Easter is Coming!

Just wanted to put Easter Sunday on your radar. Sunday, April 12th is the day. As you know Easter is a chance to invite friends and families to hear about the cross and the empty tomb (aka the most important event in history!)

My friend Rick Hein recently posted this interesting piece of information. I thought it might stir us up some as we look forward to Easter Sunday!

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I find it sometimes humorous that church leaders seem to always be looking for "The Key" or the "Magic Principle" that will unlock church growth for them. Let's face it, there are no secret keys or formulas that will automatically make it all happen. This is confirmed by Chip Arn, President and CEO of Church Growth International. Arn has conducted over 50,000 interviews with people who were formerly outside of a connection with Jesus and asked them how it was they came to give their life to Jesus and get connected to a local church. Here is what his findings indicate.

• 1-2% noted that it was because a special need that arose in their life, such as a death or catastrophe.
• 2-3% said they simply decided to go to church one day.
• 1-6% said it was because they had a relationship with the pastor or someone else on the church staff.
• 1-2% said that someone knocked on their door and invited them to a church service.
• 4-5% were connected to Jesus and a local church because they got involved in some sort of Christian education (Sunday School, etc.)
• 2-3% were added as a result of some sort of church program.
• 75-90% of the people interviewed said they committed their life to Jesus and became part of a local church because a friend or relative talked to them about Jesus.