Earlier in the year I reflected on what was the direction of the arrow. I had the chance to look at the membership statistics for 2008 for the Northeast Jurisdiction and although the trajectory remains the same, at least we are not in the lead.
Annual Conference Membership Net Change Rank
Baltimore-Washington 196, 847 -1,984 6 ***
Central Pennsylvania 141,030 -2,821 2
Eastern Pennsylvania 123,360 -1,014 11**
Greater New Jersey 96,927 -2,016 5**
New England 90,974 -2,484 3
New York 120,404 -2,352 4
North Central New York 74,483 -1,866 7**
Peninsula-Delaware 89,801 -1,470 9
Troy 47,518 -5,687 1
West Virginia 103,905 -900 12
Western New York 55,659 -320 13**
Western Pennsylvania 187,441 -1,738 8**
Wyoming 61,534 -1,379 10
*** = no available results for 2008
**= numbers reported as presented, but don't work with last years figures (the membership loss is greater if you count this) again these numbers are not audited but from annual conference reports.
Although I am not sure it is good news that Western Pennsylvania is no longer leading the Jurisdiction in membership loss. It has been difficult to watch our conference contracting in size and scope of ministry.
Again, I would like to lift up, what makes this so difficult is not that this indicates a loss of institutional strength, but that each one of those numbers is a life. Many of our churches don't have a single profession of faith. That means that there is not one life in that congregation who has the light of Christ shining through it in such a way as to touch another life and let it catch on fire for God.
It won't be the lastest program that turns this around, but it will be one life touching another life...one at a time. I pray that God will order my life, so that the grace of God might shine through and light another heart on fire. I hope you will join me in that prayer and perhaps with God's grace through you and me the world will change.
Until next time...Grace & Peace