Recent studies have shown that 50% of the American public would like to be invited to Church!

Dave Devin from Memorial Lutheran Bremerton, Washington, conducted an interesting experiment to prove this hypothesis. He took a bunch of  small packs of chips and invitations designed  for the Easter service to a Safeway parking lot near his church.  As people came out with their groceries he approached them with a friendly smile and asked, “Would you like a free bag of chips and an invitation to our church for Easter?” He approached 118 people over three days and almost everyone was friendly. 21 people said they were too busy to attend church, but about 60 people took the chips and the invitations and said they would come to his church on Easter.

One man commented that he had been thinking of going to church since Christmas, but he wasn’t sure which church to go to. Several people took the invitations, but not the chips and others said they have never been to church, but that they would like to see what church was all about. Another woman wanted to bring her daughter for the breakfast and Easter egg hunt.  Over 223 people attended the Easter service, the most people that they have had in over 20 years!

Another  member of the church called 11 members who have not attended since Christmas. All 11 of these members showed up on Easter!  Over 60 children participated in the Easter Egg hunt, even though this church had been down to only 40 members just five years ago. This enthusiasm for outreach has transformed this church and given them a new mission focus. They are looking for exciting and meaningful ways to share the Gospel within their community.