The other night, attendance was a little down at our Brew Theology group. It was Spring Break, so many of our usual folks were traveling or had family in town, but as I sat there with our smaller group and talked more casually, I found myself thinking, “This is really nice.” With only about eight people sitting around the table, the conversation flowed more naturally, and because the group already knew each other fairly well, there was more freedom to share and be vulnerable. While we’ll probably return to our usual size with Spring Break concluded, the smaller group proved a pleasant break for us as well, but the experience got me thinking:

Ministries often put a big stress on numbers, but large numbers may diminish a ministry’s effectiveness more than improve it. When in doubt, remember the Spanish Armada.

The dreaded Spanish Armada was an immense fleet of mammoth ships commissioned by King Philip II in the late 16th Century to wage war on England. Because of their size and number, the 130 ships (crewed by 8,000 sailors and carrying an additional 18,000 soldiers) took multiple days just to exit the harbor at Lisbon. Sure, the Armada was imposing, but it was also famously impractical. Many of the ships were lost on the journey due to bad weather, and by the time the beleaguered sailors arrived in the English Channel, the English navy was ready for them. After using reconnaissance and diversionary tactics to destabilize the fleet, Sir Francis Drake’s lighter and more maneuverable ships inflicted heavy damage on the Spanish vessels, leading to the eventual Spanish retreat. Aside from “Never trust north Atlantic weather patterns,” the story presents another important moral: Nothing is ever “too big to fail.”

More money, more resources, and more people won’t always guarantee success; rather, smaller and more intimate may lead to better communication and fuller spiritual growth. The majority of American churches aren’t small for lack of a graphic designer or 14-point ministry plan or strong social media presence; they’re small because smaller groups are easier to sustain and direct. Like the English navy, smaller organizations are more maneuverable and adaptable. So the next time you find yourself wishing for a bigger group or bigger church or bigger budget, remember the Spanish Armada.

Bigger isn’t always better.