A Question

There are times when I give thought to counting the churches I pass on Sunday morning as I make it to the one I attend.  It is obvious that one size does not fit all when it comes to churches.  One of the more obvious things is that there are many brands.  It is also obvious that many churches choose to keep the brand a secret,  or maybe no logo or denominational name on the sign means independent.  Autonomous is the going word for churches these days.   Growing up, mainline churches dominated the landscape, but such is no longer the case.  When considering the number of churches, mainline churches are like a drop in the bucket.    

Another thing my Sunday journey from here to there reveals is a few churches are large, but most are middle size or small.  One church has thousands attending and requires off duty police to direct traffic between the several morning services.  For those hurrying to other places, it makes sense to find an alternate route.  My years of noting cars in parking lot hints at the majority of churches having fifty, or maybe a hundred in worship which means they need no one to direct traffic.  Of course, one of the sad differences in now and back then are armed security people standing at the doors of so many churches, large and small.   

With so many churches in every neighborhood, it would seem that people in church would make up a greater percentage of the population than the group outside the walls of the community's churches, but as we know, we are a long way from seeing this happen.  A recent 2024 Gallop poll shows that 20% of the population attend church once a week, 41% once a month, and 57% seldom or never.  If churches want to grow, there are plenty of people out there.  One question is imperative to ask.  Does the church see the unchurched people as fodder for growth, or people with whom the church wants to share the unconditional love of God?