Tuesday, February 2, 2010

New way to grow the church

      In research hot off the press, responders state that Coffee shops are the friendliest place in town.  Out of 550 responders 90.6% chose the coffee shop.  Second on the list was the church with 84.2%.  These numbers were provided by Group Publishing in their survey called "The Friendliest Place in Town."    According to Group the goal of the research was to determine where the Church ranks as compared to other "around town" venues when measuring the places, the people, and attributes that define friendly to Americans today.

     Another alarming feature to this report is that only 16% of Americans say the Church is their favorite place to meet new friends.  The number one place to meet new friends is a Restaurant, a Pub, or a Sports Bar.  Of course that number is slightly higher among Christians, but it still only scores 19% as the favorite place to make new friends.

As I thought of these numbers I wondered what I could do as a church leader to help the church be more friendly.  The answer is revealed in the cartoon below.

     
     Okay, maybe it is not the best idea, but at least I am trying.  However, the research from Group does offer some interesting facts that might be more useful in making the church more friendly to visitors and members alike.  The top five factors that make a place friendly are:

  1. Making me feel like I belong.
  2. Making me comfortable.
  3. Making me feel at ease.
  4. Conversation.
  5. Smiles.
     There could be some merit in these ideas.  Despite the fact that it seems a little self motivated, we cannot ignore the fact that these were the top responses of the people.  Perhaps we should not judge those individuals who are looking for something for themselves, after all the 6th most important factor to being a friendly place is to be non-judgmental.

     Though we may not be able to be all things to all people, we in the church should at least be friendly and make people feel welcome when they come.  Or perhaps it would be easier just to give them better and more coffee.  What do you think?
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1 comment:

  1. Covnitkepr1February 13, 2010 at 6:44 AM

    I like your post. I also like a cup of unleaded while in Sunday school class. The church today is becoming so "seeker friendly" that they are letting the world creep into it so as to get the numbers. We see sports figures, music artists and the like being brought in to boost attendance.

    Here's the real way to boost attendance... it's worked for 2000 years and still works: preach the word and lift up Jesus. He said that if He be lifted up...He would draw all men unto Him.

    I got saved while hearing the Word preached...not listening to a song or hearing about a "touchdown"

    I like your blog and this post. Am joining up as a follower.

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