Games, Gimmicks, and God: Exposing a Flawed Approach to Church Growth

Don't Fall For It!

Yes, programs are a key ingredient to the successful revitalization of a church, however, we must be very careful, and biblical in choosing what programs we implement. The programs must be biblically sound and discipling in nature.

In every generation, well-meaning pastors and church leaders have sought ways to reach their communities and grow their churches. Many have been deeply sincere, driven by a desire to see souls saved and pews filled. During the mid-to-late 20th century, a highly energetic and visible stream of Independent Baptist ministry emerged that emphasized aggressive growth strategies, especially within the Sunday School movement. These methods often involved promotions, contests, bus ministries, and streamlined evangelism approaches designed for fast results.

With over forty years in ministry—more than twenty of those in the pastorate—and having observed a wide range of churches across the country, I’ve seen both the strengths and the serious shortcomings of various church growth models. In addition, my doctoral research focused on church revitalization and the broader conversation surrounding church health. What I offer here is not a detached critique, but a pastor’s concern shaped by experience, study, and a heart for the local church.

It is not my purpose to malign individuals or question motives. God has used flawed vessels throughout history, and we are all indebted to faithful men who labored in their time. However, in our present moment—marked by spiritual fatigue, cultural confusion, and ecclesiastical decline—there is a troubling resurgence in some areas of a method-heavy, gimmick-laden approach to church growth that bears careful examination.

This article is not a critique of zeal but a call to wisdom. It is a plea to distinguish between what may appear to have worked in the past and what is biblically healthy and spiritually enduring. We must ask ourselves a sobering question: Is God truly honored by our methods—or simply used by them?

In the mid-to-late 20th century, a surge of numerical growth swept through segments of American fundamentalism, particularly among Independent Baptist churches. I was saved and started preaching more toward the tail-end of the furor and the beginning of the slow decline (I was saved in 1982). Fueled by an intense desire to reach the lost and a deep conviction about the urgency of eternity, many churches launched into aggressive outreach efforts. The Sunday School movement, bus ministries, and high-attendance campaigns became the primary vehicles for growth.

The philosophy was simple: if you build excitement, people will come. Promotions—ranging from hot dog Sundays, vacation giveaways, to live animals on stage—were used to drive attendance. Evangelism strategies were streamlined to produce quick results. Some Evangelists and Pastors were known for their special techniques. Soul-winning programs trained members to move rapidly through gospel presentations, often pushing for a decision on the spot. Numerical goals were set and tracked publicly. In some circles, pastors were ranked by the size of their Sunday School or the number of professions of faith they could report. They were rewarded with special write-ups in various Christian magazines and journals.

This model gained traction because, in many places, it worked—at least temporarily. Churches grew. Buses rolled. Baptistries were used frequently. The results seemed to validate the methods. And to be fair, there were genuine conversions and lives changed through these efforts. But alongside the zeal came subtle shifts in values:

1. Results began to eclipse discipleship/doctrine,

2. Pressure/promotion replaced prayer, and

3. Appearances/awards started to matter more than authenticity.

   
   

What emerged was not simply a set of methods, but a culture—a programmatic model of ministry that treated church growth like a system to be engineered, rather than a work of God to be stewarded. We could make it happen! We only needed the right blend of games and gimmicks.

The Pitfalls of this Programmatic Approach

While this particular programmatic model promised rapid growth and visible success, it often carried unintended consequences—many of which have become painfully clear in hindsight.

Shallow Conversions

One of the most serious concerns was the ease with which professions of faith were secured. In some settings, the gospel presentation was condensed to a quick prayer, with little to no understanding or explanation of the Gospel and its implications. This reduced salvation to a man-centered transaction rather than a God-ordained transformation. Over time, many communites found themselves with people who had no evidence of conversion beyond a hastily recited prayer, and no current evidence of a desire to follow God, obey the Bible, or support the local church. This problem has increasingly manifested itself as time has passed.

Inflated Numbers

Pastors and workers, often under pressure to produce results, began to focus on statistics—how many were “saved,” how many were “baptized,” how many rode the buses. These numbers were sometimes reported with little accountability or follow-up. In some cases, the numbers themselves became the measure of a church’s legitimacy or a pastor’s faithfulness. I remember jokes being made about this, especially for those who could not "keep up" with the spirit of the age. I heard a preacher one time who was not doing so well in his church make the following statment when asked "how many are you running these days?" The slightly embarrassed pastor said, laughingly, to defray the emotion of the moment, "We are running about 250, but only cathcing 50." The subtle message: if you weren’t growing numerically, something must be wrong with your spirituality or methods. This pressure was very real!

Psychological and Emotional Manipulation

High-pressure techniques and tactics were used to coax professions of faith—Personal salesmanship and persuasion often replaced genuine conviction. Invitations became emotional spectacles, and children/youth were frequently targeted due to their impressionability. Decisions were counted, but disciples were rarely made. In speicial meetings, large and small, the way a pastor or evangelist gave an invitation could be so carefully choreographed that it would be almost impossible not to have "professions."

Gimmick-Centered Ministry

To sustain excitement, ministries increasingly leaned on promotions, contests, giveaways, and novelty events. While these may have appeared to have a place as tools, they often became crutches. The result was a generation of people who associated the church with entertainment and reward, not with reverence and repentance. I remember a preacher many years ago saying, "Be careful. What you win them with, that is what you keep them with." That statement sounds clever, but the phrase itself is suspect. We don't "keep them." And for that matter, we don't win them. You may win them to yourself and your church, but we must remember that salvation is of the Lord. It is His work from start to finish. Evidence of this ministry failure is revealed in this; when the games stop, so do the crowds. They will find something else "fun" to do!

Each of these pitfalls contributed to a growing disconnect between the methods of ministry and the message of the gospel. Churches became busy but spiritually shallow, full of activity but thin on transformation. One pastor who was heavily involved in the gimmickery of that era, and even wrote books on it, looked back on some of his previous writings on the matter and said, in my presence, that much of what he had written then was foolishness.

The Spiritual Toll

Beyond the numerical and methodological concerns, this approach took (and is still taking) a deep spiritual toll—on pastors, churches, and congregants alike.

On Pastors

Many pastors, especially young or bi-vocational ones, were subtly conditioned to believe that their worth was tied to their church’s growth curve. When success was defined by attendance and professions of faith, faithful men who labored in hard fields were left feeling defeated or even disqualified. Some were tempted to exaggerate results or mimic methods that violated their own conscience, just to survive in a performance-driven culture.

On Churches

Churches that leaned into this model often became addicted to momentum. Services had to be exciting. Numbers had to increase. Special events had to top the previous year. Over time, the deep work of discipleship, prayer, and scriptural teaching was crowded out by logistics and planning meetings. In many cases, when the leader who drove the system moved on or burned out, the church collapsed—revealing that the foundation was more show than substance.

On the People

Congregants raised in these environments were sometimes conditioned to equate spirituality with enthusiasm or busyness. Many were never truly grounded in doctrine, nor taught to walk with God apart from the machinery of church programs. When trials came or leadership faltered, disillusionment set in. Some left the faith entirely, convinced that Christianity was just another system that had failed them.

On the Gospel

Most concerning of all, the gospel itself was often unintentionally distorted. By reducing salvation to a formula and discipleship to attendance, the message of Christ’s transforming power was overshadowed. Instead of calling people to die to self, the message became one of convenience: quick, easy, painless salvation with few implications for holiness, obedience, or suffering.

This toll cannot be measured in spreadsheets or attendance charts—but it is deeply felt in the hearts of weary pastors, disoriented believers, and declining churches still chasing the ghost of yesterday’s glory.

Why It’s Being Resurrected Today

In recent years, some pastors have made a noticeable attempt to revive the old programmatic methods of yesteryear. Despite the documented flaws and long-term consequences, the allure remains strong—especially in a spiritually dry and discouraging season.

Nostalgia for a “Better Time”

For many, the past represents a golden era—full buildings, bustling bus routes, and seemingly endless salvations. It’s tempting to believe that reviving those methods will revive those results. But memory can be selective. It often recalls the excitement and overlooks the eventual emptiness.

Desperation in Decline

We are living in a time when many churches are plateaued or declining. Pastors are discouraged, communities are changing, and cultural hostility is rising. In such conditions, a method that once “worked” can feel like a lifeline. When prayer, preaching, and patience seem slow or unfruitful, programs offer the promise of something measurable—anything that might signal progress.

Influence of High-Profile Voices

Some well-known personalities, often from previous generations, continue to be platformed and promoted in certain circles. Their stories and successes—often told without full context—create pressure for younger or struggling pastors to imitate rather than innovate biblically. When ministries are built around personalities instead of principles, the next generation is taught to replicate style rather than seek God’s will for their context. This is such an important statement. Let me repeat it. When ministries are built around personalities instead of principles, the next generation is taught to replicate style rather than seek God’s will for their context. When this happens, future ministry suffers, because, NEWSFLASH, you are not your hero! Michael Jordan may be your hero basketball player, but just because he did it in basketball doesn't mean you can. You must be led individually by the Spirit of God, following biblical truth and not necessarily cultural, contextual methods.

The Fear of Irrelevance

In an age dominated by image and immediacy, pastors can feel enormous pressure to prove their church is alive and thriving. Gimmicks seem to work. Numbers impress. Events draw. So the cycle begins again—not because the theology has changed, but because the fear of being seen as irrelevant or ineffective can override caution and discernment. We want to be the leader, the icon, the one who is looked up to! Yet, repeating the same methods that produced long-term harm, simply because they gave short-term results, is not revival. It’s a relapse.

What long-term harms you might ask? Let us elaborate some more on the deficits...

1. Superficial Christianity/Spirituality – Large numbers of people were counted as converts, but many had no lasting fruit. Churches were filled with unregenerate members who made pastoring and biblical direction extremely difficult.

2. Discipleship Deficit – The emphasis on decisions over discipleship meant few were taught how to walk with God, study Scripture, or serve meaningfully in the local church.

3. Inflated and Misleading Church Metrics – Membership rolls became bloated, and statistical reports were often exaggerated or unverifiable. This created a false narrative of church health while masking underlying decline.

4. Erosion of Integrity – In the pressure to produce results, some pastors and workers cut corners ethically, leading to a credibility crisis that damaged not just local churches but the reputation of fundamentalism as a whole.

5. Burnout and Cynicism – Constant activity and performance-driven leadership led many pastors and laypeople to burnout (at best) and immoral/sinful behavior (at worst). When results plateaued or vanished, a wave of disillusionment often followed.

6. Cultural Christianity – By emphasizing attendance and participation over regeneration and transformation, churches unintentionally encouraged people to conform outwardly without inward change—fostering legalism, pride, or shallow faith.

7. Loss of Reverence – The use of games and entertainment to attract crowds sometimes cheapened the worship and seriousness of the church gathering. The holy was blended with the silly.

8. Stifling of Innovation and Contextual Ministry – Churches were pressured to copy the “big names” rather than develop biblical, context-sensitive strategies for their own communities.

What True Revitalization Requires

Revitalization is not a matter of reviving methods that once filled buildings—it is about seeking God to breathe life into what has become dry and fruitless. True revitalization addresses both the root and the fruit of a church’s decline, calling for spiritual renewal rather than mechanical reform.

A Return to the Sufficiency of Scripture

Churches must be built on the Word—not around personalities, programs, or promotions. Revitalization starts when the Bible regains its central place in preaching, leadership, discipleship, and decision-making. Methods should arise from sound doctrine, not merely past experience or popular trends.

Prayerful Dependency on God

There is no substitute for the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. Real revitalization comes when a church humbles itself before God, confesses sin, seeks His face, and asks for divine renewal. Programs may organize people, but only God transforms them.

Biblical Leadership with Integrity

A revitalized church needs leaders who serve, not sell—who shepherd, not perform. Pastors must resist the urge to mimic famous personalities and instead commit to quiet, faithful, Spirit-led ministry, even when it’s slow or unseen. Integrity in leadership lays the foundation for lasting health.

A Focus on Discipleship, Not Decisions

Rather than seeking a spike in numbers, revitalization prioritizes growing people in Christ. This means teaching sound doctrine, forming real relationships, and walking with people through sanctification—not just counting professions of faith.

Structural Honesty and Flexibility

Sometimes a church's structure—its programs, schedule, or leadership model—has contributed to decline. Revitalization may require honest evaluation and hard decisions: trimming ministries, adjusting expectations, rethinking governance. The goal isn’t change for change’s sake, but structure that serves spiritual life.

A Long View of Ministry

Revitalization is not a weekend crusade or a six-week campaign. It’s a long, prayer-soaked journey that may take years. There will be dry spells, opposition, and discouragement. But faithful ministry, over time, bears fruit that endures.

In short, revitalization requires less flash and more faithfulness—less programming and more pastoring. When we return to God’s ways, we find that He is still able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.

Games and Gimmicks + Deep Discipleship

Some may ask, "Can’t We Have Both?" “You may hear, "It’s just a tool,” or, “Lighten up—fun helps reach people.” Are we creating a false dichotomy with these concerns? Can’t we be both serious about the gospel and creative with our outreach? Isn’t it possible to prioritize discipleship and still enjoy the promotions or programs? After all, if we even just win one, isn't it worth it?

In theory, yes. But in practice, the silliness often outpaces the seriousness. Over time, the method tends to shape the message. When the front door of the church is built on entertainment, novelty, and giveaways, it’s difficult to transition people into reverence, repentance, and spiritual depth.

Moreover, it’s not merely about fun—it’s about what’s centered. The early church turned the world upside down with no marketing team, no bounce houses, no attendance drives—just Spirit-filled believers proclaiming a risen Christ. Joy and fellowship are biblical; manipulation and spectacle are not.

Churches should be warm, welcoming, and relational—but never flippant with eternal things. And when churches substitute substance with spectacle, over time, the silliness suffocates the sanctity.

A Plea for Discernment and Courage

This is not a call to be cynical—but to be sober. It’s not an attack on the sincerity of those who used these methods in the past—but a recognition that sincerity doesn’t sanctify flawed systems. We must learn from the past, not live in it.

Discernment is desperately needed in this hour. Not everything that "works" is wise. Not every decision that fills a pew feeds a soul. Pastors must ask deeper questions: Is this biblical? Is this healthy? Is this helping people know Christ more deeply? Emotionalism and crowd-pleasing tactics may stir a room—but do they stir hearts to holiness? Do they produce repentance or simply reactions?

At the same time, we need courage—courage to lead differently when pressured to perform. Courage to reject gimmicks even when others mock or marginalize you. Courage to plant yourself in prayer, preach the Word faithfully, and shepherd patiently—even if the growth is slow, the seats aren’t full, and your name is never known.

This is a call to trust that God is enough. His Word is sufficient. His Spirit is powerful. His gospel is still the power of God unto salvation. Churches don’t need to be flashy to be faithful. They need to be holy. They need to be humble. And they need to be honest enough to abandon any method that clouds the glory of Christ.

So:

Let us preach Christ—not a promotion.

Let us pursue transformation—not just traffic.

Let us seek revival—not relapse. And...

Let us do it with the quiet confidence that God honors truth more than trends, and faithfulness more than flair.