archives.northwestu.edu/handle/nu/24436 2010-2014. 2026-04-27T15:55:41Z archives.northwestu.edu/handle/nu/25050 Church Growth in the Northwest Ministry Network Beier, Philip With the consistent decline of the Church in the United States, leaders need to put forth greater efforts to put the body of believers back on course to fulfill its purpose. Most churches within the Northwest Ministry Network (NWMN) of the Assemblies of God fall within this category. However, leaders seem largely unaware of how to turn a corner and begin growing their churches. On the positive side, many churches are experiencing numeric growth and appear to be avoiding the national church decline. This research project studies a portion of these growing churches to discover how this growth is happening and to determine if there are lessons people can learn to benefit the other churches under the NWMN umbrella. The research aspect of this project incorporates the qualitative method of research and provides the means to gather data through interviews. I derived the sample group of churches from the Northwest Ministry Network’s Annual Church Ministry 2012 Report, which documents each church’s attendance for the last five years. I subdivided churches showing ten percent or more growth in three of the five years into five attendance groups. I interviewed the lead pastor of two churches from each group to form a picture of the practices and philosophies that contributed to their growth. The project goal examines this information to determine patterns and commonalities within individual groupings and across all size groups. The project summarizes the overall conclusions and implications applied for the benefit of church leaders within the Northwest Ministry Network so they can glean information for their unique contexts. 2014-12-01T00:00:00Z archives.northwestu.edu/handle/nu/25048 Leading Toward Fruit That Will Last: Breaking the Four Hundred Barrier VanProyen, Gerrit This is a study of why King’s Way Foursquare Church in Sequim, Washington has not broken the four hundred average attendance barrier. It concludes with identifying elements that are needed at King’s Way to grow beyond its current size. A mixed method approach utilized two instruments. LifeWay Research’s Transformational Church Assessment Tool (TCAT) provided quantitative research and a series of personal interviews were used for qualitative research. Interviews were conducted with two groups: pastors of churches over four hundred and pastors of churches less than four hundred. Correlated results indicated that King’s Way primarily needs to address its Missional Focus and Church Systems, in particular making visible the discipleship and assimilation processes. In addition, King’s Way staff needs to utilize goal setting. There is evidence that establishing a process that involves developing these elements, along with decentralizing decision-making that promotes a team concept, would assist numeric growth at King’s Way. 2014-01-01T00:00:00Z archives.northwestu.edu/handle/nu/25040 Dying to Love: Equipping Young Men to Become Counter-Cultural Husbands Drake, Randy This thesis is a qualitative study examining how cultural perspectives on the role of men as husbands influence the attitudes of 18-26 year old men at Newlife Church in Kitsap County. Newlife Church is identified as one of the fastest growing churches in the United States despite being located in one of this country’s least religious metropolitan areas. This study explores the attitudes, beliefs, and expectations that young men of Newlife Church have about the role of men as husbands. The study is driven by five research questions: 1) How does Scripture define the role of a man as a husband? 2) How do young men of Newlife Church describe the role of a man as a husband? 3) How do young men of Newlife Church describe a successful marriage? 4) How are young men being prepared for their role as husbands? 5) How can Newlife Church better equip young men to be counter-cultural husbands? Data was gathered through three focus group discussions. Each focus group was composed of 18-26 year old single men who regularly attend or have previously attended a Newlife Church gathering. A total of eighteen young men participated in the study. Collected data was analyzed to identify common words, big ideas, and emerging themes. As a result of the research, four implications emerged: 1) Young men of Newlife Church are relentlessly exposed to cultural examples and media messaging that are relationally dangerous and counter to God’s plan for a husband in marriage. 2) An effective and sustainable small group ministry can serve as a key starting point for training young men to become countercultural husbands. 3) Newlife Church lacks a strategy to develop and sustain any type of ministry that trains young men to be biblical husbands. 4) Young men at Newlife Church will be able to stand strong for Christ only when they know better what they already know. Information learned during the research will be used to develop an infrastructure for small group ministry that will biblically challenge cultural perspectives, train young men to lead successful marriages, and equip them to take the mission of Jesus to Kitsap County. 2014-01-01T00:00:00Z archives.northwestu.edu/handle/nu/25044 Developing a Plan of Action to Plant a Newlife Campus in Tri-Cities, WA Middleton, Mark Tri-Cities, Washington, is one of the fastest growing regions in the country, but the Church isn't keeping up. What kind of church does the Tri-Cities need? Could newlife be part of the solution? I believe newlife can reach the unreached in the Columbia Basin area by focusing on the mission of Jesus Christ to help heal the world. This project followed the Biblical and historical narrative of church planting and then compared these key insights with the methods and mission of newlife church. The study focuses on four primary questions: How does a church that has worked in Kitsap County (where newlife launched) assert itself in another community? What parts of the church (theology and methodology) translate into a new context? What about the language of the culture? How do things like ethnicity, economics, and family structure affect the strategy of this particular newlife campus? Finally, as insights were made, a plan of action including planting the campus was given. 2013-07-01T00:00:00Z