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Outreach Mag. Lists 100 Largest & Fastest Growing Churches

By 316Networks.com

Published: October 07, 2008

In a new special issue of Outreach Magazine released this month, over 100 of the largest churches in America all were listed with 7,000 weekend attendants or higher; a first since the magazine began compiling the annual report.

Topping the fifth annual "Outreach 100" listing this year was Lakewood Church in Houston with 43,500 attendants, followed by Second Baptist Church in the same city with 23,659 and then North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Ga., with 22,557.

The combined overall attendance of all 103 churches was 1,128,451, which is an increase of 111,527 people from 2007. The Outreach 100 is not a comprehensive and exhaustive list, however, rankings are based on self-reported surveys and not an independent investigation. Thousands of churches were invited to participate in the survey in both April and May.

While some of the most well-known churches showed a slight drop in attendance, but overall, this year's attendance numbers were up overall and in order to qualify in Outreach's listing, churches were required to grow by at least 10 percent, compared to 7 percent in 2007.

"Simply enough, it was just 'who qualified' for the lists," said Ed Stetzer, who help conducted the study.

"Those factors and just the increasing number of megachurches in America reveal that many churches are learning from each other, growing faster, and growing larger," said Stetzer, who also serves as the director of LifeWay Research.

The magazine not only showcased 100 of the largest churches in America, but also the top 100 fastest-growing churches as well. Among the top fastest-growing churches, Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Ala., was ranked No. 1 with a growth of 72 percent (3,418 attendants) over the last year. Elevation Church in Charlotte, N.C., ranked second in the fastest-growing report with a numeric growth of 2,094 and a percentage increase of 122.

The magazine highlighted that many of the largest / fastest growing churches listed have utilized the multi-site model - one church, multiple campuses - with some having as many as 11 campuses.

Rather than labeling it as a trend, Stetzer sees the multi-site strategy as "the new normal."

"I think more churches and pastors are familiar with it and have seen how helpful going to multiple sites has been for churches who wanted to manage their growth," he said.

Most of the megachurches listed by Outreach Magazine were most likely to be nondenominational, Baptist, Southern Baptist, Assemblies of God, or Christian Church.

Outreach magazine studies and seeks to "celebrate" the country's largest and fastest-growing churches once a year. The magazine also recognizes that the average church in America is home to less than 100 people and states that "a passion for outreach is not defined by numbers alone."

"Our motivation in producing this annual report is not to provoke smaller churches to expend energy seeking to become megachurches," Outreach states in its current issue.

However, Stetzer pointed out that pastors can still learn from larger churches.

"Nothing can replace the work you do in your own church, your own community, among the lost in your own neighborhood," he said. "A pastor has to have a passion and a fire to reach, teach, and disciple those near. But we can also learn from others - many of whom were small churches themselves a few years ago."

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