Salary Survey and Economic Outlook Report Available Soon

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communities surrounding them, and some exciting things God is doing through these churches around the world. Some strange and wonderful things are happening at Rivertree Christian Church.

1 Externally focused churches measure their impact by the transformational effect they have on their communities. In this installment of Audio Advance, Eric Swanson, Director of Externally Focused Churches Leadership Community, talks about churches that are engaged in the needs, dreams, and rhythms of the communities surrounding them, and some exciting things God is doing through these churches around the world. Some strange and wonderful things are happening at Rivertree Christian Church. After praying for 12 years about purchasing a local 85-acre farm and finally coming to a point in the congregation's history where leaders thought they could pull it off, the church took a different direction. Greg Nettle, senior pastor for the Massillon, OH church, explains: "When we announced that we're not going to put up a $40 million campus... that we're going to be committed to being generous as a church and give money away... people cheered in every service," Greg says. The announcement and the congregation's response were unusual because such a turn of events is counterintuitive to most pastors' dreams of growing a church, buying land, attracting even more attenders and seeing new Christians invite friends to help the church grow even larger. Salary Survey and Economic Outlook Report Available Soon The 2008 version of Leadership Network's Salary Survey and Economic Outlook Report will release on September 23, This popular download focuses on large churches, covering everything from specific salaries... Instead, some churches today are pursuing a different course that takes them out of the four walls of their church buildings and into surrounding communities. This adventuresome spirit is sometimes even taking them to other continents. This shift toward first motivating church members to serve in their communities, rather than initially inviting community members into the church buildings is what some ministry leaders around the country are calling a missional impulse. And because this is not a new desire, but the revival of an old one, this ongoing transition is being called a missional renaissance. The motivations leading today's missional churches to adopt a more incarnational approach vary. And the leaders of these churches are motivated by a variety of influences--both internal and external-- including Scripture, books, the example of other Christian leaders, or the success of a particular ministry within their own church. Buford Appointed to Drucker Institute Board Bob Buford, chairman of the board for The Buford Foundation/Leadership Network, has been appointed chairman of the Board of Advisors of the Drucker Institute--named for his long-time friend and business... Tim Senff, director of ReachOut, a ministry of Crossroads Community Church (Cincinnati, OH), identifies 2004 as the year his church began a serious movement toward more missional involvement with its local and extended communities.

The catalyst for the change was a building campaign in which church leaders decided to dedicate a percentage of the money raised toward practical assistance for others.

.. Internet Ministry Conference How to Track Podcast Statistics A Call to Prayer for a Movement of Generosity Stengthening the Soul of Your Leadership Culture Making: Recovering Our

tv (Edmond OK) invited churches around the world to join forces through shared teaching, fasting, prayer, and service to others.

Sam Chand's unique position as a consultant to pastors has allowed him to have authentic conversations about lonely times leaders have endured, and how they have dealt with those

Church-based Bookstores Looking to Expand In an April 2008 survey of churches with in-house bookstores, more than half of those indicated plans to expand in the next two years.

2 The catalyst for the change was a building campaign in which church leaders decided to dedicate a percentage of the money raised toward practical assistance for others. Most of these designated funds... Internet Ministry Conference How to Track Podcast Statistics A Call to Prayer for a Movement of Generosity Stengthening the Soul of Your Leadership Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling One Prayer Update In June 2008, Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv (Edmond OK) invited churches around the world to join forces through shared teaching, fasting, prayer, and service to others. The invitation gave pastors the opportunity to create and share sermons on the One Prayer website. Loneliness is a painful and familiar emotion that many pastors experience. Dr. Sam Chand's unique position as a consultant to pastors has allowed him to have authentic conversations about lonely times leaders have endured, and how they have dealt with those feelings. Church-based Bookstores Looking to Expand In an April 2008 survey of churches with in-house bookstores, more than half of those indicated plans to expand in the next two years. The survey group was heavily tilted toward larger churches: almost 60% of survey respondents have weekly worship attendance of more than 2,000, and an additional 18% are in the 1,000 to 2,000 range. In this podcast, he explains where different types of loneliness come from, what leaders should expect, and healthy coping mechanisms that can alleviate some of the loneliness they feel. Fastest-Growing Groups Include Older Adults and Hispanics By 2050, minorities will be the majority in America, and the number of residents older than 65 will more than double, according to projections released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Minorities, classified as those of any race other than non-hispanic, single-

race whites, currently constitute about a third of the U.S. population, according to Census figures. But by 2042, they are projected to become the majority, making up more than half the population.

3 race whites, currently constitute about a third of the U.S. population, according to Census figures. But by 2042, they are projected to become the majority, making up more than half the population. By 2050, 54 percent of the population will be minorities. Some strange and wonderful things are happening at Rivertree Christian Church. After praying for 12 years about purchasing a local 85-acre farm and finally coming to a point in the congregation's history where leaders thought they could pull it off, the church took a different direction. Greg Nettle, senior pastor for the Massillon, OH church, explains: "When we announced that we're not going to put up a $40 million campus... that we're going to be committed to being generous as a church and give money away... people cheered in every service," Greg says. The announcement and the congregation's response were unusual because such a turn of events is counterintuitive to most pastors' dreams of growing a church, buying land, attracting even more attenders and seeing new Christians invite friends to help the church grow even larger. Instead, some churches today are pursuing a different course that takes them out of the four walls of their church buildings and into surrounding communities. This adventuresome spirit is sometimes even taking them to other continents. This shift toward first motivating church members to serve in their communities, rather than initially inviting community members into the church buildings is what some ministry leaders around the country are calling a missional impulse. And because this is not a new desire, but the revival of an old one, this ongoing transition is being called a missional renaissance. The motivations leading today's missional churches to adopt a more incarnational approach vary. And the leaders of these churches are motivated by a variety of influences--both internal and external--including Scripture, books, the example of other Christian leaders, or the success of a particular ministry within their own church. Tim Senff, director of ReachOut, a ministry of Crossroads Community Church (Cincinnati, OH), identifies 2004 as the year his church began a serious movement toward more missional involvement with its local and extended communities. The catalyst for the change was a building campaign in which church leaders decided to dedicate a percentage of the money raised toward practical assistance for others. Most of these designated funds helped the church build an AIDS hospice in Mamelodi, South Africa. Brian Tome, Crossroad's senior pastor, had visited South Africa in 2003, and brought his passion for the project back to Cincinnati. Crossroad's leadership was surprised at the people's response to the challenge and it began a season of change in the ministry emphasis of the church. Tim Senff reports that the congregation's "Go Mamelodi" trips have "rocked the church" and "helped them to see the power of what the local church can do when they come together as a team."

4 At Meadow Heights Church (Fredericktown, MO), lead pastor Bryan Mills characterizes his church's shift toward missional ministry as occurring in three stages. The church's original intention was to attract people into their building where Bryan and his staff could lead them to Jesus. By the end of 2001, the church engaged in more incarnational evangelism by going into the surrounding communities to invite its neighbors into a relationship with Christ. By 2007, the church completed its shift toward missional action by adding practical community service to its neighborhood evangelistic efforts. When asked what precipitated this third shift, Bryan responded that he had developed "a growing awareness of a focus on the kingdom and not just the church," and started growing in his understanding of the implications of a more kingdom-centric approach. Rich Nathan, senior pastor of the Vineyard Church of Columbus (OH), captures the new attitude of the missional churches. "We need a larger target than simply building a great church," Rich says. "We want to live in a great city. We don't want the church to simply be an oasis in a great desert." Rich adds that a church's missional focus should change a city for the better--in places of employment, schools and beyond. "When people walk out the doors of this church, we don't want to send them back to places in our city that are plagued by gangs," he says. "We want to send people of this church out into a city that has access to medical care, where there is an availability of jobs, where the races are getting along and there is racial understanding." Salary Survey and Economic Outlook Report Available Soon The 2008 version of Leadership Network's Salary Survey and Economic Outlook Report will release on September 23, This popular download focuses on large churches, covering everything from specific salaries to financial forecasts for churches. This year's edition involved the leaders of 105 churches who responded to a 208-item survey. Buford Appointed to Drucker Institute Board Bob Buford, chairman of the board for The Buford Foundation/Leadership Network, has been appointed chairman of the Board of Advisors of the Drucker Institute--named for his long-time friend and business management guru Peter F. Drucker. "I am delighted that Bob Buford has agreed to be the chairman of the Drucker Institute's Board of Advisors," said Doris Drucker, who has known Mr. Buford for more than 25 years. "I am convinced that Bob will guide our board to make decisions which, in Peter's spirit, will lead to the establishment of a civil society in which both for-profit and non-profit organizations find their right place in our environment."

5 The Institute is a campus-wide resource of Claremont Graduate University and is closely aligned with the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management, where Peter Drucker taught for 35 years and which continues to produce effective managers and ethical leaders for business, government and civil society. "For the last 20 years of his life, it was my privilege to visit face to face several times a year with Peter Drucker," Buford said. "Peter was the man I most admired on this earth. More than anyone else, Peter understood the times he lived in. There's only one like him every century or so." One Prayer Update In June 2008, Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv (Edmond OK) invited churches around the world to join forces through shared teaching, fasting, prayer, and service to others. The invitation gave pastors the opportunity to create and share sermons on the One Prayer website. More than 66 churches created messages to share and over 1,700 churches have committed to stand together with the vision to unite the church in an unprecedented way. Devotional thoughts and stories of what God is doing are being added daily to the One Prayer website. Church-based Bookstores Looking to Expand In an April 2008 survey of churches with in-house bookstores, more than half of those indicated plans to expand in the next two years. The survey group was heavily tilted toward larger churches: almost 60% of survey respondents have weekly worship attendance of more than 2,000, and an additional 18% are in the 1,000 to 2,000 range. In addition: Only 23% of the stores had an external sign indicating their existence. All stores were open on Sunday, with a sizeable amount of sales during that time. Three out of four said their stores were open during service times. 42% of the stores are responsible for duplicating and selling their pastors' messages in the store. 30% have an online store, but most sales are currently minimal. 41% give their income to the church's general fund, 30% get to keep the money they generate, and 12% give revenue generated to a specifically designated ministry.

6 54% indicated plans to expand their space, with most intending to do so within the next two years. Fastest-Growing Groups Include Older Adults and Hispanics By 2050, minorities will be the majority in America, and the number of residents older than 65 will more than double, according to projections released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Minorities, classified as those of any race other than non-hispanic, single-race whites, currently constitute about a third of the U.S. population, according to Census figures. But by 2042, they are projected to become the majority, making up more than half the population. By 2050, 54 percent of the population will be minorities. By 2030, all baby boomers will be age 65 and older comprising nearly 20 percent of U.S. residents, or one in five Americans, the bureau said. By 2050, the 65-and-older age group will increase to 88.5 million, more than doubling its current number of 38.7 million. Meanwhile, the number of those age 85 and older is expected to more than triple, from 5.4 million in 2008 to 19 million by 2050.

Leadership Network - ADVANCE

Leadership Network - ADVANCE http://www.pursuantgroup.com/leadnet/advance/may06s2.htm Page 1 of 3 May 23, 2006 Issue #26 Leadership Network Advance talked with co-authors Geoff Surratt, Greg Ligon and Warren Bird about their new book,