Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren is joined onstage at this year's Purpose Driven Church Conference by the 2006 Church Health Award winners. The 46 churches from 14 nations were recognized for maintaining health in their churches by balancing the five biblical purposes. PD Photo by Allison Cox

LAKE FOREST, Calif. (PD) - Nearly fifty congregations from 14 nations received Church Health Awards during the 2006 Purpose Driven Church conference held at Saddleback Church, May 16-19. 

“These churches understand the importance of maintaining a balance between the five biblical purposes of worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and mission,” said Rick Warren, founding pastor of Saddleback Church and Purpose Driven Ministries. “These congregations embrace Purpose Driven characteristics to not only grow in numbers, but, more importantly, to grow in health.” 

“That’s why, through these awards, we emphasize balance, health, and strength over size or shape,” Warren said. “There is no correlation between the size of a church and its strength.” 

Since 1999, Purpose Driven Ministries has annually honored churches that have shown excellence in adapting the Purpose Driven paradigm within their congregations. With thousands of churches becoming purpose driven following their experience with the 40 Days of Purpose campaign, Purpose Driven decided to honor 46 churches this year.  

This year's winners demonstrate that the Purpose Driven model is used by congregations around the world, including those large and small, denominational and non-denominational, charismatic and non-charismatic, new plant and well-established, urban and rural.  

Congregations in the United States that were recognized this year range from EastLake Community Church in Kirkland, Wash., to First Brazilian Baptist Church of South Florida in Pompano Beach, Fla., and Penn Friends Community Church in Cassopolis, Mich. The international congregations include Kwai Shing Baptist Church in Hong Kong, China; New Hope Community Church in Auckland, New Zealand; Asociacion Misionera Sendero de Luz in San Jose, Costa Rica; and Lira Pentecostal Church in Kampala, Uganda. 

About 3,000 pastors and church leaders from 46 nations attended the Purpose Driven Church conference at Saddleback Church, one of America’s largest churches with more than 22,000 people attending weekend worship services. 

Thirty thousand congregations in the United States and thousands more worldwide have walked through the discipleship program, 40 Days of Purpose, which is based on Rick Warren’s best-selling book The Purpose Driven Life. The book has sold nearly 30 million copies since October 2002.  

Hundreds of other congregations have participated in 40 Days of Community campaigns that focus their ministry efforts on the needs of people in their local areas. Dozens of other churches are piloting Saddleback's P.E.A.C.E. Plan, which focuses the transforming power of Christ on major problems facing humanity worldwide.

For more information on the characteristics of a purpose driven church, click here.