By the Numbers
When I enter the sanctuary at the beginning of church every Sunday, I look out at the congregation. Being in a building that was built for a church much larger than what we are now, it’s hard not to feel your heart sink a bit at the small number of people in the room.
Folks from First Christian at Feed My Starving Children. June 2010.
Then, little by little people start showing up. By the time we get to the sharing of the peace, we have at least 70 people in the room. It’s still small compared to the size of the sanctuary, but it’s average when compared to churches accross this land: the majority of American congregations have less than 75 people in worship.
Our “average-sized” gathering also reminds me of something else: the size of a church is not as important as the ministry it is involved in.
In the last few months, I’ve been impressed by what this small(er) congregation can do and even what it wants to do. Back in February, we made 100 hygiene kits to help in the Haiti earthquake relief efforts. We gave $3000 to help launch the Currie Avenue Partnership, which will move 150 out of homeless shelters and into permanent housing. We also have gone to every dollar store in the Twin Cities Area to make Welcome Baskets for those new homeowners through the Welcome Basket Drive. We raised $1600 in March to support Groveland Foodshelf during Minnesota Foodshare and will hope to raise even more during our July drive.
We are working with Spirit of Joy Christian Church in Lakeville to sponsor of refugee family and with the help of our newly hired Director of Spiritual Formation and Community Ministry, we plan to launch a ministry to gay teens and their parents in the fall.
Not bad for an average church.
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the numbers. Like most of you, I would love to see more people in the pews. I still hope to that becomes a reality some day. But there are other numbers that suggest that this faith community is housing the homeless, feeding the hungry and welcoming the outsider. They maybe small numbers, but God seems to have a habit of taking small things and using them to make a big difference in the world.
Senior Pastor Bob Brite has asked us what would be the best thing for this church to do for the kingdom of God. I know he is talking about the future of First Christian, but I hope you all are doing a lot in the cause of bringing for God’s realm.
Go and be the church.
Dennis Sanders
Associate Pastor for Mission and Diversity
