Preaching and breakouts

Here's something noteworthy from today's issue of Preaching Now:

In his book Breakout Churches (Zondervan), Thom Rainer points out that there was a strong sense of momentum (or "Big Mo") in most of the churches his team identified as "breakout churches" -- congregations which went through a period of plateau or decline, then turned around to experience significant growth. And a major factor in that momentum was the strength of their preaching ministries.

Raimer says there was a "common theme among many of the breakout church leaders. In the process of leading the churches in the breakout, these leaders reported a heightened awareness of the importance of their preaching ministries. Some of them expressed a belief that the Big Mo would not have taken place if they had not given greater attention to the ministry of preaching.

Let's hope that growth comes not simply from the appeal of the preachers' personalities, but from the power of the Word.