2 of 3

So, how do you build community?

You use some means other than conformity to promote community. The easiest way to consolidate a group is to give them a new common enemy. A more scripturally sound way is to develop shared experiences in support of a common cause.

People don't want to belong to impersonal national organizations anymore. They care about what happens in their hometowns and in their backyards. In the future successful organizations will emphasize their local work. Habitat for Humanity is a nationwide operation, but to the volunteer pounding a nail into a door jamb, it's about that house he's building and that family who will be living in his neighborhood.

Local churches, especially those with denominational ties, must learn to emphasize their local nature. People don't join denominations. They join local bodies of believers. Even global missions have local connections. Draw them for your congregation.

Create opportunities for relationships. You may win your members to a new Bible study on the promise of an excellent learning experience, but their long-term motivation for attending will be the relationships they develop. Megachurches only survive because they encourage attenders to bond in small groups. Smaller churches will thrive if, they learn to nurture relationships.

Pastor and author Leith Anderson says in his church's second construction project, they doubled the width of the hallways. That's where people gathered to talk. The architect called them "extravagant corridors," but the church wanted to make relationships easier.

One hundred years ago, most shoes were sold in pairs, identical pairs, left shoe and right shoe interchangable. Only after wearing them awhile did the shoes become molded to one foot or the other. Industrial improvements, driven by the consumers' growing desire for comfort, forced manufacturers to adjust their product.

The individualism of our time has given rise to consumerism, and the consumers are forcing change—even in the church.

Every pastor knows the feeling of being "shopped." Visitors to churches are quite open about comparing their experience to a mental checklist of expectations. We asked new members of our congregation, "Why did you pick this church?" Many said they liked the worship atmosphere or the services available for their children. No one said, "Because I'm committed to this denomination." The comfort factor drives the church member just as it does the consumer.

Retailers have discovered this. No longer are restrooms in the basement or behind closed doors marked "employees only." They are just inside the front door, where consumers want them. And they are large and luxurious just like consumers want them.

For churches, the lesson is about size and placement of restrooms, but much more. Today childcare is not a privilege but an entitlement. So the church must provide childcare at all church events.

Today worshipers want to attend on their timetables, so multiple services on multiple days are offered. The Saturday night service is as much for convenience as anything.

next page... |  2 of 3