ATLANTA, June 12 — With humorous encouragement, Rodger Nishioka urged Presbyterians to extend warmth to those gathering for worship as the surest way to make sure visitors return for more.

“Warmth is so important,” he said, “that it trumps good preaching,” citing a recent study about what draws visitors to churches.

Nishioka, associate professor of Christian education at Columbia Theological Seminary, spoke to the National Elders Conference — part of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s inaugural Big Tent event — about “Trends for Ministry in the 21st Century.”

In his talk he detailed current church growth trends that are changing the shape of ministry and research he has conducted into young adults’ participation — or lack thereof — in the church.
The first trend? Movement from “tribal” education to “immigrant” education. We can no longer assume that the people coming through the doors on Sunday morning were raised in the church, much less the Presbyterian Church, Nishioka said.

They are no longer a part of the “tribe” with an insider’s understanding. Rather, they are “immigrants” with the perspective of those who are unfamiliar with the ways of the church.

“It is incumbent upon the tribe to think about what it means to be an immigrant. Is it easy to navigate through our church?” said Nishioka. If not, you need to re-evaluate in order to extend that necessary warmth and welcome.

Another important trend is the movement from a perspective that mission is done “out there” to understanding that mission is all around us. With many who are unchurched coming to church for the first time, the mission field is within the doors of the church. The mission field is also just outside the church doors.

“We Presbyterians have done our mission work well, around the globe. We now receive, in this country, missionaries from churches in Korea and Africa. The United States is now a global mission field,” noted Nishioka.

Another major trend is the movement from “official leadership to gifted leadership,” said Nishioka. “Congregations are wondering if a candidate has the gifts to serve — love, patience, peace, joy — not simply the credentials.”

This is what the Commissioned Lay Pastor movement is all about. Nishioka says that congregations “want someone who can tell us about Jesus and walk with us for a while.”

These trends tend to the personal, the experiential, the communal. “People want to know how to have authentic conversations about their faith, they want agility, they want a sense of mystery,” Nishioka said.

Janet Tuck is director of communications for the Synod of the Living Waters and a frequent contributor to Presbyterian News Service.