Three things that will shape the church in the next season
What Will Matter in the Church in the Next Season
1. From Attendance to Transformation
Dudley taught us years ago that anything that is healthy will grow. This next season will be more about healthy leaders and healthy churches than about putting on a good show on a Sunday morning. Attendance will matter less in the coming season—not because gathering is unimportant, (and we certainly are in faith for growing churches) but because attendance alone has never been the goal.
Jesus never said, “Go and get decisions” or “Go fill rooms.” He said:
“Go therefore and make disciples… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19–20)
For too long we have been satisfied with full rooms while down playing formed lives. We have counted heads but struggled to answer a more searching question: Who is actually being discipled?
Scripture presses the issue even further:
“My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19)
The measure of health will no longer simply be how many people sit in a service, but how many are walking in the way of Christ on Monday morning.
2. From Programs to Presence
Community will no longer serve as a program on the church calendar. It will either become the heart and culture of the church—or quietly fade away.
The early church gives us a compelling picture:
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer… All the believers were together and had everything in common.” (Acts 2:42–44)
The future looks less like larger rooms and more like smaller tables. Less like stages and more like living rooms. Less like polished events and more like shared lives.
“Dining room table Christianity” will make a comeback in all forms of church life. While I raised my children, the dining room table was foundational, a safe space, where anything could be said to anyone as long is it was said with love, honor and respect. The church of our day desperately needs those safe spaces! Where disciples are formed and fashioned around meals and the intimate conversations that cannot be had in the classroom.
The New Testament assumes a kind of faith that is deeply relational:
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)
Community won’t be something we attend; it will be something we belong to.
3. From Charisma to Conviction
Another shift is already underway.
People are no longer impressed by charisma alone. They are drawn to conviction. They are drawn to character. They are drawn to credibility.
Paul reminded the church in Corinth:
“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” (1 Corinthians 2:4)
In an age of performance, filters, and carefully curated images, authenticity carries unusual weight. Leaders and believers who are genuinely allowing God to transform them—slowly, deeply, honestly and publicly—will have far greater impact than those who rely on polish and platform.
Jesus Himself warned us about outward appearance without inward reality:
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Matthew 15:8)
The most compelling witness will be a life visibly being changed by faith through grace:
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
A Church That Looks Like Jesus
This next season will not be easier—but it will be better. It will not be quicker - but it will be deeper. It will not be flashy but it will be foundational.
It will call for patience over speed. Depth over breadth. Faithfulness over flash.
Paul captures the direction clearly:
“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him.” (Colossians 2:6–7)
In that refining, the church will begin to look more like Jesus again—rooted, present, sacrificial, authentic and alive.
Not perfect. But formed.
Not perfect. But faithful.
1. From Attendance to Transformation
Dudley taught us years ago that anything that is healthy will grow. This next season will be more about healthy leaders and healthy churches than about putting on a good show on a Sunday morning. Attendance will matter less in the coming season—not because gathering is unimportant, (and we certainly are in faith for growing churches) but because attendance alone has never been the goal.
Jesus never said, “Go and get decisions” or “Go fill rooms.” He said:
“Go therefore and make disciples… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19–20)
For too long we have been satisfied with full rooms while down playing formed lives. We have counted heads but struggled to answer a more searching question: Who is actually being discipled?
Scripture presses the issue even further:
“My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19)
The measure of health will no longer simply be how many people sit in a service, but how many are walking in the way of Christ on Monday morning.
2. From Programs to Presence
Community will no longer serve as a program on the church calendar. It will either become the heart and culture of the church—or quietly fade away.
The early church gives us a compelling picture:
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer… All the believers were together and had everything in common.” (Acts 2:42–44)
The future looks less like larger rooms and more like smaller tables. Less like stages and more like living rooms. Less like polished events and more like shared lives.
“Dining room table Christianity” will make a comeback in all forms of church life. While I raised my children, the dining room table was foundational, a safe space, where anything could be said to anyone as long is it was said with love, honor and respect. The church of our day desperately needs those safe spaces! Where disciples are formed and fashioned around meals and the intimate conversations that cannot be had in the classroom.
The New Testament assumes a kind of faith that is deeply relational:
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)
Community won’t be something we attend; it will be something we belong to.
3. From Charisma to Conviction
Another shift is already underway.
People are no longer impressed by charisma alone. They are drawn to conviction. They are drawn to character. They are drawn to credibility.
Paul reminded the church in Corinth:
“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” (1 Corinthians 2:4)
In an age of performance, filters, and carefully curated images, authenticity carries unusual weight. Leaders and believers who are genuinely allowing God to transform them—slowly, deeply, honestly and publicly—will have far greater impact than those who rely on polish and platform.
Jesus Himself warned us about outward appearance without inward reality:
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Matthew 15:8)
The most compelling witness will be a life visibly being changed by faith through grace:
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
A Church That Looks Like Jesus
This next season will not be easier—but it will be better. It will not be quicker - but it will be deeper. It will not be flashy but it will be foundational.
It will call for patience over speed. Depth over breadth. Faithfulness over flash.
Paul captures the direction clearly:
“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him.” (Colossians 2:6–7)
In that refining, the church will begin to look more like Jesus again—rooted, present, sacrificial, authentic and alive.
Not perfect. But formed.
Not perfect. But faithful.
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