If you twist the arm of someone who doesn't like your idea, you get an elbow in the chops.
—Craig Brian Larson

"We have to face reality," I announced to the congregation one bright October Sunday morning. "We are not bringing people to Christ."

Before me, seated on stacking chairs in a grade-school gym, were our fifty adults and a few children, appearing as civilized as landed gentry (toddlers excluded).

"The Great Commission is our mission," I continued. "We have to do whatever it takes to become a church that leads people to Christ."

Our church was nine years old, and I had been the pastor for two years. We had grown from thirty-five to eighty on a bang-up Sunday, but I wasn't satisfied: it was transfer growth. We weren't reaching unchurched people.

I took responsibility and resolved to do something about it. I blocked out time in my schedule, prayed intensely about the problem, and birthed an idea—a seven-step strategy for breaking out of our shell.

Confidently and with great expectations, ...