners are studied. Section 3 argues the thesis that collaborative effort is the best proposed solution. An in-depth study of how megachurches may fit into the equation is included. Section 4 describes the Biblical Higher Education Collaborative website which was constructed to foster collaborative efforts between Bible college and university leaders. Section 5 describes the content of the website, which includes a monthly podcast with a leader in biblical higher education. Finally, Section 6 includes a postscript of how undergraduate biblical higher education may be reimagined

Contrasting beliefs with reality : the epistemology of branding and brand image in the small church

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/2568/thumbnail.jp

Handbook of Megachurches

This innovating edited volume provides a broad but detailed overview of a relatively recent significant development in church organisation, the megachurch. Its aim is to capture empirically and theoretically the megachurch phenomenon as a unique form of religious expression through author contributions from several academic disciplines including the Sociology of Religion, Religious Studies, Church History and Theology

GlimmerGlass Volume 65 Number 02 (2005)

Official Student Newspaper Issue is 12 pages long