Church matters!

Church attendance may be in decline but people in the UK are still becoming Christians in their thousands. What can we learn from their stories? And can it really be true that the local church is a key factor? Mark Greene, Director of the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity, explores some new research here. See some extracts below:

“One of the strongest messages to emerge from Journeys and Stories is that living as a community of believers – a community which is welcoming, accepting, inviting, joyful, enthusiastic, encouraging and loving – is the most powerful testimony possible. It constitutes a significant contribution to people’s journeys to God, a compelling invitation to a banquet, perhaps even a sign that the kingdom of God is here.”

Of course, it shouldn’t surprise us that church communities can make a difference. Jesus, after all, says this: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, by your love for one another.”

In other words, the quality of relationships in the church has evangelistic power. The selflessness and generosity of our relationships is a sign to the world of the truth of the message. In fact, it is part of the message. So the key question is this: is the way we do things in our Christian communities likely to make the stranger feel welcome and accepted, encourage and loved? And if not, what can we do about it?

The research also comments on 'The Significance of the Insignificant' in relation to the unchurched coming to faith: "Apparently trivial actions, kindnesses, ways of living become beacons, signposts along the way, fragrances of beyond." 

“A respondent remembered noticing a Bible on a colleague’s table at home. Another was touched by the warmth with which people responded when her toddler ran screaming up the aisle after communion. A third was surprised when someone they had met the previous week greeted them again and remembered their name. A fourth noted how a minister played enthusiastically with her children for a good half hour when invited round to talk.”