Dozens of volunteers spent a month and a half preparing our new location for our big Grand Opening, which happened to mark our fourth anniversary since opening to the public in January 2012. When the big day finally arrived, we were a little blown away by the response. 444 people attended our two services – a new record for us.
But the real story is that two people gave their lives to Jesus! Nothing really matters more.
You should know that really aren’t about numbers. We count people, because people count. We believe that behind every number is a name, and behind every name is a story, and that every story matters to God. We count people in attendance so that we can measure how well we’re doing at inviting people, so that we can know whether we’re helping people grow deeper and take next steps, and so that we can plan for the future.
You should also know that we have some big goals! We want to grow, but not just numerically.
- We want to grow larger through evangelism.
- We want to grow stronger through worship.
- We want to grow closer through fellowship.
- We want to grow deeper through discipleship.
- We want to grow broader through ministry.
It isn’t that “bigger is better.” Rather it’s that seeing a large number of people following Jesus together reminds us that God is doing big things in our world and in our local community, and that he invites us into the process by inviting others along.
And there’s one more thing you should know. The Sunday worship attendance number is merely a starting point for us. We’re immediately thinking through the best ways to get everyone better connected to Jesus and to each other through some basic next steps. So we’re asking:
- Who among those attenders needs to trust in Jesus?
- Who needs to be baptized and publicly declare their faith?
- Who needs to get into a Grace Group to grow with new friends?
- Who needs to come to Newcomers Lunch and consider becoming a member?
- Who needs to go deeper spiritually?
- Who needs to plug in and start serving others?
- Who needs to embrace a big life mission and share their faith or go on a mission trip?
Our prayer is never, God, help us to grow larger. Rather it’s God, help us to be a healthy church. So we’re far less concerned with being bigger and very concerned with getting better together. And at the end of the day, all of the credit and the glory goes to Jesus! He’s the central figure, the One we worship, the ultimate head and leader of the church. And he’s the One who saves, so we’re doing whatever it takes to help one more person to place their faith in him forever.
