Hint: it's not about numbers...not about how many converts or baptisms you've accumulated. Jesus commandment to the church, known as the great commission, is about making disciples who will love Him and one another
The local church must engage the community around it, with all of its subcultures, in order to have a maximum impact in that community...the Baptist church we came to nearly ten years ago failed to do that and had dwindled down to almost non-existence. God brought me and my family to a struggling, under-resourced, inner-city community...gave us a century old building, no congregation, little to no funds, and we were almost to the point of giving up after the first few years. but God showed us over and over what he can do. It's not about what we, a local church can do, but all about what God can and will do when we are faithful and obedient in the midst of seemingly hopeless odds. We've learned the art of collaborating with other churches, not for profits, and local businesses, and in the wake of that process we now see God creating community; missional community out of the ashes of what we thought was doomed for failure...ten years later and we're still here, by the grace and provision of God; learning how to follow His provision and dwell in the land like Abraham. Church planting is a life calling...not something you can just try out, and if it doesn't work, move onto something else. The fruits of our labor cannot be measured by the number of converts and baptisms we've accumulated, but in ways that have stretched our hearts and minds. I can see that God is at work in the midst of our community, and when the single moms and street people, business owners and "church people," citizens and community leaders, learn to love one another and serve one another, out job is going well!
