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Denominations bemoan falling revenue. Congregations recognize that the definition of “active” is shifting; members consider themselves involved if they attend once a month. Leaders will be gone weeks at a time for business or family concerns. Average attendance, once the single most helpful statistic indicating congregational culture dynamics, no longer tells the story of involvement. Members don’t need to show up to feel connected through Facebook, streaming services and texting with a pastor.

hat is the “end” of your work? What is a picture of the community or the life that you are working to establish? For Christians, such a community is a foretaste of God’s reign. What pictures of faith, hope and love would you identify as signs of God’s reign? Such pictures are a long-term vision that points the way.