Good morning.  The group that went to Cincinnati missed you all last week, but we had a good time.  But it is good to be back.  If you remember, we have been taking a look at some of the questions that Jesus asked.  And today, we were suppose to finish that series up and take a look at when Jesus asked in Luke chapter 6, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, but do not do what I say?”  However, late this week I decided to scrap that whole lesson.  It was kind of like God was pulling at my heart to share with you one of the things that Nellie and I went to last weekend in Cincinnati.

Now if you have ever been use to doing lessons, when it comes close to the time to share that message and someone tells you to scrap that lesson, and come up with a new one, you want to put up a fight.  But in this case, I could see what God was wanting to share with all of us, so I only fought it for a little bit.

This past weekend, the theme for the week was “Win!”  It’s the idea that Christianity is losing in our culture today.  It’s not because of moral issues, it’s not because of political issues, and it’s not because of competing religious views.  It’s simply because Christians are not stepping up to the plate.  Its time we start gaining ground, its time we start living like we can win.

The biggest reason that churches are not growing is simply because people are not stepping up to the plate and sharing their faith with anyone.  We are so stuck in our comfort zones that we won’t allow ourselves to invite people to church, we won’t share God’s word with them, we won’t tell them about the Bible, and sometimes, we won’t even let them know that we are Christians.

So how do we win this battle?  How can we step to the plate, get out of our comfort zones, and truly grow our church.  The answer is by getting people here.  And next week we are going to try that, but it is completely up to you how successful that will be.  With next week being Friends Day, I felt like God was telling me to scrap what I had, and share with you from a class that Nellie and I went to during the youth trip this past weekend.  It was a perfect lesson for what we want to accomplish here.

The class was called, How To Get, Keep, And Deepen Students.  In that class the professor from CCU shared some great ideas that would work for accomplishing that in the youth.  However, I believe that what he shared, mixed with a little of what Jesus told us to do, can be an amazing approach for us to follow in order to see our church grow as well.  So today, I want to share with you, “The Top 10 Ways To Get, Keep, And Deepen Our Church.”

Before we take a look at any of these ideas, let’s begin our time with a word or prayer.  Let’s Pray!

Before I share these 10 ideas with you, allow me to remind you of what our job and our calling is.  Not just ministers, elders, deacons, and teachers, but it is up to all of us.  Matthew 28:18-20 says that, “1”

So, now that we know that this is an important command that Jesus gave to all of us, just how do we do it?  How can we, The Fly Branch Church Of Christ, Get, Keep, And Deepen Our Church?  Well let’s take a look at that this morning.

First, We Need To Have A Purpose And A Mission:

How many companies do you know of that have no goal in sight, no purpose of mission?  The answer is few.  Why, because they do not survive with that kind of thinking.  And guess what, the church won’t do it either.

By show of hands, how many of you own something that is made by Dell Computers?  Okay, let me ask you this question, how many of you have ever seen a presentation using Dell products?  The answer to that question is all of you, because that is the company that our computer and projector is made by.  Now do you think that the owner of Dell just all of a sudden decided that he would try and sell computers, or do you think that he had a plan and a mission?

Here you go, Dell Computer’s mission statement is:

“Dell’s mission is to be the most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in markets we serve.  In doing so, Dell will meet customer expectations of: highest quality, leading technology, competitive pricing, individual and company accountability, best-in-class service and support, flexible customization capability, superior corporate citizenship, and financial stability”

You see, Dell didn’t just go out and aimlessly start building computers.  No, they had a plan, and they had a desired goal.  How about this one, have any of you ever eaten at a McDonald’s?  Well, since it is the only fast food we have her in Vanceburg, I’m sure that everyone here has eaten there a time or two.  So do you think that they just went into the food business with no purpose or mission?  Of course not.

McDonald’s mission statement is:

“McDonald’s vision is to be the world’s best quick service restaurant experience.  Being the best means providing outstanding quality, service, cleanliness, and value, so that we make every customer in every restaurant smile.  To achieve our vision, we are focused on three worldwide strategies: be the best employer for our people in each community around the world, deliver operational excellence to our customers in each of our restaurants, and achieve enduring profitable growth by expanding the brand and leveraging the strengths of the McDonald’s system through innovation and technology.”

You see, they didn’t just say, we want to make hamburgers.  They wanted to be the best at what they did, and they had a plan to help them in that attempt.  No matter what your feeling are toward McDonalds, they have certainly reached their vision.

So, as a church, what is our goal?  What is our vision, or our purpose and mission?  In order to successfully get people here, keep them here, and see them grow we have to be aware of our purpose.  Do you know why we do what we do?  Obviously, our reason behind what we do is that we want to see the Great Commission fulfilled.

We want to see people coming and giving their lives to Christ.  But aside from that, do you know what our specific vision is?  If not, allow me to refresh your memory.

Our mission is three fold.  First, we are here to gather.  We come together to worship and praise God.  Secondly, we are here to grow.  We nurture people to commit to a closer walk with the Lord.  And finally, we are here to glorify.  We proclaim and lift up Jesus so that the lost may see and find Him.  So, if we want to truly see our church get, keep, and grow others, then we need to be aware of our purpose.  No business will thrive without a vision, and no church will be able to survive without a purpose as well.

Secondly, You Need To Share Your Own Story:

No I know that for some of us, that is a little bit out of our comfort zones.  To sit down and talk to someone about how we came to know Christ and what that has meant to us in our lives can be a difficult task.  But guess what, you cannot mess it up.  It is your story, and you should be able to share it with people.

They say that being a “preacher’s kid” can be difficult for a young child.  I read once of a preacher’s little boy who was told by his mother that he should wash his hands because there were germs living in all the dirt he’d been playing in.  He looked up at his mother and got this really disgusted look on his face.  “Germs?  Germs?”  He went on to say, “Germs and Jesus!  Germs and Jesus!  That’s all I ever hear around this house!  And I’ve never seen either one!”
Well, at that young age, that little boy wasn’t sure he was comfortable believing in something that he hadn’t seen.  And a lot of people are like that.  It is evident all through the Bible.  Remember how Thomas reacted to the news that Jesus had risen from the dead?  John 20:25 says, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.”

Thomas had difficulty believing in something he had not seen and touched.  But then, the Apostle John says, “YES… I have seen, I have heard, I have touched this Jesus, AND that’s what I’ve been preaching about.”

Lee Strobe, in his book “Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary”, maintained that the unchurched aren’t necessarily looking for miracles and appearances of Christ.  Often they’re not so much concerned with the question of “Is Christianity true?”  Instead, they’re more concerned with “Does Christianity work and how can I experience it?”  In other words, just like the people in John’s day… the unchurched today want to hear about what YOU’VE seen… what YOU’VE touched… what YOU’VE heard.  They want to know if it works for you.

A woman put an ad in the local paper that read, “Lost 50 pounds!  Selling my fat clothes – they’re in good condition, sizes 18-20.”  She was bombarded with phone calls, but nobody wanted to buy the clothes – they all wanted to know how she had lost the 50 pounds.

You see, the callers wanted to know about something that had changed her life hoping that this something could change their lives too!  And that is what the unchurched are really looking for.  They want to know if Jesus really works in your life.  So we need to start sharing our story with them.

Now, on the next few, I won’t spend as much time on them, because they are a little simpler to understand.  But, as we move on,

Number Three, They Don’t Know If Your Don’t Tell Them:

This one is simple, so I am not going to spend much time on it.  If you don’t share with people about Christ, and all that He can offer them, they are not going to know what it is that they are missing.  That is why the Bible repeatedly tells us to teach these things to others.

Occasionally, Nellie and I will get into an argument.  With all the things that I say about her, it is a shock that its only occasionally, but we get into these arguments because I don’t do or say something that she wants me to.  Now sometimes she never really tells me that, but she still expects it to get done.  But guess what, if I am not told of a need to be met how can know how to meet it or get it done.  It’s the same way with people that don’t know about a relationship with Christ.  Unless someone tells them, they don’t know what they are missing.

Number Four, People Don’t Care How Much You Know:

I think that this is a big one.  When you are sharing with people, and you are trying to get them to come to church, they really don’t care how much you know.  So don’t go and beat them down with the Bible.  Instead, show them love.  Care for them.  Make sure that they know that you care about them.  Look at Jesus.  Jesus knew way more that we could ever be able to grasp, yet He did not use that to beat people down.  Instead, Jesus let people know that He loved them.  He ate with sinners and tax collectors and prostitutes.  He touched people that were considered unclean.  He fed people that were hungry and he healed people that were hurting.

Sometime I think we try and use the Bible too much.  Don’t get me wrong, there is a time to use and instill the Bible into people, but it is not when you are trying to get them started.  If so, it can all be overwhelming, and you may drive people away.  Jesus met all of their needs, and He showed them love.  Then after they trusted Him, then He shared His message with them.  So make sure that you realize that people don’t care how much you know, they want to feel loved and be loved.

Number Five, So That’s The Minister:

Now this one is not scriptural, but it should be.  So many times, people come and go, and I don’t get a chance to meet with them.  A lot of time, people try and slip out or don’t feel comfortable going up to the minister and talking.

So, make it your responsibility that when someone comes that you know, introduce them to me.  Pull me to the side and introduce us.  Also, I would encourage you, that after you have talked with a person a few time about coming to our church, ask them if they would like me to come and visit with them.  Now I probably won’t go by myself, but you can take me to introduce me to them and we can talk.  I have done that with several people, and it just makes the visits go better when there is someone there that we all know.  So take the time to introduce the minister to them.

Number Six, Let’s Get Small:

In small groups, every person can experience and give out the love for each other that we have been commanded to show.  A few years ago at a small groups conference they told the story of a church that looked as though they were really thriving: they had about 500 people attending, and had many outreach ministries reaching their community, and many people were coming to Christ and to church through their ministry.

The problem was that the church was not growing in numbers – people were leaving as quickly as they were coming in.  They began to do some research on the people who were leaving and they found that the majority who left were not attending another church, they just stopped going to church all together.  They realized that although the church was great at evangelism, because of their inability to hold people, they were actually de-evangelizing their neighborhood.  Those who were leaving were almost impossible to bring back into any community of faith.

The senior pastor realized that something had to be done, so he called up that last 12 people to be baptized and invited them to supper at his house.  These were all new Christians and very excited to be invited to the Pastor’s house.  After supper he sat them down and asked if they wanted to know the future.  They all said “Yes!”  So he said, “Statistically speaking in the next 2-3 years… two of your marriages will have broken up and the shame will cause you to leave the church, three of you will have a conflict with someone in the church and you will leave the church, one will have a tragedy and lose faith and leave, two will have a moral failing and leave, and two will lose interest and drift away.  In two to three years, out of this group only two of you will be attending church, and only one of you at this church.”

There was dead silence in the room.  All these wide eyed Christians were about to say “surely not I, Lord.”  When one of them spoke up and said “What can we do to change the statistics?”  The pastor said, “You can get together and as a group decide that you are not going to let anyone go.”  That is exactly what they did – these strangers formed a small group and supported each other through the tragedies, divorces, conflicts, and failings and in four years, only one had left the church never to come back.  The church went from losing 10 out of every 12 to losing only one.

Now, if that doesn’t show you the importance of getting together in small groups and supporting one another, nothing will.  Now I am not saying that it has to be an every day meeting.  I’m not even saying that you have to meet every week.  But among yourselves, develop a small group.

And when new people start coming, add them to your small groups to let them know they are loved and to support them in their struggles as well.  So we need to learn to get small.

Number Sever, And This Is A Fun One, Go On Road Trips Together:

We have so much fun on trips with they youth, and there are usually great leaning opportunities as well.  A great thing about going on trips together is that it is an unthreatening environment to invite people to.  For example, I a couple of weeks we are going on a ski trip, what better time to invite some people than when we go and just have fun with one another.  There is no threat involved, all they need to do is come and have a good time.  Today would have been a good time to invite people to come and play games and watch the Supper Bowl with us this evening.  Take advantage of fun things and going on road trips together.

When we take the youth on trips like we did this past weekend, or during the summer and we spend time together, we are able to really get to know each other better.  This past weekend, Brenda, Tim, and Tim’s son Eric went along with us, and it provided a great opportunity to get to know one another.  So make sure that you take full advantage of road trips together.

Number Eight, It’s In The Mail:

How many of you enjoy getting mail?  I sure do.  I can remember back when I was a kid and I would check the mail with mom or dad.  I would always ask if there was anything for me.  Even though me nor any of my friends could read or write at the time, I was always wanting to get mail.  Why?  Because it meant that someone out there was thinking of me and they cared.  Even in college, everyday you can go to the mailboxes around lunch and see people eager to see if they have any mail.

This past week, Nellie sent some mail out to some of the youth and the letter was written on toilet paper.  Be creative, do something that will make the people smile.  If you don’t want to send a letter, send an E-Mail, or give them a call.  It is the whole idea of communicating with them.  Get together and go out for lunch.  Make sure that the people you are trying to get to come to church know that you really do care about them.  Even after they start coming, stay involved with them.

That is one reason that I am writing Birthday Cards and Anniversary Cards to everyone this year.  It’s not because I have so much extra time on my hands, its because I want everyone to know that I am thinking about them and that I care about them.  Now, if for some reason you don’t get a card this year, it is because you did not fill out the information for in the directory, so don’t get too upset.  So remember to be in communication with those you are trying to get involved.

Number Nine, And This Is A Big One, Emergency Response:

It is important that after a person comes to our church for the first time, that they are responded to.  Many of you have heard of the cookie ministry.  What that is, is that when a person comes to a church for the first time, someone in the church takes that person a batch of cookies to thank them for coming to their church and to encourage them to come again.  Now, as simple as that sound, it works, trust me.  When my family first went to church, then very next week someone from that church came and brought us a batch of cookies to let us know that they cared.  The next Sunday we went back, and the next, and the next, and that is the same church that I grew up in and my parents still attend today.

But I would challenge you to go even further.  When a person is lost in the woods, they call in emergency response teams to go out and find that person.  They don’t wait a week and go and look for them, they go as soon as they know they are missing.  In the same way, there are people out there that are lost spiritually, and when they come to our church, we need to respond to them quickly.  I would challenge you respond to people within 24 hours of them attending a service of ours.  Find out where they live and take them something as a token of friendship and to show them that we care.  Now this can’t be me, because people assume that it is the ministers job to do that, that’s what he’s paid for.  But when someone that they don’t know from the church shows up just to drop off a gift them, it means a lot.

This past weekend with the youth, a minister shared this story.  They take bottles of pop and a bag of Doritos to each student the first time that they come.

The next day someone delivers that to them with a note attached thanking them for coming and inviting them back again.  He mentioned a time that I girl came to their church, and the next day got a bottle of pop and a bag of Doritos.  Later she explained that from a bottle of pop, and a bag of Doritos, which she didn’t even like, it showed her that she was loved, and she decided not to commit suicide.  She was looking for love, and a simple little gift of thanks for coming to their church saved her life physically, and later she became baptized and saved her life spiritually.

That minister said, when they didn’t do this response, that around half the people returned the next week, and within 4 months, only half of those people were still coming.  He said that once they started the emergency response program, that 98% of the youth returned the next week, and 4 months later, 82% of those kids were still coming.  It might seem insignificant, but it lets people know hat you care.  So I would encourage you to set up some kind of emergency response program that will get back in touch with people the next day.  It would be great if some of you would do that and be ready by next week to respond to any visitors that we may have.

And Finally This Morning, Number Ten, The Empty Chair:

If you have noticed, there is an empty chair sitting here this morning.  Now I did this with the youth, so I will do it with you as well.  Up here is an empty chair, and that empty chair will be around from now on.  Who do you think that chair represents?

The chair represents someone that you would like to see here.  The goal is that over time the person that you would like to see sitting in that chair would be changed, not because you don’t talk to that person anymore, but because that person is now in church.  So who would you like to see in that chair?  As I ask you that question, I am sure that names and faces are popping into your mind.  I would encourage you to pray for those people, and I would encourage you to actively seek getting them here.  Try some of the approaches that we looked at this morning.  Make it your goal to see that person filling up a seat here at church.  And begin this week!

There are family member, friends, classmates, co-workers, neighbors, that are all represented by that chair, and I would encourage you to do your best to get them here.  Help to fill that chair.

So, Christ’s final words were words of growth.  He wanted to see His kingdom grow, and He gave that responsibility to all of us.  Once again, Matthew 28:18-20 tells us that, “1”

If we want to fulfill this command, then we need to be concerned with getting, keeping, and deepening the people around us.  “The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.”  Let’s make it a priority to fill this empty chair!!!!

Let’s Pray!