IDEAS THAT WORK - Christianity Today

The Best-Excuses Class

by Michael R. Baer

One of the most frustrating experiences in ministry is seeing people drift away from your church. I’m talking about the ones who don’t remove their membership and aren’t mad at the pastor; they just stop being active.

Recently a young layman named Dusty and I made a list of people who had been active in our church and/or Sunday school at one time, but who had stopped coming. We came up with 150 names. Considering that our membership is only 127 and the town has only 1,100 residents, this was a sizable list.

We asked ourselves, What can we do to get them back? How do we remove the obstacles to their return? Is reactivation even possible? Or should we just forget them and go after “fresh meat”?

Then Dusty came up with an idea that, in just five weeks, caused a large number of inactives to return. Just as exciting, they brought the “fresh meat” with them. Our young-adult Sunday school class tripled in size, and our worship services have been revitalized by the returning people’s presence.

Low-pressure zone

Dusty suggested a Sunday school class created just for the inactives. (A Bible study or other gathering could accomplish the same thing.) It would last only four weeks and have one specific role: contact those who had drifted away, help them identify and remove the obstacles to their return, reclaim them if possible, and then, disband.

Dusty was the natural leader for it: he has been active in the church since it began, and most important, he runs a local grocery and knows practically everybody in town. We decided to hold the class in a nearby storefront, rather than the church, to make it as nonthreatening as possible.

Personal invitations were sent to everyone on the prospect list. The invitation letter explained that a special class was beginning just for the many who, like them, had “gotten out of the habit” of attending church or Sunday school. It added that Dusty, whom they knew, would be leading the class; that it would be low-pressure (no one would be asked to pray or read aloud); and that the class would meet only four times and then join with the existing young-adult Sunday school class.

The first Sunday, ten people came. For example, there was Tom, a local builder who was active in attending worship but never Sunday school. There were the Browns, who had never been to the church before. And there was Mary, a bright Christian who simply had gotten out of the habit of coming to church.

The first class was extremely informal, and no lesson was given. Instead, a gentle discussion was led in which people were encouraged to share why they had dropped out. Reasons ranged from “Sunday is our only day off” to “I don’t like some of the people.” Sleeping late, habit, feeling so guilty about being away they wouldn’t brave the first day back, lack of sensed need, and fear of strangers surfaced as some of the reasons for nonactivity. As the discussion went on, the class dubbed itself, with laughter, “The Best Excuses.” They now had an identity and some friends like them.

No burn on re-entry

Little touches made re-entry easier. Chairs were arranged in a circle, with fewer set up than were needed. When more chairs had to be brought in, this encouraged the group: There sure are a lot of us! Copies of the church bulletin and by-laws were available, and the various ministries of the church-especially those for children-were described. No one was asked to pray publicly. Instead, at the end, each person put his name on a slip of paper and then exchanged the paper with another person, who would pray for him during the week. Finally, the group members were encouraged to return the next week and to bring another “Best Excuse” with them.

Between each meeting, light, humorous notes were sent to those who had come, congratulating them on their achievement and encouraging them to keep coming. Fresh invitations were sent to those who had not yet come. The second invitations contained all the information of the first but added that since the first meeting had gone so well, the next would be even better and that it was not too late to come.

Each week, new people arrived to become a part of the Best Excuses. The ten of the first Sunday became thirteen or fourteen the next week. Sometimes a few Excuses would miss a week, but others would take their place. In all, 26 inactives came out. Initially, we figured a 10 percent response (about 15 people) would be successful. We ended up with almost 20 percent.

Managing the merger

As the four weeks passed, the discussions (still light and far from the typical lessons of Sunday school) moved from why the Excuses were not coming to what the existing class was doing. At the time, the young adult class was studying the life of Moses, with an emphasis on practical applications. Dusty gave brief mini-lessons covering three or four lessons at once in order to bring the Excuses up to speed. They also were given the literature the main class was using, so that when they merged with the main class, they would fit in.

We planned a Merger Party for the Sunday before the two classes actually began meeting together. The point of the party was to give members of both classes a chance to get to know each other and, thus, eliminate the final excuse.

We played “Win, Lose, or Draw” and made sure the two classes were mixed on teams. Old friendships were reopened, and new friendships were made. There was plenty of laughter and silliness; there was also plenty of love and relaxed acceptance. What was exciting was that the Excuses took the lead. They outnumbered the regulars and outdid them in reaching out. More than once, one of those who came thanked Dusty for what he had done.

Results

Many Excuses told someone they were ready to make a go of it, and almost all did. In fact, when the classes met together the following Sunday morning for the first time, the size of the class had tripled. Even now, five months later, the class is still twice the size as when it began.

Already we are looking to next year. We will hold the Best-Excuses Class in the spring, rather than the summer when vacations only add to the Excuses’ excuses. And we’ll select a topic of study more relevant than the life of Moses.

In the meantime, some members of the first class have met Christ, while others have renewed commitments and become active in ministries of the church. I still marvel when I see Tom helping lead our youth or Mary visiting shut-ins.

In the past, when it came to reclaiming inactive members, our church had nothing but an excuse. Now, I’m glad to say, we have lots of Excuses.

* * *

Manageable Support Groups

It’s a common frustration in ministry: not enough time to counsel everyone who would like the pastor’s time and attention. And among the people who come, many seem to be wrestling with the same difficulties-a stale marriage, for example, or a rebellious child.

These twin factors have led many churches, especially larger ones, to form support groups. A group for, say, grown children of alcoholics, can lighten the counseling load of the pastor, help people discover friends and support, and open a door for newcomers.

But for the smaller church without the luxury of a large staff, sponsoring a full-blown array of support groups is out of the question. Finding and training qualified leaders, publicizing the groups, preparing the programs-it’s too large a task.

Feeling these frustrations, Gary Gulbranson, pastor of Glen Ellyn (Illinois) Bible Church, developed what he calls “Circle of Concern.” The program offers many of the benefits of support groups but on a more manageable scale.

Each month, Gulbranson hosts one small group focusing on a single “challenge area.” One month for example, the group was for parents of grown children who have rebelled against their parents’ lifestyle. The next month Gulbranson led a group of people who are caring for aging parents, and another month, couples who wanted a marriage refresher. The group meets for four Tuesday evenings during that month and then disbands.

“Not all support groups need to go on for years,” Gulbranson points out. “In a month’s time, people can build relationships with others who will understand them, and they can find out about helpful resources. Then, if the participants really want to continue, they can.”

For example, the “Prodigal Parents” group has continued to meet on its own after the four-week study of Parents in Pain by John White.

The main payoff, of course, is that Gulbranson is able to help many people in 90 minutes (plus some preparation time) per week, rather than in dozens of hour-long counseling appointments. But the Circle of Concern also offers some fringe benefits. “In our group for couples who had been married from 5 to 15 years, called ‘How to Survive Marital Adolescence,’ I was able to identify couples who would still benefit from intervention. Had I waited for them to come to me, it might have been too late.”

People who have attended the groups have expressed relief. “Now I’ve got someone I can talk to,” they say. “I don’t have to feel like I’m bothering the pastor about it.”

The idea has caught on so well, in fact, that now people are suggesting areas for new Circles of Concern.

* * *

Fund-Raising “Non-Events”

When churches need money for a special ministry or mission project, they usually look to one of two options:

1. A fund-raising event, such as a car wash, spaghetti dinner, or strawberry festival; or

2. A special appeal letter sent to the congregation.

The problem with fund-raising events, for churches that prefer those, is the sheer amount of work involved printing tickets, putting up posters, setting up tables, preparing food. What hampers a written appeal (especially if it’s one of several during a year) is that it can get lost in the dozens of other requests Christians receive each month from charitable organizations.

What’s sometimes needed, decided Bill Sanford, pastor of United Methodist Church of Atwater, California, is a fresh approach, one that combines the focused interest of an event with the reduced workload of a written appeal.

Introducing the “non-event,” an idea Sanford picked up from a New Jersey church. Here, in Sanford’s words, is how it works:

“First, you (or your missions committee or board) decide on a cause and a non-event. For 1988, we decided to contribute to the creation of a Methodist university in Africa. We chose as the non-event the “1988 Summer Non-Olympic Games.” (Other non-events in recent years: a non-cruise, a non-iron man triathlon, and a non-work camp in Bolivia.)

“Second, you draft a humorous letter. Telling about the cause can be serious, but your description of why the non-event deserves support should be light-hearted.

“For example, in the letter we mailed, I wrote a serious description of why a Christian university was sorely needed on the African continent and quoted Methodist leaders who supported the project. Accompanying that was the following letter from our commission on missions:

Greetings sister and brother non-Olympians:

Boy, do we have a deal for you!

You must, from your extensive monitoring of sports on television, realize what an extraordinary effort Olympic competition entails. Consider the untold hours of training, the risk of injury, the likelihood of losing, the tiring flight across the Pacific to Seoul, the security hassle, the language barrier, and possible culture shock. Suppose the marathon is your event. Do you really want to run over 26 miles against the best in the world?

Your Commission on Missions has a simple plan by which you can spare yourself all of the above. All you need to do is sign up for our UMC-sponsored 1988 Summer Non-Olympic Games. Pay a participant’s fee of only $19.88 (or other amount you choose). Accept the enclosed ticket, which is valid for all non-Olympic venues.

Receive satisfaction from being part of a winning team which can cherish the knowledge: We did it! We created a brand-new university in Africa. We put Old Mutare, Zimbabwe, on the map And we did it while experiencing all the pleasures of home, sweet home. Think of it this way: you get “the thrill of victory” without even risking “the agony of defeat.”

Some of United Methodism’s nine million folks won’t make the team. So please, cover for them. Contribute not the theoretical $1.11 per member, but something more generous as your heart and circumstances suggest.

Help the team claim victory by July 10th.

“Each letter contained a mock ticket to the non-Olympic Games.

“Third, you send a special mailing, enclosing an addressed reply envelope. Our response in 1988 was equal to $4 times our average Sunday morning attendance.

“Not only have non-events saved many people much work, but for us, they’ve been a fun and well-received way to raise money for special missions projects.”

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