Well, you have to be careful what you wish for. Heck, you have to be careful what you plan for. We’ve been doing the Monday night meal and service for 5 or 6 weeks. Attendance has leveled at about 100. I was thinking maybe 70. I suspect that as winter comes on and heating bills are high, that we’ll be seeing more folks.
Anyway, what I call a shadow congregation has developed. Some people are coming precisely because there is a service. And as we pray for them and needs are raised, I see that I have picked up 100 people. Not 100 people who come on a Monday Mission Night, but 100 parishioners. Just like that.
And it means a new burden of pastoral care. There were hospital visits Friday and will be tomorrow. I don’t mind it all—it’s why I am a pastor. But the suddenness of it has been surprising. I expected we’d slug it out for a while before too many people felt comfortable discussing needs or even asking for pastoral care.
The goal of changing what we had been doing was to reach people with the gospel, to be really intentional about seeing people accept Christ as savior, to see them living with Him as Lord. It’s still pretty early for that, but it has progressed much more quickly than I anticipated.
1 comment:
the harvest is ready!
we had the same experience in war-torn Northern Uganda, where literally hundreds would show up at the first service of a church plant and most come back with friends the next times. The new pastor immediately has his hands full. Pray, pray, pray for wisdom and endurance, that's all that will get you through this. Full dependence on Jesus plus work, work, work.
Great to see you're having your evangelism wishes and dreams come true.
Who said Methodists can't be evangelists.
TH
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