What makes a church thrive? Churches thrive not because they have some cleaver new programs, or an incredibly fine building with accessible parking, or better Sunday school curricula and hymnbooks. They thrive because they are living in a completely new system of church life. A thriving church is a place where people are exposed to an ever-deepening experience of personal discovery, and ever-growing intimacy with motivated seekers, and an ever-multiplying opportunity to do meaningful mission. A thriving church is all about changing the lives of people who attend.

In order to effectively influence people's lives, a church must be grounded in a system that clearly articulates who they are; their attitude, philosophy and organizational flow. These core attributes must remain constant in the midst of an ever changing flow of activities, opportunities and creative initiatives designed to capture the passion and heart of each member which compels them to continue growing in faith.

The fundamental reason new people come to a church is not to "belong" but to "be changed." Of course, this is not always what they say when they come to church. They often say that they have come to make a fresh start in life, to make new friends, enroll their children in Sunday school, or have their children baptized.

Thriving churches discovered that, although nobody cares about the presence of God, everybody cares passionately about the healing power of God. The fact that the healing power of God is available to all people and that it can directly affect their lives is something that people are longing to experience.

One of the first things we must do is to examine the current systems that govern the flow of operations, Christian education, and mission and ministry opportunities. Are our current systems meeting the relevant needs of our members and the community around us?  Are our systems designed to facilitate love and warmth? Do our systems encourage hospitality and fellowship?  Real answers must be ascertained in order to make appropriate decisions.

Another must is for us to survey the larger community around us. We must determine why people are not attending any church, inquire about what it would take for them to come to our church and then ask what it will take to keep them coming. Without answers to these questions, we are fighting the darkness. We must know how we are perceived in the community and we must know how to take advantage of the needs of those who intrinsically want God in their lives but may not know how to go about it.

We have within us the capacity to become one of the most viable congregations on the district and within the annual conference. I say, let us do it and let us do it now.

Reaching, Teaching and Sending

Dr. A. D. Washington