unSeminary Podcast – REPLAY: Church Growth Launchpad: 5 Levers Fast-Growing Churches Use to Multiply Invitations

Host: Rich Birch
Date: November 12, 2025

Episode Overview

In this highly practical and energetic episode, Rich Birch guides listeners through his “Church Growth Launchpad”—outlining the five key levers ("gears") that fast-growing churches use to multiply invitations and embed a true invite culture. Drawing from decades of experience, Rich stresses the necessity of moving from accidental to intentional, systematized invitations, offering actionable insights and a 90-day plan. The episode also introduces the “Church Growth Incubator,” his cohort-based coaching program.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Urgency and Purpose of Growing Invite Culture

• Intentional Growth vs. Accidental Growth:
  Early-church momentum is typically accidental; sustainable growth happens when invitation becomes instinctual.
  "Today is about moving from hope to a repeatable system... what we've seen is that fast-growing churches, churches that are reaching people and keeping them are training, equipping and motivating." — Rich (12:23)
• Training, Equipping, and Motivating:
  • Training: Helping people understand why inviting matters—addressing the head.
  • Equipping: Providing practical tools—addressing the hands.
  • Motivating: Inspiring people—addressing the heart.
• Dispelling Myths:
  There is no “silver bullet”—no marketing shortcut replaces a robust invitation culture.

The Five Levers (“Gears”) of Fast-Growing Churches

(35:18)

1. Shareable Weekend Teaching

(36:41)

• Three-quarters of church invitations happen because of the weekend teaching.
• Make sure everyone knows what’s coming next, creating talking points:

  "Do people know what's coming up next in your church? ...Tell them, 'Here are the three kinds of people in your life who might be interested and you should invite.'" — Rich (38:29)

• Provide invite cards and digital resources.

2. Eventful Big Days

(41:41)

• 3–4 weekends yearly (e.g., Christmas, Easter, Mother’s Day) are “multiplier” moments.
• Design these weekends backward from the invite and aim for at least 2x your regular attendance.

  "If you just have a big attendance at Christmas and you don't fit it into a system, all you're doing is swelling your attendance..." — Rich (57:10)

3. Captivating Online Conversations

(44:00)

• Use digital channels (web, social media) not for reach, but for engagement and conversation.
• Focus on content people can share (e.g., short sermon clips).

  "They're concerned mostly about engagement, not reach." — Rich (45:01)

4. Magnetic Community Service

(48:00)

• Mass mobilization service events both serve the community and create natural, easy invitations.
• Visibility matters—let community see the church active in the streets.
  Quote/example: Rich’s neighbor finally attended a meal-packing event after ignoring other invites:

  "A day later, I get a text back: 'Rich, that sounds fantastic. We already registered.'" — Rich (50:55)

5. Appealing Volunteer Experience

(53:31)

• Volunteer engagement isn't a result of growth but the driver for it!
• Motivated volunteers naturally invite others:

  "In fast-growing churches, they see the volunteer experience as integral to their growth." — Rich (54:01)

• A thriving volunteer culture multiplies invitations and deepens engagement.

How to Apply the Five Levers in the Next 90 Days

(57:10–66:30)

• Double Down on Eventful Big Days:
  • Plan Christmas as your next major momentum builder. Target 2x regular attendance.
  • Use a “three-week invite push” with multiple tactics: print wall calendars of invite steps, coordinate messaging, give resources/tools.
• Engineer Shareable Weekend Teaching:
  • Carefully plan January preaching; design Christmas services to invite people back in January.
  • Create a “recall” offer (like a free T-shirt/book/giveaway) to incentivize return visits in January. (The “Hoodie Sunday” story—63:38)
  • Launch your biggest-ever social media countdown, modeling after successful campaigns.
• Plan Magnetic Community Service for Early Spring:
  • Organize a high-visibility, fun community project—partnering with schools, city officials, or other churches.
  • Example: Forest City Church in Ontario saw 40% YoY January attendance growth after applying this system.

Real-World Examples & Research

• Statistical Evidence:
  • 88% of people would come to church if invited by a friend (Barna, recent).
  • 40% of Australians (in a notably post-Christian setting) would attend Easter if invited.
• Comparative Effectiveness:
  • Invitations from friends are 15–25x more effective than marketing.
• Case Studies:
  • Forest City Church – Baked-in invite system led to consistent 3x/3.5x Christmas attendance, 40% January growth, and 600 new-guest registrations in 60 days (69:00).

Addressing Common Objections and Questions

• "We already told our people to invite": That’s not training, equipping, or motivating—must become a cultural norm, not a one-off ask.
• "People don’t invite anymore": Flatly disproved by current data.
• "Won’t better marketing/expansion solve this?": No—invite culture is the true multiplier.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Cultural Change:

  "This is ultimately about discipling your people to get out of the stands and onto the field..." — Rich (23:18)

• On Silver Bullet Myths:

  "There is no silver bullet. I can teach your church, I can lead your church, I can help your church be a bigger church. I just can't do it quickly." — Rich (14:43)

• On Repeatable Growth:

  "It is a cultural shift...Fast growing churches, they train, equip, and motivate their people to invite friends." — Rich (16:24)

• On Community Service:

  "They're not only making a difference, but they're being seen making a difference. From an invite culture point of view, those are amazing places for your people to invite their friends." — Rich (49:23)

• On Volunteer Experience:

  "Too many churches think, 'When we get to a size, we'll have enough volunteers.' No, no, no—that's not how it is. It's actually the other way around." — Rich (54:01)

• On Taking Action:

  "You could have a hope-driven strategy or you could be convinced that hey, we want to intentionally build an invite culture that sustains growth." — Rich (74:00)

Important Timestamps

• 12:23 Defining invite culture—training, equipping, motivating
• 35:18 Introduction of the Five Gears/Levers
• 36:41 Shareable Weekend Teaching
• 41:41 Eventful Big Days
• 44:00 Captivating Online Conversations
• 48:00 Magnetic Community Service
• 53:31 Appealing Volunteer Experience
• 57:10–66:30 Concrete 90-Day Application Plan
• 63:38 "Hoodie Sunday" / Incentivized return visit story
• 69:00 Forest City Church case study

Audience Q&A (81:00–End)

• Best Online Conversations:
  • Use sermon clips with tools like Opus Clip/Sermon Shots to generate conversation-trigger content.
• Inviting Friends vs. Strangers:
  • Most effective invitations flow through existing relationships or "loose ties", not strangers.
• Serve Days with Other Churches:
  • Can be great, but make sure you are facilitating invitations, not just participation.
• How Church Growth Incubator Differs from Other Programs:
  • Not theoretical; rooted in current best-practices from fast-growing churches, with direct coaching and up-to-date research.

Action Steps & Resources

• Downloadable Resources:
  • Printable wall calendar with invite action steps
  • Training on specific “three-week push” tactics
• Apply for Church Growth Incubator:
  • Application at apply.churchgrowthincubator.com

Final Thought

Rich’s core message: Sustainable church growth isn’t accidental, marketing-driven, or personality-dependent; it’s about intentionally building a repeatable, rooted culture of invitation. Healthy things grow—let’s build that culture together.