A small church is not a broken church. It is a different institution.

The Rescue Track, plainly

Twelve modules over six months, self-paced, with a monthly mentor conversation. Every module ends with an artifact you can put in place inside your own church on the following Sunday, at zero cost. We assume no dedicated staff, no purpose-built building, and no permission to spend money you do not have.

What the pathway teaches, module by module

1. Governance for the small church. A one-page constitution that will still hold up if you triple.
2. Money hygiene without a bookkeeper. A spreadsheet, a rule, and a monthly cadence.
3. Sunday on a shoestring. A run-sheet, a hospitality plan, and honest tech.
4. Volunteers, without burning them out. A rota that respects real lives.
5. Safeguarding in a small setting. Real protection, without turning your church into a checklist.
6. Pastoral care at close range. Boundaries, records, and rest for the pastor.
7. Membership and belonging. Making it clear how one joins.
8. Giving in a small congregation. Teaching generosity without pressure.
9. Communication with fifty people, not five thousand. A newsletter, a website that works, and a phone that answers.
10. Reaching the neighbours. Local mission when there is no marketing budget.
11. The bivocational pastor's week. Diary, sabbath, and marriage.
12. The five-year picture. Whether growth, plateau, or replant is honest for your church.

“I stopped trying to run my sixty-person church like a small version of Hillsong. MBS taught me to run it as a strong version of itself.”

Financial help

MBS offers reduced tuition for pastors of under-resourced churches, and a bursary programme funded by graduates of the flagship program. Ask about both on the application form — there is no separate paperwork.