There are two larger approaches to growing a congregation:

1. Focus primarily on the church itself and making it a more attractive place in terms of facilities and the quality of worship and more.
2. Focus more on the community and its needs and reach out to those not part of the church.

The first approach is to work to build such a nice fishing boat that the best fish will willingly jump right in. Any approach that focuses on getting a new building, a better music program, or a youth group, in order to grow the church is this approach. All of those things are good, and may be essential to being the congregation God has called you to be. But in and of themselves, these will do little to grow a church. If not combined with a strategy for reaching the lost and hurting people in your community who need the Gospel, this is like Little Bo Peep who lost her sheep and doesn't know where to find them. The rhyme goes on, "Leave them alone and they'll come home, dragging their tails behind them." In this view, it is up to the sheep to find their way back to the shepherd and potential newcomers are on their own to find you.

Jesus sent the disciples out to deep waters to put down their nets for the catch and then sent them out two by two to go ahead of him out into new places. This is done anytime we are actively seeking to engage those outside the church, reaching out to others with the love of God, whether they choose to ever come into the church or not. All around the Diocese, this is being done in different and exciting ways. One example is the work of our Archdeacon, Sandy Turner, who has for years been the guiding force behind the Good Samaritan House, a free medical clinic in the poor, rural area around Dearing, Georgia, which is 30 miles west of Augusta. This is following the example of the Good Shepherd who would leave the 99 and go after the one lost sheep. This also works through efforts like the Revs. Michael Chaney and Charles Todd's Theology on Tap in Savannah and the Rev. David Somerville offering last year a Christmas liturgy while at sea on a cruise ship that had no worship to be offered on that Holy Day. Whether these will result in persons attending our churches or not, they are still faithful ways to follow The Good Shepherd.

Obviously, we need to combine both approaches. Of course, we need to attend to our buildings and programs. We also need to reach out to our communities in love. When these two areas are tended to properly, a congregation tends to grow. This growth may be spiritual growth as those who take part deepen their faith. It is often also numeric growth in attendance.

While some of our communities have little or no growth in population, many areas in the Diocese do experience people moving into the area, even if it is a relatively small number. There are services that will provide you with new address changes for pennies on the address. Even better, real estate agents in your congregation (or known to members of your congregation) already have access to information on where new people are moving in.

Send new folks to your community a letter, preferably hand addressed, letting them know where you are, something about the church and your worship times. This direct contact with a family new to the area is one simple way you can reach out beyond the walls of your church to invite someone to find the healing and wholeness offered through Word and Sacrament within. While we receive plenty of junk mail, none of it comes hand written and that effort makes a difference. God can use such a small thing as this to get the attention of someone who needs to find their way back home now that they are in an unfamiliar community.

-The Rev. Canon Frank Logue, Canon to the Ordinary