Quotes from George Barna

All this data leads us to a direct examination of the reasons the unchurched avoid Christian churches. The biggest issue is a perceived lack of value.

Notice that the unchurched show little interest in attending a church known for the quality of its worship music or even the quality of its sermons. Millions of churchless adults are very sensitive to the balance between teaching and street-level ministry; they fear getting connected to a congregation that is all talk and no action.

Half of all regular church-going adults admit that they have not experienced God's presence at any time during the past year. The younger the adult, the more likely they are to state that God is a distant, impersonal reality for them. And even among those who say God's presence was evident to them, most of them say that happened only one or two times throughout the course of the year.

Many attenders, lacking any understanding about the content or purposes of worship, assume that the routines and rituals that occur in worship services constitute the substance of worship.

Consequently, if the church is going to leave a permanent mark on the community through a growing body of changed lives, it must constantly expand its leadership capacity, which entails both an increased number of leaders and an enhanced quality of leaders.

Despite all the opinions churchless (and churched) people offer about musical styles, architecture, sound systems, creativity, intellectualism, and the menu of programs provided by churches, none of these is the main attraction. These elements are nice sideshows, but people don't come to church for the carnival rides. They come to meet God. People complain about the uncomfortable seats and stale popcorn when center stage is empty of the main event.

You either stand for Jesus or you stand for all that He died to repudiate.

Are you satisfied with the nature of your church today but simply want your church to be bigger?

What would success look like if the church were to be comprised of true followers of Christ?

As Billy Graham has often said regarding early mornings, "No Bread, no bread." In my life, it is my goal to have a daily quiet time, exercise physically every day (even when traveling) and to read something to refresh my mind and help me to grow in knowledge.

A visionary pastor is a successful pastor.

You might define vision as foresight with insight based on hindsight.