williamhenley8
When the internet started booming in 2005, 5% of the people in the country used to the internet, by 2012, the number had jumped to 75%, Today nearly 93% of all people in this country use the internet!
The Internet Has Closed the Gap
Over the years ministries have tried all sorts of programs and changes in the service to make ministry “more appealing”. We have added coffee and donuts, shorter services, culturally relevant praise teams; whatever it takes to get people through the doors of the church. Some may consider these things gimmicky or salesy, but still many of these things have found some sort of effectiveness for ministries. Although some consider these things to have helped the ministry seem more “relatable”, the fact remains that to reach people and fully impact their lives, it will take a little more than coffee.
As of the writing of this article, more 50 million people have contracted COVID19, and 1.2 million have died because of COVID 19. Many people have lost their homes and jobs. Children are still not able to return to school. Because of the loss so many have suffered, it is understood how some have come to see this latest pandemic as a curse from the Lord. Churches in several states are still under lockdown orders, and many people couldn’t meet at the church even if they wanted to.
Statistics show that once the stay at home orders are lifted, some churches are going to hit even more of a decline. Many people who were once attached to the church, will never return to their particular congregation, and for some, they will not return to church at all.
Even in the midst of all this turmoil, I personally believe COVID 19 can turn out to be the answer the church has been desperately praying to God for. Why do I say that? The reason is simple. It is making the church have to consider and re-adjust its methods of outreach and discipleship. Re-adjust in such a way that makes the church more culturally relevant today and ultimately prepared for the drastic changes that we are hurdling speedily towards.
Take the power of your in-person culture, and turn it into an online mega ministry!
The global church decline did not start with this pandemic. The pandemic simply revealed the areas in which we needed to apply greater focus to so that we can be forward-thinking and prepared for our future growth in society.
Over the years, the church universal has always been known to be the last to change when there are major shifts in society and culture. In times such as these, it is imperative for the church to reconsider its growth initiatives, to include expansive tech systems for the betterment of church growth.
When addressing church leadership using words such as “cultural relevance”, normally makes one think of “watering down the gospel” or allowing people to have different freedoms or expressions of praise or worship which are not of a traditional context.
With the new day that is upon us, I believe the Lord is opening the doors of awakening to allow us to see what the future holds so we can prepare ourselves and the church to be a true force in the generation through the relationships we build online.
During this time, churches across the country are having to consider various questions: How can you reach out to people when many are still under lockdown orders, and even once the orders are lifted, how many will still choose to stay inside and fellowship online? How do we reach the lost, disciple new converts, how do we build relationships between our groups?
The answer is not as complex as it may seem. Ministry growth in the future is not much different than you were doing it before. You still need to have those conversations, you still need to have those meetings. Your men’s group still needs to meet, your youth groups still need to meet. They still can, they just need to do it online!
INTERNET EXPLOSION!
Changing the way we travel is one thing. Changing the way we communicate is a whole new way of life! Cars and trains took us around the country. Planes allowed us to access any place around the globe in a matter of hours. The internet allows you to reach anywhere around the globe with the click of a button! The internet is the cheapest form of communication known to man, and everyone everywhere is taking advantage of its streamlined communication process. Whether you’re a multinational business or just someone who wants to have a random chat with a person in a distant country, we can now touch everyone, everywhere, in no time at all.
Because of this drastic change, I believe the church has no other alternative but to reach people using this expansive relational medium, or it is doomed to live in the pastures and lose its appeal to thIs desperately hungry for “meaning” generation we are a part of.
The internet boom is larger than the horse and buggy revolution.
Church Through the Decades
Throughout the history of the church, and more commonly from the last decades, the church has come to mean a variety of different things to people. The drastic social changes that were taking place in the United States in the 1950’s and sixty’s, caused the church to became a place of not just spiritual enlightenment, but also a place for community gathering. In the black community, this was even more true. The church was the gathering place and the place of expression for people of color in a world where their expression was limited. Spiritual or not, there was the unity of cause and community, and the church became a safe place to gain the needed encouragement to deal with the great social and economic disparities people were facing.
As time went on, the church became less a part of the political spectrum and the church became more pulpit focused. The primary function of the modern church was changing formation. Where denominational affiliation was the focus, more and more non-denominational churches were birthed, and with that came the primarily pulpit focused church.
As the status of the leaders of the church grew, the more leader focused the church became. It was effective in the sense that status brings popularity, and popularity breeds admiration, which brings people. People love being apart of the new thing, the big thing, the popular thing or the exciting thing. If it’s popular, people want to be a part. When something is notable, people are drawn to it because people everywhere are searching. Searching to find their place. A place to fit, a place to be heard, a safe place. There is truth to the statement there is safety in numbers, because people are drawn to numbers.
As we crossed into the new millennium, I believe the times were not showing us the path to seeker-sensitivity, but rather growth through discipleship. While status can bring people, it lacks in its ability to minister to individual growth. In this season the church has to become focused on growth through discipleship. The legacy of life is given to the heritage, and heritage takes the reigns of legacy because of relationship. The times were trying to steer us to the answer that it is the “personal touch” that makes the church great. When Christ walked among us the difference was not the grand halls of fellowship, but the intimate touch He gave to all that crossed His path. The internet and social media give us a fresh opportunity to reach out and touch great masses of people on an intimate level. When considering how to reach more people, or how to grow the church wide as well as deep, consider using the power of the internet explosion and reach more, touch more, and create lasting change in society.
