From the Standard

Came across a piece from the Christian Standard on "Small Church Stereotypes" and thought this was interesting:
Small Churches Live in the Past
     This is often true. Some older members are glad to tell you about the three-week revival in 1963 when the building was so full that people were looking in through the windows. They'll also praise the nearly perfect preacher who was adored in the early 1980's.
     Not every smaller congregation has been around for lots of years, but many of them have. Older, smaller churches often commit systematic, congregational suicide by going to one of two extremes. They either back into the future while looking into the past (and then lament the fact that no young people are around anymore), or they show blatant disregard for time-honored ministries and traditions in a misguided attempt to bring relevance and instant growth.
     Balance is critical, so small churches need to celebrate past victories, recognize years of faithful leadership, and rejoice over life-changing moments that have occurred. Churches can learn from these things, while moving forward with exciting dreams and timely, well-explained changes.
     An old Russian proverb says, "Dwell in the past and you'll lose an eye. Forget the past and you'll lose both eyes." Churches need to honor the past without dwelling there.

As a small-church pastor, I can attest to the importance (and difficulty) of striking that balance.