What do you think?
Connect: How to Grow Your Church in 28 Days Guaranteed
Why do some churches grow while most don’t?
The mission of the Church has always been to “go and make disciples of all people”. But between “going” and “making” the Church has to Connect with people. The way disciples are made has not changed in 2000 years. But how we “go” and how we “connect” with people has changed dramatically in the 21st century.
YES, of course God’s blessing is vital. But there are proven, practical 21st-century tactics that are effective in reaching and connecting with people. If you do them, they work! If you do them regularly, your church will grow.
If you think just showing up and hanging an “Open for ministry” sign on the door is all it takes to reach people, think again.
Jesus gave us the command to go and make disciples. He’s also given us the tools and the tactics to accomplish the mission.
With refreshing clarity and honesty, this book will provide you with 28 executable action items you can do that will cause your church to grow — GUARANTEED.
233 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 1, 2019
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 9, 2019
Excellent
Simple in theory strategies to grow your church, but I think the strategies here can be used to help most any type of business grow. I’m planning on implementing many of them in my own business as well as using them for our church.
Simple in theory strategies to grow your church, but I think the strategies here can be used to help most any type of business grow. I’m planning on implementing many of them in my own business as well as using them for our church.
August 22, 2026
First sentence: The vision of every church is the first macro--the Great Commission: to make disciples of all people everywhere: From that macro-vision, churches today more or less adopt a vision that is either attractional or missional. The attractional churches want to build crowds. The missional churches want to make disciples.
Premise/plot: Don Corder is "guaranteeing" church growth in 28 days. Do I believe it? Nope. He does offer twenty-eight chapters worth of ideas. But those ideas would take a LOT longer than one month to implement. In fact, I would argue that this "28 day" plan is the work of years--yes YEARS plural. The chapters are meant to build on each other, I believe. But some ideas are more likely to be doable than others. And all of them require not just the work of three or four people but the work of dozens and dozens of people. So if you don't have dozens of vision-filled, inspired, passionate people who want to pour themselves--heart, mind, soul, body--into these projects, well, the guarantee is looking less and less likely.
Main points:
CONNECTION comes before evangelism and conversion. You have to have connections with people before the other can happen.
Assume that people want to come to church to find answers, and want to come to YOUR church to find those answers.
Assume that people want to give out their contact information and be communicated with several times a week or at least weekly.
People don't like to read -- communicate in very short paragraphs if words are necessary, video messages have more of a likelihood to be watched than a paragraph read. Keep both videos and paragraphs short.
Host community outreach events where the goal is to get names, names, and more names. The point of the event is not Christian-related but just something--anything--to get them on your property and the name and contact information provided.
Don't assume that people that don't come to your church regularly are gone.
Focus on those that just come once a month or less and work on getting those to come back and come regularly.
Forget the golden rule and treat others the way they want to be treated. Ask regularly how can I serve YOUR needs and wants.
See those coming in the door as customers and your church as a product and brand.
My thoughts: It was a quick read. I read the first three days a few months ago. I read the last twenty-five in one sitting. I think the assumption is that the church in question is "only" a few hundred people and wanting to grow. OR maybe five or six hundred people and wanting to grow. At one point he was talking about how to fill your church with 1500 people. I think the book assumes many, many, many things. More than one pastor, for example, and perhaps even more staff that are working full-time throughout the week. There's even a talk of YOUR CHURCH'S BOOKSTORE.
The focus is on numbers, numbers, more numbers. The numbers in the pews each week. The numbers in your DATABASE. The number of members. The money.
I think my favorite quote was "We can't serve the people we wish we had. We can only serve those [that] actually come; and more importantly, come back. They're the reason we're here."
I think the title is misleading. And the ideas are far-fetched for many. That being said, I think the author does challenge readers to think outside of the box. To not assume that everyone thinks like you.
I think also it was clear--perhaps because I was reading it in one sitting--that he was promoting a business, a product, a service. So it felt VERY self-promotional. I have this product/service that I sell to churches to use!
Premise/plot: Don Corder is "guaranteeing" church growth in 28 days. Do I believe it? Nope. He does offer twenty-eight chapters worth of ideas. But those ideas would take a LOT longer than one month to implement. In fact, I would argue that this "28 day" plan is the work of years--yes YEARS plural. The chapters are meant to build on each other, I believe. But some ideas are more likely to be doable than others. And all of them require not just the work of three or four people but the work of dozens and dozens of people. So if you don't have dozens of vision-filled, inspired, passionate people who want to pour themselves--heart, mind, soul, body--into these projects, well, the guarantee is looking less and less likely.
Main points:
CONNECTION comes before evangelism and conversion. You have to have connections with people before the other can happen.
Assume that people want to come to church to find answers, and want to come to YOUR church to find those answers.
Assume that people want to give out their contact information and be communicated with several times a week or at least weekly.
People don't like to read -- communicate in very short paragraphs if words are necessary, video messages have more of a likelihood to be watched than a paragraph read. Keep both videos and paragraphs short.
Host community outreach events where the goal is to get names, names, and more names. The point of the event is not Christian-related but just something--anything--to get them on your property and the name and contact information provided.
Don't assume that people that don't come to your church regularly are gone.
Focus on those that just come once a month or less and work on getting those to come back and come regularly.
Forget the golden rule and treat others the way they want to be treated. Ask regularly how can I serve YOUR needs and wants.
See those coming in the door as customers and your church as a product and brand.
My thoughts: It was a quick read. I read the first three days a few months ago. I read the last twenty-five in one sitting. I think the assumption is that the church in question is "only" a few hundred people and wanting to grow. OR maybe five or six hundred people and wanting to grow. At one point he was talking about how to fill your church with 1500 people. I think the book assumes many, many, many things. More than one pastor, for example, and perhaps even more staff that are working full-time throughout the week. There's even a talk of YOUR CHURCH'S BOOKSTORE.
The focus is on numbers, numbers, more numbers. The numbers in the pews each week. The numbers in your DATABASE. The number of members. The money.
I think my favorite quote was "We can't serve the people we wish we had. We can only serve those [that] actually come; and more importantly, come back. They're the reason we're here."
I think the title is misleading. And the ideas are far-fetched for many. That being said, I think the author does challenge readers to think outside of the box. To not assume that everyone thinks like you.
I think also it was clear--perhaps because I was reading it in one sitting--that he was promoting a business, a product, a service. So it felt VERY self-promotional. I have this product/service that I sell to churches to use!
January 6, 2020
Terrific book that helps traditional church members understand our "post-Christian" society and how to engage them. Corder is clearly evangelical in orientation but wisely leaves most of that theology out of this book -- he just concentrates on the ACTIONS that a church must take, which makes it usable for a wide range of denominations. We had our church board read and discuss, it helped them get a clearer picture of what we have to do to reach people who have no church connection.
October 18, 2022
Practical, Actionable, Useful
This is not a book simply with catch phrases and theory. It includes useful, practical, and actionable steps that help churches and church leaders add value to people and ensure that they are maximizing opportunities to be a blessing.
You may not implement everything, but this is a book worth reading and applying to your context.
This is not a book simply with catch phrases and theory. It includes useful, practical, and actionable steps that help churches and church leaders add value to people and ensure that they are maximizing opportunities to be a blessing.
You may not implement everything, but this is a book worth reading and applying to your context.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews