WEEKLY ARTICLE

BLESSINGS AND TRENDS AT GOOD SHEPHERD

by the Rev. Matt Kennedy

Weekly Article

October 20th, 2006

As you know our attendance has shot through the roof this year. Last year (2005) our average Sunday attendance was 70 (which was way up from 57 just two years before). This year, last time I checked (in July), we had shot up to about 78 (a huge increase statistically speaking), but since we've maintained a high average, we'll probably hit 80 or over before the year's end.

Most experts on church growth cite average Sunday attendance as the most important statistic in determining the growth curve (or lack thereof) of a given parish. Most churches in our area are shrinking. The demographics in Binghamton are not at all conducive to growth. People are leaving this area much faster than they are moving in.

Nevertheless, despite a shrinking population, Good Shepherd continues to grow in members. That growth has resulted in a steep increase in attendance.

All this is wonderful. How to account for it?

In his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul writes:

“What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (1 Corinthians 3:5-7)

There is no sure gimmick or technique to church growth. God is the one who grows a church. He uses his servants, his people, to bring his purposes to fruition but ultimately, his is the power and his the glory.

God makes it happen.

That means that the growth we have experienced as a parish, the life we feel every Sunday, the joy we have in fellowship, comes directly from the Lord.

Why does God bless a parish with growth?

We can't always answer that question. And we need to be careful because numerical growth is not always a sure sign of God's blessing. Sometimes God takes his people through lean years to test their faith and strengthen them in character and perseverance. Likewise, sometimes a church can succeed for a brief period in time in the same way a passing fad succeeds, not so much because it has been blessed by God, but because it has successfully tapped into some cultural fancy or trend.

In general however, we can say that since God longs for lost people 1. to hear the gospel, 2. to repent, receive the gospel and be saved, and 3. to be re-made into disciple.

This means that God, generally speaking, will lead lost people to churches where the leaders teach and preach his Word clearly and consistently and where the believers study his Word with love, diligence and devotion.

In other words, God generally leads lost people to places where they can be found.

Good Shepherd has become just such a place because over the last four years we have become rooted in his word. It is, then, no accident, no accident at all, that we have enjoyed growth in numbers. What warms my heart most of all is that we have not grown by taking Episcopalians from other Episcopal parishes. Most of our growth has come through conversion. People have heard the gospel here for the first time. Thanks be to God.

But we must not let these blessings breed complacency.

Looking forward from here there are at least two encouraging trends and two worrying trends that I see. Let me start with the encouraging trends.

Encouraging trend #1: As I noted, Sunday attendance is up. I described the statistical aspects of this above. But increased worship attendance is, more importantly, a spiritual sign too. In John 4, Jesus says that he seeks people who will worship him not simply out of obligation (although there is a place for that) or duty or because they have been conditioned to do so, but Jesus seeks a people who will worship him in spirit and in truth.

In other words, he wants sincere praise, and true, heartfelt devotion from believing hearts.

Sagging attendance is a sign that true devotion is lacking; that people do not long to give praise and thanks to God or to share time with their fellow believers.

Increasing attendance points to circumcised hearts; hearts that (in other words) have been given over to the Lord. For people with circumcised hearts, worship is not a duty, it is a desire. It becomes an indispensable weekly outlet for expressing the love and thanksgiving that naturally wells up in believing hearts. Good Shepherd is becoming a place of true-hearted devotion; a place where people worship God in spirit and truth.

Encouraging Trend #2: people are pitching in. In some churches people sit around and wait for others to work. At Good Shepherd, it is the opposite. When a job needs to be done, it is done. Some grow impatient with the speed of decision making and implementation in a parish. But compared to other churches, things happen incredibly fast around Good Shepherd because people seem always to be looking for ways to help. This may be explained by our singular lack of committees. But, I think it is mostly due to the fact that so many of you are living lives transformed by Jesus Christ.

When that happens, you seek to serve.

And make no mistake. When you mop the floor or launder vestments or wash dishes, you are doing all of these things for Jesus Christ.

Good Shepherd is becoming a place where people serve the Lord and each other.

Worrying trend #1: First, and I am not sure if I would even call this a “trend.” It has only happened once. Out of the 86 people who attended the last Family and Friends Sunday, only 1 was a guest.

This may have been a fluke. We were just coming out of the summer and the others have gone very well. But, it is something to be concerned about.

The primary mission of the Church given to you and me by Jesus himself is to go out into the world and make disciples. That means sharing Jesus Christ with those who do not know him. Family and Friends Sunday is a great tool for evangelism because it only requires inviting a non-believer to church.

The next Family and Friends Sunday will probably be in December. That gives us time to think and pray about who to invite. Ask God to show you someone in your circle of family, friends, or coworkers who needs to hear the gospel of Christ nd then ask him to give you the courage to invite that person to church.

Worrying Trend #2: The second trend is a bit more worrisome. The bible studies are going well. Each of them has a dependable core group which means they will survive the normal ups and downs of yearly attendance fluctuation. And yet, I have noticed that for some, any interruption whatsoever is a reason not to make it to bible study. This leads to the question of priority.

God has blessed Good Shepherd because we have been devoted to his Word first and foremost. But if a soccer game or working overtime or a phone call provides you with sufficient reason not to come, you might want to rethink your priorities. Are you looking for a reason not to go to bible study? It's not uncommon. Satan loves nothing more than to find ways to obstruct and interrupt the study of God's Word. This is especially true of new believers.

I often feel very tired and stressed before a study. At those times, the temptation usually crosses my mind to cancel it. Sometimes I give in. Most times, I've learned to put forward the extra effort to make it. And, generally speaking, when that happens, when I lead a study even when I don't feel like it, I find that there was a reason God wanted me to be there and a reason Satan did not. Those are usually the most fruitful studies.

As I said, we have a good core group for each of our bible studies, so they are doing fine as a whole, but if you have committed to a study and find yourself putting everything else in your life first, then maybe God is calling you to re-commit yourself to his word.

At Good Shepherd we must be people of the book. We must eat, drink and breathe the Word of God. We must be rooted in the bible so that through his living Word, the Lord can nourish and guide us and so that we can pass the faith on to our children and to the lost.

Having said that, the two “worrying trends” noted above are relatively minor ones and nothing at all to be discouraged about.

Good Shepherd is doing incredibly well numerically, financially and above all, spiritually. I am so very encouraged by the growth and enthusiasm on Sunday morning and I have no doubt that our best days lie ahead.

God is doing wonderful things at Good Shepherd. I am so very blessed to be your pastor and look forward eagerly to many more years of ministry here with you.

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