Two Strangers and a Statistic
-Stranger #1: Before our Naples Reunion yesterday I went to worship with Fran and Janette Engelhardt at the church they attend while in Florida. (I say "the church they attend" because they and all our snowbirds are clear that their church will always be First Church Birmingham.) We were seated near the front, just behind a family coming for baptism. Beautiful baby, proud parents, doting grandparents--wonderful. Right in front of me was a young man who must have been the baby's uncle. He looked to be in his late 20's or early 30's. Handsome, well-built, tanned, and clearly bored. I watched him through the service wondering if anything we did or said there connected with his life. When he didn't sing the hymns or even recite the Lord's Prayer, I figured he didn't have much church background and I kept asking myself, "What in this worship hour, except his love for his new-born niece, would make him want to come back?" On a beautiful Florida Sunday morning, what would make him, or anyone for that matter, come to worship instead of head to the beach?
-Stranger #2: The plane coming home Sunday night was packed and on Spirit airlines, that means squeezed, crammed, crushed into the smallest leg room in the airline industry! Across the aisle was a young family with two beautiful, squirmy children. As we landed, we struck up conversation and come to find out he is a seminary student at a small, independent seminary in Indiana. He asked what I did for a living and when I told him I was a Methodist pastor he said, "I grew up Methodist. I was confirmed in a Methodist Church in Indiana." He even rattled off the names of several of the pastors, so evidently he wasn't just baptized and confirmed, but actually took part in a congregation. Today he said he goes to a non-denominational church. We were landing, so our conversation ended, but I walked away wondering about his journey and why he had left the church of his childhood.
-The Statistic: A recent Time Magazine article says that the fastest growing denomination in America are the "nones"--that is, those who say they have no religious affiliation. That number has more than doubled since 1990, now 16% of the population. Makes you think, doesn't it?
So how are we doing attracting stranger #1 and what are we doing to keep stranger #2? It makes me even more thankful for our "Connect 3-on-3 Basketball", attracting 20 young men and women as coaches, engaging families in the life of the church. I celebrate the recent baptism of a couple young men who came our way with no religious background and are finding a home here in this worshiping community. And I give thanks for the young men and women of our church who have sensed God's calling to ministry within United Methodism. And as for the statistic? That's our mission field. 80% of all first-time visitors come to worship because someone invited them.
I hope you are signed up for the "Lenten Dinner" Thursday night. If not, call the church office (248/646-1200) or just come for the program at 7:00pm. You will really enjoy Ed Kilbourne's music, story-telling and message. It might even be a good time to invite a "none" to come with you.
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