Of course many churches don't go through the whole cycle. Many start stagnating well before confronting the 200 barrier, sometimes showing signs of age soon after being planted.

Some church people have never seen church at its healthiest, and it probably has a permanent negative affect on their mindset. By skipping several stages and never experiencing a period of rapid growth, I have seen churches go straight from being a small struggling group to being a stagnant church. People who have only ever known stagnant churches go and plant new churches, which are infected from birth. Not surprisingly, they depend on transfer growth.

Of those that experience a period of growth, perhaps the majority respond badly to the 200 barrier, preferring a rut instead. Fortunately some churches get it right; they choose to stay in growth mode, experiencing healthy growth for many years. They pass the 200 barrier, and even go through the next barrier at about 800 members. Maintaining growth without becoming a megachurch is possible by using resources to plant more new churches; they can eventually achieve far more growth than those that continue to build a massive center.

In some cases, churches can even skip the struggling pioneer stage and grow strongly from when they open their doors.

Other factors are also important. Denominational policies can either make a church stagnate and decline earlier than it otherwise would, or promote consistent long-term growth. Cultures vary from place to place. Californians seem quite happy with big churches, but people in other local cultures prefer small to medium-size churches.

Your church can maintain a state of healthy growth almost indefinitely. Reflect on the healthy stage of your church's life and learn as much from it as you can. Be alert to the subtle and threatening signs of age that emerge from the church's internal pressures. You can prevent the effects of aging on your church.