There is often a lot of discussion about what represents or is a measuring stick for the success of an individual church. It seems in the blogosphere and in certain books those discussions are often an opportunity for one group to critic the other and tell why there approach is more biblical and right in line with what Christ intended the church to be. Truth is there are a lot of different types of measuring means to determine what your individual church is doing. Of course there are areas of success we cannot see that God can so we are not qualified to really evaluate others completely. All that being said what are some measures of success in the Church.

Is it percentages of growth? Well the short answer is no. Don’t get me wrong numerical growth is biblical and is one small evaluator in the success of a churches ministry. Those who completely dismiss that type of growth and say it's not an indicator usually are apart of a church that refuses to follow God’s lead and reach out to the lost. That cannot however be the main indicator of success because we all know there are churches that grow for periods of time that are a mile wide but an inch deep. Attendance and membership numbers are good tools but not the main evaluator.
Is it the number of people involved in small groups? We are a big believer in small groups because those accountable relationships can lead to spiritual growth. We want to see the number of people involved in those grow every year but those cannot be the main indicator for success either. You could actually have those types of accountability groups in the secular setting yet no one truly growing more in their walk with Christ.
Is it the excitement people feel? Well in a growing and biblical church there will be a spirit of excitement and energy that is evident. You can feel the Holy Spirit’s presence in those situations. Once again however that cannot be our main indicator because people can get pretty excited and feel goose bumps in a non-spiritual setting as well. Don’t believe me; watch me when I throw on the movie Hoosiers.
Is it life change? Well certainly in a biblical church there will be personal life change. That however can’t be the only indicator because life change can happen in other settings as well.
Is it the number of volunteers the church has? Well a growing church needs volunteers but that alone cannot be it, because any civic organization can recruit volunteers as well.
Okay so it must be the number of saved souls through Christ. Well of course that is a big one. A growing number of conversions over a period of time are big indicators that God is working through people. But while that is true we must not stop with winning people to the Lord. Jesus also calls us to make disciples (Grow them more like Christ) in the church as well. So if that is the only big indicator we could be missing part of God’s purpose for the church.

That last one however brings me to what I think is our main indicator? I think all of those are measuring sticks but the main indicator of success or victories in the church is the number of people that our involved in true ministry outside the walls of the church. That is a huge measure of success in my mind. When we see people being Jesus Christ in our streets and in our communities then we know that we are seeing the greatest growth of all. That is what Jesus has called us to do. That is how we love God, love people and change the world.