A Thank You Note to ABC Northwest from Becky Sullivan, Church Moderator for FBC Puyallup

Thank you for the access to Missioninsite you provided to the Region's churches a while back, Charles.  I spent probably 25-30 hours creating reports that were pertinent.  This past week Pastor Rick Siemens went through them all and today, at a Council retreat, presented the information most pertinent to helping direct our future outreach efforts. So, thank you for providing access to Missioninsite. 

 Most churches look to grow by seeking out families with children.  Although this would seem to make sense, what we found with our custom Missioninsite reports is that the biggest group of people in the service area around our church are the over-55’s without children in the home. And, as you might expect in Washington State, most of them do not attend church. Other reports gave us some of the characteristics of this group, including their beliefs about churches.  This doesn’t mean that we would not like to have that family with children, but it does mean, like that old cliché, we need to grow where God has planted us.    

God has been sending people to our church and we are seeing our congregation grow. It is an exciting time, as we are beginning to see a turnaround that began with the church assessment that the Region provided.  Your leadership has given us invaluable resources, Charles. May God continue to bless you and your efforts on behalf of the churches of Mission Northwest.