By Jerry Devine, Detroit Conference Director of Connectional Ministries
“… over 90 percent of the so-called new converts come from the 40 percent of the population who are already 'in the choir,' and less than 10 percent come from the 'unchurched majority.' So we have a lot of Baptists becoming Pentecostals, and Catholics becoming Episcopalians, and so on, but surprising few 'unchurched people' getting connected with the church. (5)” —From A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith by Brian McClaren
Most studies will show that at least 70 percent of any community in Michigan does not connect regularly, if at all, to any organized church. Yet those same studies are clear that at least 90 percent of the people are spiritually interested.
Perhaps our very idea of what “church” is has gotten away from the idea of being born as a movement of faith exploring/discovering, community-building and community-transforming people.
When we are part of something that is exciting and moving it seems natural to invite others to explore it with us. When we are aware that the purpose of the movement is larger than just our own self-focused needs, important as those may be, we often project a passion and hope that is easy to get others interested in.
Some of the most compelling “evangelists” I have encountered in my life have no clear relationship to religion, they just had a clear vision for the cause they were involved in and were eager to help others see how they could make a positive difference in the world.
The very word evangelism tends to frighten most mainstream church members in the United States.
Images of knocking on doors at awkward times to hand out tracts and engage in “do you believe …” conversations may come to mind. Or, perhaps it is the image of the haranguing street preachers that want to condemn everybody to their version of hell if the passerby doesn’t quickly “repent and believe”.
Is it because we cringe at the idea of sharing our faith in these ways that we have, in most places, failed to invite people to explore faith at all?
What if we approached it more naturally? Two examples have been shared with me recently that I think merit a closer look.
In one of our churches part-time local pastor Dave Leineke has been working to get members of the congregation to extend themselves into the community in new ways. He was greatly encouraged when one of the members came to him with the idea of using his pontoon boat to take a small group out onto the nearby lake to greet boaters and families out on the lake. They are not handing out tracts. They intend to tie welcoming brochures to balloons and hand them out as they greet people on the water.
The other out of the box idea comes from a much larger suburban congregation. The leadership has engaged the congregation in the idea of organic growth, going where growing naturally can occur.
Much of the work of making disciples of Jesus Christ in the immediate future will not be through Sunday morning worship attendance initially. It will come as disciple members find ways to connect others outside in the community. From there faith relationships will develop.
This particular congregation has supported their associate pastor, John Ball, in starting a conversation group out in the community. Twelve people now gather in a pub for deep conversations on matters of faith and life.
Sounds like early Methodist gatherings. In fact, one of the churches that I served previously had started out in the storage room of a distillery. The distillery/bar owner had discovered faith in Christ through a Methodist lay preacher and was so moved that he opened up his facility for the class meeting to gather there. The congregation chartered in 1786 and gave birth to five town and country churches over the next few decades.
When we as the body of Christ risk interacting in small gatherings outside of our church buildings we will connect to the hunger of the communities in which we live.
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