5. Low community impact.
In my consultations, I attempt to find clear indicators that a church is making a difference in its respective community. I ask both church leaders and community members for clear examples and indicators.
6. More meetings than ministry.
A sick church will meet about what they should do rather than do it. Some churches have more committees than conversions.
7. Acrimonious business meetings.
Christians can and do disagree. Sick churches have meetings where the disagreements reflect obvious bitterness and anger.
8. Very few guests in worship services.
A vibrant church will attract guests. A sick church will not.
9. Worship wars.
Yes, they still exist in many churches. Those wars are indicators of an inward focus by the members.
10. Unrealistic expectations of pastoral care.
Sick churches view pastors and other staff as hired hands to do all of the work of ministry. Healthy churches view pastors as equippers for the members to do most of the ministry.
None of these symptoms are good, but churches do go through periods where they demonstrate a few of them. The key is to recognize the symptoms and respond early and quickly.
Here is my own subjective health analysis according to the number of symptoms:
1 to 2 symptoms. Normal for most churches for a short period of time. Not an indicator of poor health, but the symptoms should be addressed promptly.
3 to 4 symptoms. The church is sick and needs immediate attention.
5 to 6 symptoms. The church is very sick. If significant changes are not made, the congregation is in danger of moving into the phase of terminal illness.
7 to 10 symptoms. The church is in danger of dying in the next five to 10 years. While it is possible for a church to recover from this level of sickness, it is rare. Intervention must be quick, intense and dramatic. The amount of change necessary is often more than most leaders and members are willing to bear.
Give an honest assessment of your own church by these symptom indicators. What do you see? What should you do if there are a number of symptoms? Let me hear from you.
This article originally appeared here.