Few things will kill your self-esteem like throwing a party no one attends. There you are, house clean, wine glasses sparkling, custom playlist on your iPod…and three people in your living room. You check Facebook to see if any “maybes” are on their way. No changes on the invite page, no posts on your wall. Suddenly it feels official: you are desperately unpopular.
Many of us in mainline Protestantism know this feeling all too well. Each week thousands of congregations prepare hymns and prayers, sermons and sacraments in the hopes of welcoming their communities. And more often than not, the community does not come. Eventually we decide we have an awareness problem. We throw an open-house, host a concert…, something to “get them in the door.” We are sure to send lots of postcards. Mostly who comes is us. We start to get depressed. What’s a church to do? “What Everyone Values about Church”Continue reading
