EFFECT OF SPIRITUAL VALUES ON CHURCH GROWTH OF KENYA ASSEMBLIES OF GOD CHURCH IN MOMBASA COUNTY

Abstract

Spiritual values are pivotal in shaping servant leaders, impacting church growth and membership. Recent observations in Kenyan churches indicate a decline in commitment and involvement levels, often attributed to inadequate leadership structures and a lack of spiritual values. This research sought to determine how spiritual values affected church growth of Kenya Assemblies of God church in Mombasa County. The study was grounded in servant leadership theory and employed a descriptive research design. Targeting 1810 members across 6 branches of the Kenya Assemblies of God church in Mombasa County, a sample size of 300 was selected using stratified random sampling. Data collection involved administering structured questionnaires to respondents, with 233 returned, indicating a response rate of 78%. Prior to data collection, a trial study was conducted with 30 randomly selected church members to assess the instrument's accuracy and reliability. The findings revealed that spiritual values positively influenced church growth, whereby the coefficient values were; r= 0.037; p-value was less than 0.05, that is, p= 0.004. The results further showed that an increase in spiritual values led to an increase in church growth while a decrease of the same was related to lower church growth. The study recommends Pentecostal churches to engage youth opinions and involvement in church affairs, while advocating for servant leadership policies, ultimately concluding that spiritual values impact church growth in the Kenya Assemblies of God church in Mombasa County.