Reverend Ralph Ollendick
River of Life Assembly of God
Moscow, Ohio
Attendance: 2002 of 12; 2003 of 59; increase of 391%
What led to growth in your Sunday School?
We were a dying church. When the congregation started getting a vision for evangelism, our church began turning around. The change was out of necessity. We had to change, or we were dead.
I’ve been in this church 24 years. At first, I wasn’t in a position to implement ideas. I was a member. Now, I’m the leader. Two things were keeping our church from growing: lack of vision for the lost and constant turnover. First, I prayed, “Why God?” At first, it was more of a complaint than a prayer. Then God began to show me what to do to make this church grow. “You go out after them. Disciple, train, and follow-up.”
Everywhere in the Scriptures, I read that we’re to go out and make disciples of all nations. We began focusing on the evangelism concepts of Scripture. America has become a missionary nation. I want to inspire people to tell others about Jesus. Members have to get the vision to bring the people in. The key is doing what the Lord did. In John, Andrew brought Peter. It’s the “go and tell and come and see” principle. Our growth has been good, but still so many souls need to be won.
Sunday School is important because not only do we win them, but also we follow up and train them. If there’s one thing everyone can benefit from, it’s empowering the people in the pews.
So many pastors are looking for a program. Christ is the master. He has a specific plan for each place. Churches for too long have been about taking another church’s plan and trying to plug it into their location. We need to stay before God and discover what He has in mind for each one of our churches. For too long we’ve been holding down the fort. We’re told to advance.
