March 27, 2025

Dear Central Church, 

I made the decision a few years ago to disable most “push notifications" on my phone. I discovered that the majority of them consisted of two things: 1) bad news or 2) product advertisement. The decision was made one Sunday morning when my phone buzzed 5 minutes before I was to preach to alert me to this headline: “Research Says Fewer Americans Attending Church.” 

That is NOT the kind of “bad news” you want to read as you’re about to preach the Good News of Jesus. It is worth noting, however, that the research isn’t wrong. It’s true that church attendance and engagement patterns are lower than they have been in the past. Some people have seized on this and proclaimed the death of the North American Church, but to quote one of Missouri’s favorite sons, the “details of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.” 

The Church is alive and well, and we have Good News to share! Not only has our death been greatly exaggerated, but our culture’s hostility to the Gospel has been disproportionately amplified as well. Here are two data points that should encourage us: 

1. 79% of unchurched Americans say they don’t mind their friends talking about their faith. We have an open door to talk about the difference Jesus
has made in our lives with our friends and family. 
2. 70% of unchurched Americans say a personal invitation to Church would be “effective/very effective.” (Rick Richardson, You Found Me, 2023) 

As we approach Easter, I hope these numbers encourage you. We are called to “do what Jesus did,” and the primary thing he did with his life is “proclaim the Kingdom of God has come near.” (Mark 1:14) Let’s use our influence to invite people to learn more about Jesus and what he has done in our lives. 

In today’s Loop, there is information about 3 different events: 
     1. The Bunny Hop, Saturday, April 12
     2. The Chosen Movie Night, Thursday, April 17.  
     3. Easter Sunday, Sunday, April 20. 

Each of these are designed to give you a platform to invite your friends and family to be a part of this “life-giving community” known as Central Church. I look forward to seeing what God is going to do over the next few weeks as we intentionally welcome others to be a part of what God is doing at Central. 

Until He’s Finished,
Pastor Mark