The Sobering Outcome for the Church that Loses an Evangelistic Focus
It was a small congregation in need of help.
I had an opportunity to lead a team in serving this church, located south of Seattle. I met the pastor and viewed the facility in the spring, preparing for a summer service project. He told me stories of the glory years when the church was a fruitful community church with an average weekly attendance of 200. Then he told me of their current situation, that over the past decade, the church had dwindled to about 30 people, most of whom were over the age of 65.
As I toured the facilities with the pastor, I started to realize how grim the situation was. It would take way more than a summer work team to turn this church around. It was a large property with several small buildings but resembled a ghost town of sorts; like time stopped a decade prior, when a large group of families just walked away all at once. The property was left to take care of itself.
The facility wasn’t the problem.
This church property had incredible potential! There was a huge green space for sports, and they even had an outdoor beach volleyball court installed. There was a decent-sized church building, with many useful ministry spaces, as well as portable classrooms on the property that had lots of life left in them.
So, why is it all left unkept? One might say that the people who still attend the church don’t see the disrepair. Others might argue that the church members don’t care anymore. Others still might say that it’s due to their age, that they lack the energy to keep up on maintenance. In my experience, none of that would be true. Older generations care deeply about their church and have a desire to care for the facility.
So, what was the problem?
After some deeper discussions with the pastor and long-time members, it became clear that their mission and purpose were gone. Although they were gathering as a local church, they had forgotten their primary purpose; to spread the Gospel in their surrounding community. There was no outreach and no evangelism.
It’s not like there weren’t plenty of opportunities all around them. Remember that I said the church was located in south Seattle? There were loads of people in the area. The church was located in the center of a massive residential area, packed with mostly Hispanic families.
It was easy to envision the potential!
I could see this amazing space being used for Sunday afternoon outreach gatherings with barbeques. I could see kids playing soccer in the greenspace, while the adults played volleyball. Bringing this kind of neighbourhood together would be possible by simply providing food and sport for the local community.
Granted, there may be a language and culture barrier, because the church was made up of a caucasian congregation. Over time, this would shift into a mixed-race community, but to start, there are solutions to these barriers. They could team up with another local church with a Hispanic ministry, or even better, take the plunge and hire a Hispanic staff member, and start their own Spanish ministry.
The growing cultural problem.
I’m burdened when I see churches in this situation. Unfortunately, it’s an increasing problem in Western countries, as we struggle to reach a post-Christian culture. To stop the decline, opinions and mindsets must shift from an inward focus to an outward focus. The needs of the lost must become more important than the wants of the found.
What’s the first step of this process? Accept the shift in our culture. Accept that simply opening the church doors is no longer enough. Accept that the general Western populous will not wake up on Sunday morning, with a tradition or obligation to attend a local church. Just being open doesn’t mean they’re showing up.
Come back to a Gospel focus!
Churches that want to survive must start focusing heavily on outreach and evangelism as primary objectives. They must come back to the same Gospel focus that planted their church decades prior. And this applies to all ministry areas, not just a specific ministry. This applies to ministries for kids, youth, women, men, and adults; all of whom need the Gospel.
Jesus has called us to reach the lost, and He continues to grow local churches that embrace His Great Commission.
“And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” (Matt. 28:18-20)
The time is now!
- It’s time for the local church to take reaching the lost seriously.
- It’s time for the local church to start engaging in revitalization or replant efforts.
- It’s time for local churches to re-focus on outreach and evangelism.
I am under the strong conviction that if every local church can reclaim its Gospel focus, in time, we can transform the Western church as a whole. What is your next step? What is your local church’s next step?
Does your local church need help?
Don’t give up! There’s still hope! And I’d love to help you and your church leaders make the necessary changes, to bring new life to your congregation and community. Take a moment to access my workshops and retreats page, designed to help churches just like yours, with the following challenges.
- Vision-Casting for Future Ministry
- Revitalizing the Church
- Moving to Team-Based Ministry
- Creating a Next Steps Pathway
- Reaching a Cancel Culture
Click HERE to explore potential options or to book a course or consultation for your local church.
Join the Conversation, Share Your Thoughts
- How can we convince declining congregations to embrace change?
- How can we help them refocus on outreach and evangelism?
This post actually reminds me of a book I just read by Francine Rivers, it is called And the Shofar Blew. About a small church with an older population who was unable to keep up with maintenance. Not comparing you to the young pastor, but it was amazing to read how God worked to rebuild the Church despite peoples individual agendas.
Sometimes or mosttimes change is difficult and it is hard to think outside the box to what is best versus what is comfortable. Glad the youth stopped there and were able to minister thru works.
I’m really thankful for our youth and what you and the leaders are doing for them. I’m sure you were a blessing to this church and I know God has plans for that community. Praying for you guys!!
Thanks for your comment Lisa! I’ve not heard of the book you mentioned, but it sounds like it might be worth a read considering this experience. This church NEEDS to be rebuilt! It definitely has already lost all relevancy to current culture, not to mention the fact that most of the neighborhood (once Caucasian) is no Hispanic and that cultural divide has been created. It’s hard to know why God allows churches to become this way. I am left thinking that it has to be something that he is teaching them (or trying to teach them). Time will tell!
I think churches like ours needs to do so to be examples for churches like that. If we can’t do it in our own church, there’s no way we can expect them to do it in theirs.
Good point Bridgit and thanks for your comment! Our local body could not be further from the church we visited. Even our students could see and told me that various areas that needed change in order to bring some new families in. Our students were (and have been) so respectful and kind throughout this trip. I can tell that multiple times, people have expected them to be a lot more full of ruckus than they are. I think our church is putting out some great children and youth that will have major impact on this world and therefore, be a great example to churches like the one we visited.