61% of Louisiana Baptist churches that reported attendance in 2015, reported 100 or below (that’s 984 out of 1,624 churches). I hope every church grows larger this year, but I appreciated Dan Reiland’s recent article on The Great Value of Churches Under 100.

1) Large churches don’t appeal to everyone.
2) Some towns and cities can’t support a big church.
3) Small churches can move and respond quickly.
4) Small churches can have a big impact from specialized ministries.
5) Small churches can offer a personalized touch.

This got me thinking about the impact these churches have as a group, so I looked up some numbers for 2015 (2016 data is still being collected).

The 984 Southern Baptist churches in Louisiana that reported between 1 and 100 in worship attendance in 2015:

• Represent 48,059 Worshippers
• Baptized 3,403 souls
• Gave $3.7 million to the Cooperative Program
• Gave $1.7 million to their local Baptist Associations
• Gave $1.5 million to SBC Special Missions Offerings ($639k to Lottie Moon, $468k to Annie Armstrong, $420k to Georgia Barnette).

Not insignificant numbers. And this is not just in Louisiana. 82% of churches across the country are less than 125.

Take Aways:

• Don’t be satisfied with 100, but celebrate what the small church can offer to the community.
• Don’t just communicate about resources that are helpful to big churches. Let’s remember the big church tends to be the exception across America.