Many church leaders report feeling under-equipped to lead through change and pursue mission.¹ At the same time, around 70-80% of Australian Protestant churches have been stable or declining.²
We long to see our nation won for Jesus through healthy, evangelistic, multiplying churches.
Over the last 17 years, our network has walked alongside leaders to help them plant more than 150 churches and developed hundreds of pastors to help churches around Australia pursue growth & change.
We’re convinced that together we can make real progress in reaching Australia with the gospel.
1. Powell, Sterland, Jacka, Gan, Pepper & Hourihan, Leader Survey Summary Report for Protestant Australian Churches: Local Church Leaders in Senior Roles, NCLS Research Profile 2023. Around half of Protestant senior church leaders reported that they were not adequately trained or equipped for leading a group through change, with similar levels of preparedness reported for mission and outreach.
2. Sam Sterland, Growth, Decline, and Planting by Australian Churches: Results from the 2021 National Church Life Survey, NCLS Research Report 49, 2nd ed. (2023). NCLS found 69% of Australian Protestant churches were stable or declining between 2011–2016, and 82% were stable or declining between 2016–2021.
Healthy churches need healthy leaders because change in a church flows primarily from those guiding it. We gather together leaders from biblically-driven churches to support and equip each other.
Pastors have been equipped with practical, theological and emotional skills to lead healthier churches. Ultimately, the biggest fruit has been lives won to Jesus.
New churches are more effective at reaching new people.
They're five times more effective at drawing in people who either have no history with church or who haven’t been to church in a very long time.
New churches are a biblical and effective strategy that is reaching many people who would otherwise remain unreached by existing churches. If we’re going to reach Australia with the gospel, it's not optional.
We’re praying to see many more healthy churches planted and leaders raised up across Australia — so that by 2035, the number of Reformed evangelical Christians in Australia has doubled.
That means moving from decline to growth: not losing people each year, but seeing new people come to know Jesus and join local churches.
In a church of 100, instead of one person leaving each year, five people joining.
The Leadership Development Program has been the most significant intervention in our church. It has been a huge help for us. You come out of Bible college, and then 80% of your job consists of things you weren’t trained for. It’s been huge for us, we’re seeing fruit that we’re very thankful for.
Rory Shiner
Providence Church, Perth
The planting support you get through Reach Australia has been amazing. It’s a network of planters who have done it, who understand the difficulties. The coaching we’ve had access to has been fantastic. They've been really strategic and we talk a lot about what to prepare for.
Paul & Bronwen Cooper
Trinity Church Campbelltown, Adelaide
As our church has grown, I have probably inhibited our growth. I've often been the blockage because sometimes I've been too slow to see that I can't be everyone's personal pastor. I think sometimes that's been pride - too slow to see we need better systems and that we need better structures to help us. The network has been a help and a joy.
Phil Colgan
St George North Anglican Church, Sydney
ABN: 92 139 724 806
Copyright 2024 Reach Australia
All rights reserved
Privacy policy