Once the individual comes to the church, what will cause them to stay? Chapter 5 answers this question. Rainer lists six issues that were key for keeping members and increasing the return of guests.
1. Doctrine Clarified
2. High Expectations
3. An “Entry Point” Class
4. Small Groups and Sunday School
5. Clarity of Purpose
6. Ministry Involvement
Chapter 4 really made me think. As a pastor, I have a tendency to think like a first-time visitor. That is the reason this chapter on first impressions resonates with me. I believe one of the most frightening experiences in life is visiting a church for the first time. It will be what the visitor experiences in that first visit that will either relieve that fear, or multiply it. Rainer lists the five first impressions areas that were noted in the research. Here they are.
1. Friendliness
2. Nice Facilities / Adequate Space
3. Nursery / Preschool / Children’s Isues
4. Organization or Chaos
5. Greeters and Welcome Centers
It is worth noting that of all the areas of impressions listed, preaching was mentioned last. Here is what that tells me. A person who visits the church is likely to make up their mind as to whether or not they will return before they even hear the pastor’s message.
13. When they observed the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and knew that they had been with Jesus.
The “they” mentioned here in the first part of this verse refers to the Jewish religious leaders. After some very pointed preaching on the person of Jesus, the religious leaders knew something was different with these men. Although they knew they had no training and no formal education, they seemed to be have great insight to matters pertaining to God and His Son. If it wasn’t formal training or formal education that made the difference, what was it? The difference was having been with Jesus.
This is a good question for each of us. Have you been with Jesus? Have you spent quality time with Him lately? Better yet, if someone were to look at your life could they tell that you had been with Jesus? Bible study, devotions, and quiet times are great tools that enable us to be “with” Jesus. A believer should never have to tell someone they have been spending time with Jesus. People should be able to see it all over us.
Chapter 3 handles an issue that I have always felt to be the most important to an individual connecting to the church. I am glad to see the research supports it. I read recently where it was stated that a person who is new (or returning) to the church needed to establish at least seven meaningful relationships. These relationships help to connect them to the body of Christ. Rainer gives us five conclusions as it relates to relationships.
1. Relationships are very important.
2. Rarely do relationships alone explain the best way to reach the unchurched.
3. God sometimes works to reach the unchurched without using any relationships.
4. Family relationships are the msot important.
5. The wife is the most important relationships in reaching the unchuched.
“If worship does not change us, it has not been worship. To stand before the Holy One of eternity is to change. In worship, an increased power steals its way into the heart sanctuary; an increased compassion grows into the soul. To worship is to change. If worship does not propel us into greater obedience, it has not been worship. Just as worship begins in holy expectancy, it ends in holy obedience. Holy obedience saves worship from becoming an opiate, an escape from the pressing needs of modern life. Worship enables us to hear the call to service clearly so that we respond, ‘Here I am! Send me!’ (Isa 6:8)'”
Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline
Chapter 2 of this book speaks to the impact that the pastor and his preaching had in the formerly unchurched becoming connected to the church. I am not going to spend a great deal of time here for the fear of sounding braggish. That being said, the pastor has a vital role in reaching the unchurched. Through the research of 353 formerly unchurched people, when asked, “Did the pastor and his preaching play a part in your coming to the church?” 97% answered “yes”. This chapter gives 8 factors that relate to the influence the pastor had on the unchurched. I’ll list the top 4.
1. Preaching That Teaches
2. Preaching That Applies To My life
3. Authenticity of the Pastor
4. Pastor’s Convictions
Just thought I would post an update as to what I am reading now and what is on deck.
1. Surprising Insights from the Unchurched and Proven Ways to Reach Them. Thom Rainer
2. Beyond Opinion – Living the Faith We Defend. Ravi Zacharias
3. Created to be God’s Friend – Lessons from the Life of Abraham. Henry Blackaby
4. Love Worth Finding – The Life of Adrian Rogers and His Philosophy of Preaching. Joyce Rogers
I want to tell you about my wife. Today is my 17th wedding anniversary. Terri and I started dating in high school her sophomore year. I was a senior. There is an old worn out cliche that talks about “love at first sight”. I think there is an element of truth to that. After our first date, I told her sister that I was going to marry her one day. I guess there are some things you just know.
There are not enough words in the English language to describe how I feel about my wife. Although our lives have taken many different turns along the way, she never complained, questioned, or doubted what God was doing. It was after my time in the military that I was called by God into His gospel ministry. This was a move and a decision that she sensed as it was coming to me. The day that I told her I was surrendering myself to the ministry, her response was “I already knew”. So, we began. Every decision and every move I felt need to be made, Terri was willing to go and ready to support. I can not say what this has meant and still means today to my pastoral ministry.
I thank her for being such a loving and patient wife. The demands of the ministry are many. Her patience in the face of church life is a blessing to me. I thank her for being so supportive and taking time to pray for me. I thank her for her commitment she made early on to never say anything or act in such a way that would harm the ministry, bring shame to the church, or to paint a negative picture of Christ.
I want to say Happy Anniversary to Terri. I love you. I would marry you all over again. I look forward to the next chapters in our lives. Thank you for saying “I do”.
41. Sitting across from the temple treasury, He watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury. Many rich people were putting in large sums. 42. And a poor widow came and dropped in two tiny coins worth very little. 43. Summoning His disciples, He said to them, “ I assure you: This poor widow has put in more than all those giving to the temple treasury. 44. For they all gave out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she possessed—all she had to live on.”
Have you ever stopped to think about what you give God? I am not referring to anything monetary. I am talking about how much of yourself you give to God. When you and I as believers are fully surrendered to GOd, we give up everything to Him. The way in which God uses what what we give is entirely His choice. Your offering, gift, or sacrifice may seem very simple and unimportant. God excels in taking the simple and producing great results with it.
For example, the widow gave a total of less than one penny. The amount was not the issue. The issue, or what touched the heart of God, was her attitude behind that amount. Her devotion to God led her to give everything she had to live on. This in turn led to a deeper trust in God that He would provide for her needs. Where is your devotion? What does your devotion look like? Has your gift or sacrifice touched the heart of God? The world we live in says you have to give more, do more, and be more in order to be accepted. God requires one thing – obedience.
I believe there are some vital things we can miss if we don’t surrender ourselves to God. I give these to you for your consideration.
1. If I am not surrendered, I will miss the opportunity for God’s blessing on my life.
2. If I am not surrendered, I will miss what it means to be a “friend” of God.
3. If I am not surrendered, I will miss the opportunity to do something meaningful in the kingdom.
Today, I am beginning my review of Surprising Insights from the Unchurched and Proven Ways to Reach Them by Thom Rainer.
This book is a research project. If you enjoy research, you will enjoy this book. Surprising Insights is about the formerly unchurched and their journey to becoming active in the local church. The goal then is to study what moved them to the church and develop strategies to reach the millions who were previously like them. The working definintion of formerly unchurched, according to Rainer is, one who has not been in church except sporadically, for at least ten years, but has recently become active in a church.
America is becoming an increasingly unchurched country as each generation passes. Chapter one gives the telling statistics. Only 41% of Americans attend church services on a typical weekend. In America, at the printing of this book (2001), it takes 85 church members to reach one person for Jesus Christ. I have a feeling that number is higher in 2009.
The bulk of this chapter covers nine myths the formerly unchurched destroyed about reaching the unchurched population. I have to admit, I have been guilty of believing at least one of these myths. I list them here for you to consider.
1. Most unchurched think and act like Anglo, middle-class suburbanites with no church background.
2. The unchurched are turned off by by denominational names in the church name.
3. The unchurched never attend church.
4. The unchurched cannot be reached by direct personal evangelism.
5. The Pastor must be a dynamic and charismatic leader for the church to reach the unchurched.
6. We must be careful in our teaching and preaching so that we do not communicate deep and complex biblical truths that will confuse the unchurched.
7. The Sunday School and other small groups are ineffective in attracting the unchurched.
8. The most important evangelistic relationships take place in the marketplace.
9. The unchurched are only concerned about their own needs.
Wow.
The Road Less Traveled 