From Reclaiming Church, p. 31: This does not mean that pastors and lay people in large numbers must study the writings of academic theologians. It does require that church people recognize that unless we reflect seriously, as Christians, about who we are and what we are called to be, we continue to drift into decadence. ... If we continue as present, the losses may be gradual, but there is no end in sight. If we commit ourselves to follow Christ as best we can, there is no guarantee of numerical growth. There is, however, a chance that the renewed authenticity will attract new people and become the basis for a new beginning.

I guess this is all that I, and others like me, are hoping for. I'm not looking to work within the church to create the next mega-church or the next marketing wave. I simply want my local church and my students to learn to think about who they are and what we, as a local congregation and as "the church," are called to be. The entitlement and decadence that has crept into our lives needs to be challenged, and the motivation for doing so can't be "a new program to encourage church growth." I think this type of change in a local church will actually cause the numbers to drop a bit, but those who do come to the church will notice that something is different, and hopefully, they will help us reclaim and rebuild what was intended.

I have a friend who says that church would be great if they just posted the "Let's Pretend" signs on the door so that everyone knew what to expect. What would happen if this commitment to think and be real actually happened in a church and the "Let's Pretend" signs could be destroyed? Think how much impact that could have on a community!