Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Hunter - Church Growth Eyes Have X-Ray Vision



"Students of Church Growth realize that a good structure for the church that really wants to grow is the organization of celebration plus congregation plus cell. When we see the importance of the organization of the church we are looking with 'Church Growth Eyes.' We are looking from an x-ray perspective and understanding the internal organs of the body of Christ--the Church!"
Kent R. Hunter, Launching Growth in the Local Congregation, A Workbook for Focusing Church Growth Eyes, Detroit: Church Growth Analysis and Learning Center, 1980, p. 81.

"Church Growth is not another program. It is a process. The pastor and people who have 'Church Growth eyes' make up a church that sees the task of ministry as an outreach process that affects every aspect of the church: from ladies' aid to elders."
Kent R. Hunter, Launching Growth in the Local Congregation, A Workbook for Focusing Church Growth Eyes, Detroit: Church Growth Analysis and Learning Center, 1980, p. 11.

"We have discovered that the Early Church was an institution that unknowingly saw its world through Church Growth eyes. We have some benefits they did not have in that we can look back today and analyze their successes and failures."
Floyd L. Stolzenburg, "Church Growth - the Acts of the Apostles," Taught at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Columbus, Ohio

"Church Growth is not another program. It is a process. The pastor and people who have 'Church Growth eyes' make up a church that sees the task of ministry as an outreach process that affects every aspect of the church: from ladies' aid to elders."
Kent R. Hunter, Launching Growth in the Local Congregation, A Workbook for Focusing Church Growth Eyes, Detroit: Church Growth Analysis and Learning Center, 1980, p. 11.

"Discover new ways of thinking about your church and community, develop Church Growth eyes that see more accurately the various parts, the homogeneous units, the responsive segments of the community which can be won."
Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 17.

"As we begin developing Church Growth eyes and see the possibilities, as we discover methods that prove effective and discard methods that are clearly ineffective, we will find ourselves in a new age."
Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 19.

"As Christians refine their methods, develop Church Growth eyes, feel church growth responsibility, communicate the Gospel, and educate those who are won until they become responsible Christians, the church as a whole will receive the abundant blessing God wants to give."
Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 21f.

"Church Growth Eyes. A characteristic of Christians who have achieved an ability to see the possibilities for growth and to apply appropriate strategies to gain maximum results for Christ and the Church."
C. Peter Wagner, ed., with Win Arn and Elmer Towns, Church Growth: The State of the Art, Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1986, p. 284.

"Some persons are blind to possibilities for growth, while others have eyes like eagle Scouts. If you can see the potential for growth, you have church growth eyes. If you are blind to the possibilities, you need church growth eyes."
Delos Miles, Church Growth, A Mighty River, Nashville: Broadman Press, 1981, p. 51.

"Church Growth Eyes. Sometimes the term is used in conjunction with the phrase, 'discerning the body.' Professor McGavran uses the terms almost synonymously. Both phrases are examples of how church growth science appropriates the medical model to express itself. Church growth eyes are 'a characteristic of Christians who have achieved an ability to see the possibilities for growth, and to apply appropriate strategies to gain maximum results for Christ and His Church.'" McGavran and Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, p. 127.]
Delos Miles, Church Growth, A Mighty River, Nashville: Broadman Press, 1981, p. 51.

"As we consider various factors and principles relating to Church Growth we need abundant, accurate information about the members of our churches. This basic principle of Church Growth is called Discerning the Body [in italics]. Pastors and lay people need to discern the Body in the congregation in which they are serving. For this, Church Growth eyes are essential."
Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 61. 1 Corinthians 10.


"Discerning the Body begins with Church Growth eyes. Unfortunately, this is what many leaders, many Christians, do not have." Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 63. 1 Corinthians 10.

"How can my congregation develop Church Growth eyes?"
Donald A. McGavran and Winfield C. Arn, Ten Steps for Church Growth, New York: Harper and Row, 1977, p. 72. 1 Corinthians 10.


"Growth Awareness Kit...'Church Growth Eyes' game. An enjoyable growth simulation game for large or small groups." $39.95
Dr. Win Arn, President, 1989-90 Church Leadership Resource Catalog, 2670 S. Myrtle Avenue, Suite 201, Monrovia, CA 91016 Church Growth, Inc. p. 9. 800-423-4844.

"The Institute for American Church Growth has created a card game called 'Church Growth Eyes.' The game may be used in groups to learn how to see through church growth eyes."
Delos Miles, Church Growth, A Mighty River, Nashville: Broadman Press, 1981, p. 51.