Beyond a local church providing a “chaplaincy ministry” to an ever-aging congregation (what we see in the majority of mailine churches today), there are attractional, engaged and emerging churches. Presently, the church where I am the senior leader is attempting all three models simultaneously.

Attractional churches want to remove barriers for people who are seeking to know God and be a part of a Christian community. People are attracted by a particular style of worship that appeals to them (be it contemporary or traditional), programs that suit their needs, and pastoral care to help them through the transitions and difficulties of life. The danger in attractional churches is they can set up a “client-service provider” model, in which people are attracted to the church based on “what it does for them.” These types of churches are usually focused on connecting people to God (”Up”).

Engaged churches specialize in vital friendships and spiritual growth. These churches are good at small groups and connecting people to one another. They set out a clear “pathway” for people to take forward steps in their becoming more faithful followers of Jesus. These churches provide people with more of a “depth” experience, connecting hearts and minds. The danger in engaged churches is that they can become inwardly focused. The warmth and support of extended Christian family is the dominate characteristic (”In”).

Wanting a church that fits into the rhythm of their lives and making a difference in the world is what people are looking for in emerging churches. Those who are attemtping a new way of “doing” church are not just outside of the box; they don’t want boxes at all. These churches are about Jesus, not religion. They refuse to falsely divide their lives into “secular and sacred.”  The danger in emerging churches is that traditional Christian orthodoxy may be trumped by one’s own experience. These are usually “missional communities” that want to take the body of Christ into the world (”Out”).

Attractional churches may have a 15-20 year lifespan as aging baby boomers continue to want a church that meets their needs. Engaged churches will be the dominant model for the next generation, giving them the extended family they felt was lacking in the younger years. There is no way to tell if emerging churches are going to take root and thrive, but they do appear to be much like the New Testament church we read about in Acts.

We want to allow these three models to exist side-by-side, recognizing the Spirit is still using all three types of churches to fulfill the Great Commission - “going and making disciples of Jesus Christ.” We have to be continually committed to listening for and hearing God’s voice, primarily through prayer and Scripture, to guide us into the future. It is an exciting time to be the church!

I was interviewing a public elementary school teacher who had recently been given an open door to ask how many students in her class had heard of Jesus. Of the 30 students in her class only 10 raised their hand. 20 of the 30 students in her classroom had never heard of Jesus!

Does this surprise you? It shouldn’t. Church growth professionals have been teaching for some time now that America has become the third largest mission field in the world. This is based on the sheer number of people who by self-declaration have no affiliation with Christianity. The almost 67% of this teacher’s classroom who had not heard of Jesus is statistically in line with the numbers we pulled for the county in which our client church - and this elementary school - are located.

With that said, however, the numbers are inconsequential. What really matters is what the numbers represent.

The lesson learned from this teacher’s experience puts every Christian on notice. Behind the numbers live real people. Real people who matter to God. Real people for whom Jesus died. Real people whom Jesus has charged every Christian with the responsibility to reach.

For this teacher it goes beyond the numbers. For her, every number has a name and a face. Who are the names and faces that make up your numbers?

I’m working with a church today that has a nice sanctuary that has been historically set up with chairs, but in more of a classroom-type of setup. A few weeks ago, someone got the idea to bring the altar down into the middle and move the chairs around and put them in groups, like pods. The pastor even joked about it by calling it an i-pod, a-pod, tri-pod, etc. What we heard from some of the younger members of the church was this: it seemed more interactive, more engaging. This is something new: even the arrangement of the church furniture in worship can improve the interactive atmosphere and help post-modern, young adults feel more at home.

The truth is, mission is messy. It’s always messy and it’s always chaotic. The New Testament church was in total chaos. It would out of control–humanly speaking. It was not, however, out of the control of the Holy Spirit! The truth is, if we are going to see massive growth of the Christian Movement, we are going to have to live with the mess. It’s probably not what you want to hear, but it’s a fact!

As I work with churches I am finding that N.O.I.S.E. makers exist in almost every congregation. N.O.I.S.E. makers work quickly to undermine changes. They team up with anyone willing to listen to squelch out discussions that could eventually bring about change; unless, of course, the changes bring about something they enjoy or like. Bottom line there is a status quo they have worked for many years to establish and they will stop at nothing to protect it.

In extreme cases, N.O.I.S.E. makers will even allow themselves to be used as “bargaining chips” by making clear their intentions to leave the church should certain changes be implemented.

As sad as this has become, there is an even greater tragedy at work. “N.O.I.S.E. makers” often use God as leverage to win their case. They attach tag lines to their arguments like: “This new course of action is not honoring to God.” Or, “I’m sure God would not approve of this…”

While we have N.O.I.S.E. in our churches today, the challenge is nothing new. Actually It is historical phariseeism lived out in today’s culture. The Pharisees Jesus confronted would not tolerate Jesus’ teachings and “changes” to their status quo so they became N.O.I.S.E. makers and plotted to kill him.

Throughout history, the church has struggled to bring the timeless truth of Christ’s salvation to a constantly changing culture. It has struggled to make God honoring, appropriate changes. Furthermore, all the historical opposition has been touted under the banner of protecting God; as if God needs our protection.

St. Francis is quoted as saying, “The best way to protect the lion is to let the lion out of his cage.” Today, it is time for us to “protect” God by letting Him out of the religious cages in which we have placed Him. It is time to begin again the process of proclaiming the timeless truth of Christ’s Salvation in ways our un-churched culture can hear. In short: It’s time to turn down the N.O.I.S.E.

I call this a diagnosis from the perspective of the missing piece of the puzzle. In other words, there are no overt issues that keep this church stalled. Therefore, no one can “get it.” Here’s the deal in this case. We see it often:

1) The church lacks any vision or mission. It doesn’t really excite anyone enough to want to bring anyone to church.

2) Both worship services are blended. Blended services–regardless of what a few experts say–are bland, but they are subconsciously bland. In other words, they are good enough to be “holding tanks” for committed Christians who have the glue of the fellowship of the church. They aren’t, however, distinctive enough in style to ignite excitement for someone to invite a friend.

In interviews with people, if you press them hard enough and ask a lot of questions, ultimately you’ll get the same answer, “Well, our worship services are………bland!” You have to really dig to get this information. That is because it is subconscious. We recommended that they change their early service to a traditional service and their late service to a contemporary service. Eighteen months from now, in all likelihood, we’ll see this church in a growth pattern.

I worked with an independent church for years and watched them grow and change their name THREE times in the last 10 years. And, I first met them just after they changed their name from Grace Baptist to Grace Bible Church. Then, during the last 10 years, it became Grace Fellowship. Now, it is Grace Gathering.

By the way, they’re right down the road from Martini Lutheran Church. I wonder…Martini–is that straight up or on the rocks? Whatever! I bet it’s very dry!

This is not new news. Years ago, a guy named John Savage wrote a book called Apathetic and Bored Church Members. He talked about the “drop out track.” By the looks of things, in our consulting work, not many people have read this book. He simply says that after ten weeks, people are doing something else. They have phased away from their “holy habit” of going to church. Make it seven weeks. Monitor people in church regularly so you know who is not there. When someone is missing, after seven weeks, pull the trigger—not shoot them, but to follow up. Not to nag them, but to ask them if something is wrong, if they are sick, if there are problems in the family, etc. Not to be nose, but to show you care. It’s not rocket science, but you better do it sooner than what most churches practice in follow up.

For the front door that needs visitors, the fix is to provide events and encounters that encourage people from our community to check our ministry out. Here are some examples. One church this past weekend had a “wild game dinner.” About 260 people attended, of which only 25% were from the church, the rest were people from the community. There was lots of food! People brought their game dishes to share in potluck style. There were lots of door prizes! Several business from the area were approached and gave gift certificates and other items to be given away as door prizes. It seemed that nearly half of everyone attending got a door prize, including every child. There was a brief drama presented! Not an in your face “you need Jesus” drama, but one that clearly communicated a message of community. There was a brief message from the pastor! Yes, this one was clearly a gospel presentation using the acronym H-U-N-T. There were silent auctions; deer mount displays, and a couple of stories by hunters. Will anyone connect into the church body from this dinner? Possibly, but the odds are greater for this church than one who provides no event for a possible relationship encounter.

Another example comes from a church plant who last year sponsored 5 food plots for neighbors they previously had not met. They worked up a small area (5′ X 5′), planted seed, gave instructions for the care of the plants, and recipes for the harvest. The project gave the church people opportunity for several relationship encounters throughout the summer. Four of the five families visited the church and 2 now call this church “their church.” This summer, they have a goal of providing 100 food plots and as of now, have materials and volunteers to cover 75 of them. Most of the volunteers are people out of the community, not people from within the church! A local gardening club, several banks, & even the mayor’s office are participating. This is from a church that is only averaging 68 in worship attendance.

Another church participated in an elementary school fun fair. This event was not promoted by the church but by the school. The church took advantage of the community opportunity already planned and simply asked if they could serve in any way. As it turned out, not only could they assist, but they were invited to provide their own booth and encouraged to promote their church! They gave away balloons, popcorn, and information about their ministry to everyone who attended the event. As a result, the church had over 500 encounters with families out of the community who learned about the ministries of this smaller church (about 65 in attendance).

If you need to increase the traffic flow through the front door of your ministry, consider how you can provide events and/or encounters for people in your community to become aware of your ministry. One visitor recently confessed that she had driven by the church for several years but never noticed it, until she had an encounter with one of the members at the community event. When Jesus said “Go,” we often think that means door to door and it frightens us. Consider sponsoring an event that gives your community an opportunity to have an encounter with your members or your ministry. It”s not only fun, but a productive way of “going.”