Eighty-Two Percent

82% of people who don't attend church regularly said they are likely to go to a church service if they were invited by someone they know. 82 percent!  I read that statistic recently in book.  The author, Thom S. Rainer, had surveyed a large sample of people that don't attend church on a regular basis and this is the conclusion he came to.

I'm not sure I believe it. That would mean that people are just not inviting other people to church. 

Maybe we need to remember that church is very much worth going to.  We focus so often on negative stuff; 'it's boring', 'the music can be a bit naff', 'we do weird stuff like pray and sing and listen to talks'.  In reality though church is brilliant. Anyone can go (for free) ,you can hear about someone who can transform your life for the better, and you are loved there. Church is simply brilliant.

I know that every church has it's issues and I have yet to find one that is perfect or anywhere near it but it is still brilliant.

Yesterday a friend of mine came to church disturbed.  Something wasn't right with her.  By the time she left she had allowed Jesus to take the lead in her life saying to him, 'Please, be my Lord'.  She told me that she felt a sense of peace. Church didn't do that for her but church is a place where people can hear about that peace and are pointed to Jesus.

Our God is an amazing God and He has chosen to use the church with all it's weakness and failings to tell the world about Himself.  If you are one of the 82% I want to apologise to you.  I want to say sorry if I personally have had the opportunity to invite you to church and haven't.  We Christians can at times be a bit useless when it comes to doing the right thing. Don't let that put you off though.  Invite yourself.  Tell that church-goer you know that you are interested, that you want to give it a go, that you will go with them if they'll let you.

Those of us who call Christ our own need to open our mouths more, don't be ashamed of your Saviour or His people.  We should be able to say, 'I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes'. (Romans 1:16)