Princeton—Mike Boyd became pastor of Lebanon Baptist Church in Princeton seven years ago. Thom Rainer, in his book, “Autopsy of a Deceased Church,” indicates that years 6-10 of a pastor’s tenure can often be fruit bearing years, and that’s true for Boyd and his wife, Teresa.

Boyd retired from the U.S. Army Reserves after 24 years of service. While serving with the Army Reserves he also worked with the Fort Campbell Fire Department, which he retired from after 27 years and reaching the position of Fire Chief.

Boyd was saved at age 17, but did not begin to grow in faith until 28 years later, after attending a Promise Keepers event with men from Northside Baptist Church in Princeton. In 2008, he answered a call to ministry and began to serve as a supply preacher in the surrounding counties. Lebanon Baptist Church called him as pastor in 2009.

When Boyd started at Lebanon Baptist, an average of 15 people attended Sunday School. The 150-year-old congregation had averaged 20 people in worship attendance for the previous 15 years. Mike and Teresa describe the congregation then as a very loving congregation, but lacking a vision for growth and ministry. Morale was low due to poor attendance. There was talk of ending Wednesday services and possible concern in the minds of some members regarding the church’s future.

Boyd began to address some of the issues related to renewal and revitalization. The first thing he did was make the Sunday School rooms more welcoming to guests. He cleaned out other rooms and start a nursery. On one Sunday, Boyd shared with the congregation that he felt led to help the church grow. He urged them to get on board, which they gladly did.

Teresa noticed a woman attending worship who had two small daughters and was expecting. She noticed the woman would sit in the sanctuary with her children because the church did not have a Sunday School class for her children. They started a class to minister to her family and other families followed.

One of the next needs was to make more room available for ministry. They remodeled existing space making room for new growth. They made a number of cosmetic changes, updating the facility’s appearance. They built a foyer onto the sanctuary, making a welcoming entrance and restrooms easily accessible.

Today, the church averages about 60 for Sunday School and 80-90 in worship. The Wednesday night service, which was near being eliminated seven years ago, now draws 45-50 people. At a time when many churches are struggling to have a Sunday night crowd, Lebanon has a core group of nearly 50 participants.

Boyd credits God for the turn around that the church is experiencing. The Lord called him to be pastor of the church and gave him favor with the congregation. The Lord continues to add people at a rate of 15-20 per year.

At the time this article was written, Lebanon had just welcomed another young family, baptizing their teenage daughters. Boyd also has made a practice of investing personally in men through one-to-one disciple-making. He has discipled three men; two of which have discipled another.

Some takeaways from Lebanon’s encouraging turnaround:

1: Address the facility: The facility gives guests a first impression of the church itself. Not every congregation has the resources to have the very best in terms of buildings, but each church can do its best with what they have.

2. Make room for people: As people began to visit, there was a need for more space. The congregation wisely responded by making room for even more people to worship at Lebanon.

3. Cast a vision for growth: Before becoming pastor, Boyd shared with the congregation that his intention was to lead the church to grow. The congregation gladly accepted his vision for reaching people.

4. Take the lead in evangelism: Boyd is intentional in preaching the gospel and sharing Jesus personally with the lost of the community and with those who attend services.

5. Lead the church to work together on projects: As the church began to remodel its facility, they found themselves working together, which resulted in greater unity and fellowship.

6. Give God the glory: Any conversation related to the positive ministry at Lebanon finds its way back to God getting the credit.

Lebanon Baptist Church is a reminder that God is not finished with many of our small and struggling churches. These churches have resources and people that matter to God, and many of them can see a turnaround like the one Lebanon experienced. (WR)