Developing a Discipleship System
When Numbers Are Not a Game
by Ralph E. Bauserman, Evangelism Consultant, General Board of Discipleship

As an evangelism consultant for the General Board of Discipleship, I travel frequently among our United Methodist conferences, leading events that deal with effective evangelism in the local church. The focus of my ministry is on what I consider to be the real mission of the church; therefore, I am attempting to motivate, train, and equip pastors and local churches to reach people and make disciples of Jesus Christ. In my opinion, unless a local church is willing to take this disciple-making mission seriously, there is cause to question the reason the church exists!

During these events, I talk openly — without any sense of apology — about the church's mandate to reach people and make disciples of Jesus Christ. It is my heart-felt conviction that the good news of the gospel can bring hope, healing, and wholeness to wounded and broken lives and that individuals and communities can actually be transformed. Indeed, the church is in the business of saving lives! When I share this conviction, I can, without exception, count on someone saying something such as the following: "It sounds to me like you are in the numbers game" or "I don't think the church ought to be in the numbers game." Some people seem to assume that I am talking about writing names in a membership book or filling in the blanks on the conference statistician's yearly report. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Having said this, I must hasten to add that numbers are important! Our family doctor is an internist, and I assure you that numbers are important to him. When I step on the scales, have a blood test for cholesterol, or have my blood pressure read, the resulting numbers tell the doctor something about my overall health and well being. This is no less true with the church.

Leaders in vital and growing churches look at the statistics to note trends and to measure the health and vitality of the church. Numbers in the local church are not important for "bragging rights"; rather, they are important because they represent real, live people.

In alive and growing churches, certain numbers must be available to the leadership team so that they can make wise decisions and develop the kinds of strategies that will successfully carry out the mission of the church. The leadership team members need to know the number of people living within the community and the growth trends. Further, a profile of the local church is an absolute necessity. Leadership team members also need the following information: the flow of Sunday visitors, the number of people received by profession of faith, the attendance in Sunday school and weekly worship, attendance in children's and youth activities, the number of people in other spiritual formation groups, financial giving trends, and the church's involvement in outreach ministries. If a church is serious about reaching people and making disciples, it must maintain good records and make those records available for the leadership team. Churches must have some way of measuring effectiveness. It is nearly impossible to determine effectivness without looking at the numbers.

In the years I served as a pastor, I must confess that I was concerned about the numbers. I cared about whether we had three or thirteen Sunday visitors, for it told me something about the faith-sharing ministry of our church family. It made a difference whether we, in the course of a year, received two or thirty-two people by profession of faith, for it said something about our church's effectiveness in transforming lives. I cared about whether we had sixty or 160 in worship, for it said something about how many people were exposed to the life-changing power of the gospel. I cared about whether we had thirty or ninety people involved in small groups and classes, for I wanted to expose as many people as possible to the word of God. I cared a lot about whether we had nineteen or fifty-nine children and youth involved in activities, for I have a conviction that we dare not lose this next generation. I cared about how much of our time, energy, and financial resources were invested in mission and outreach, for the church must address the issues that are so destructive of the well-being of people. Numbers are important because each number represents a person who, given the opportunity to grow in faith and commitment, can share in the joys of the Kingdom.

At your next leadership meeting, would you dare ask about the numbers? Will your team have before it the kinds of numbers that will allow its members to evaluate effectiveness and to rethink strategies? The right numbers will allow you to measure the health and well-being of your church. Numbers are about real, live people; and this is hardly a game!

posted 12-11-02