So, you know, for pastors struggling with, you know, declining attendance, where should they begin actually?

Don't focus on the numbers, because the numbers can discourage you.

You need to focus on the opportunities that are around you.

Because I've served in congregations where we had 54 people on a Sunday, and by the grace of God, we grew to 78 in 18 months.

Now, it doesn't sound like a lot of people, but when you haven't grown at all in 10, 15 years, and all of a sudden they have 20 new people almost join your church in less than a year, that's a radical shift.

What I discovered was that wasn't a great shift for my church.

They were like, that's not what we signed up for.

To be more forgiving, right? So yeah, what does it mean, you know, to, you know, practically to become a bridge builder?

Talk about what family systems are.

So I de- I describe it this way.

The church is like a, an emotional system.

It's like a nuclear family.

It has its own unwritten rules.

It has repetitive patterns.

It has alliances, allegiances.

How do I map these systems? Do I sit down and have one-on-ones with people and kinda tie the, the threads together through those conversations? What do you suggest?