We are a church on a mission.
And our mission is not necessarily to grow the church, or to have great programs, or to have a church that looks like a church (whatever that means); our mission is to make disciples - to do whatever it takes to reach and win people to and for Christ.
There are generally three ways churches grow:
1. Biological Growth
In other words, babies and children! As a church, we need to embrace a biblical philosophy of generational discipleship and empowerment. We cannot afford to lose our children and leave them to a destiny outside of God's Kingdom; instead, our responsibility is to engage them with the Message of Christ in a way that's relevant and real to them, establish them in biblical truths to storm-proof their lives, and equip/empower them to minister and make disciples.
2. Transfer Growth
God has added to our church people who are already following Christ because sometimes, God repositions His people for greater effectiveness and fruitfulness. This kind of growth, though God-directed, is not necessarily Kingdom-growth. In other words, no new territory and no new souls have been added to the Kingdom of God - it is simply movement within the Body of Christ.
3. Conversion Growth
This happens when people come to Christ and become His disciples as a direct result of our church's ministry and work. In Acts 2:47, God added new disciples to the church everyday. This addition of souls happened through conversion, and Conversion Growth is what we're ultimately pursuing; it's the growth that comes from taking the Great Commission seriously and doing everything possible to win people to Christ.
The mission - The Great Commission - is the heartbeat of our church. We exist to engage non-believing, non-Christ-following people and bring them into the abundant life of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. We want to grow in every way that God has planned for us to grow, but especially through new conversions.
Let God's mission - our mission - be the purpose that defines you everyday!