Ray Prichard over at crosswalk.com has a short piece up.  In it he says he can name two very obvious indicators of church health.  So obvious you can walk in and pick up on them right away.  They are…

  1. Hearty congregational singing.
       
  2. Obvious affection between the pastor and the congregation.

Here are my two cents on this issue.  One, I have seen some people really sing their hearts out in unhealthy groups and churches.  Additionally, I have been in settings where the music was painful but the church was making a difference in the community.  And, two, I have seen some churches that really love their pastor and the pastor really loves the people…but there is no missional effectiveness.

I think that those things will probably be present in a healthy church, but they just don’t seem like the first ones to hang your hat on.  Am I wrong on this?

Source: http://www.crosswalk.com/pastors/11538267/

Found via: http://mondaymorninginsight.com/index.php/site/comments/how_to_spot_a_healthy_church_quickly/