How Do People Start Attending Church?

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15).

There are few gifts more important and life changing than the gift of faith in Jesus Christ. And the most wonderful thing is that we all have this gift to share! We already possess this gift.

A recent survey asked people how they started attending church. Here are the results.

  • 86% – A friend invited me
  • 6% – Organized visitation
  • 6% – Pastor invite
  • 2% – Advertising

A whopping 86% of the people attending church in the United States find a church to call home because a friend invited them to attend.

God’s doing some great things here at the Little Church and Lakewood Grace. I challenge you to invite someone to discover what God is up to. Help folks find their church home at the Little Church and Lakewood Grace.

Finally, look at the verse again. The verse assumes that because we have Jesus living in us that there would be hope and joy oozing out of us that the people around us can’t help but ask us for the reason for the hope that we have. So, the million dollar question is, “Has anyone ever asked you? Has anyone ever asked you to give the reason for the hope that is in you?”

Jesus is our hope. And when you have Jesus others will long for the Jesus who lives in you. 

The LORD is My Shepherd…

“The LORD is my Shepherd…” (Psalm 23:1).

The LORD…That’s the right place to start.

The meaning of life does not originate with us, but with the LORD. He is after all the LORD. The LORD is the creator, the originator, and the sustainer of all of creation. Not only is the LORD the right place to start, but remember that he is the LORD. Christians have a tendency to use this title as a name and we forget that every time we call him LORD, it means that he is LORD. If he is the LORD, the Christian is never even wondering about obedience. Obedience is a given. Why? He is LORD!

The LORD…That’s a great place to start.

The LORD is my Shepherd.

The first rule for sheep – YOU ARE NOT THE SHEPHERD!!! I wrote that in all caps because we forget this all the time. Not only do we forget that he is LORD, but we forget that we are not the Shepherd. We are sheep. This means we can only do sheep things and when we try to do something beyond sheep capacity we are miserable, frightened, and disappointed.

You want to be a contented and happy sheep? Remember you are sheep. You are not the Shepherd. We have a Shepherd and he is our LORD. Let the LORD take care of Shepherd things and our job is to follow him and do what he tells us to do. That’s our job. You do that, you’re going to be a contented and blessed sheep.

The LORD is my Shepherd…I love that!