People Spots Online
Produced by James W. Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants
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Defining People Spots

by James W. Moss, Sr.

What is a "people spot"? Is it a red, yellow, green, or blue spot that grows on people who attend church regularly? No. A "people spot" is a three-dimensional place for a person. This is important because each church has a limited number of them as now structured. Most churches have fewer "people spots" than either the pastor or people realize.

1. A Physical Space

A "people spot" involves a physical space. Yes, there must be a place to sit, but there is far more. Many hearing this concept for the first time equate a "people spot" with an empty chair. I walk into First Church that has many empty pews. John Browning says, "See all the empty people spots!" This statement indicates a common misconception of the concept.

Physical space defines the number of "people spots." However, it is just one aspect of the concept. It is difficult to convince churches with empty pews in worship and empty chairs in Sunday school that there are no empty "people spots."

2. A Relational Space

A "people spot" exists where relationships with others develop. To feel a part of the church, it is important that each person is close friends with a few other people in the church. Mary Jones says, "I'm so glad that I'm part of a church where everyone knows everyone else." Mary has just indicated that she is part of a small church. In fact, she wishes her church will remain small. Worship attendance must be under sixty for the fulfillment of Mary's wish.

Can you know everyone in your church? Can you go home Sunday morning after church and sit at the dining room table and write down the names of everyone who was in church and everyone who wasn't? If you can't write all the names, then you don't know everyone. In fact, it is not important that you do. It is only important that you know a few people well.

Churches must work at the development of interpersonal relationships. The building of relationships best occurs within the context of small groups. This represents incorporation at work within a church.

3. Meeting of Needs

A "people spot" develops where felt needs are being met. A person must believe that some basic human needs are being met for long-term participation to occur. People tend to stop attending when felt needs are not being met. It seems that some people attend their church until death regardless of what happens. Most people stop attending a church that they believe is not meeting their needs. Absence occurs even though it is painful.

A felt need is a need a person believes they have. People will seek for the satisfaction of such needs. Their church must meet those needs or they will turn their search to another congregation, organization, or activity to find satisfaction of such needs. Participants sometimes have needs of which they are unaware. These folks are unconcerned whether their church meets unrecognized needs.

What I am referring to at this point has nothing to do with conflict. A dramatic moment of conflict occurs. Some regular people stop attending and won't ever return. That's an entirely different issue. I am now talking about the people who once attended every Sunday. They begin to miss a Sunday a month. The rate of absence increases until they are no longer attending. Most people who drop out slowly over a period of time do so because they perceive that felt needs are not being met.

This truth was most difficult for me to accept. I had a prefabricated checklist to use when a family stopped attending the church I pastored. It had such comments as: "It's a shame that God is not as important to the Jones family as in the past" or "The church is not as high on the Smith's list of priorities as it used to be."

The statements shifted the blame totally to the absentees. That removed my responsibility. This felt needs proclamation implies consideration of another dimension. A congregation must recognize its responsibility for the absence of many of its members. That understanding is heavy and causes discomfort. But this shift in attitude is essential for any church that is serious about growth.

It is impossible for one church to meet everyone's needs. A responsible Christian congregation must either develop programs to meet unfilled needs or point people to another church that can meet their needs.

Abraham Maslow cited essential basic needs for food, air, water, safety, and security. Churches periodically must meet those needs. Urban churches face this call on a daily basis. Maslow identified other needs he calls social, esteem, and self-actualization. Many of the needs churches must meet are in these arenas.

The following are five basic needs churches must strive to help their people meet:

1. Churches must be a place where people develop companionships. Loneliness is a tragic disease of our age and society. The worst loneliness of all is be alone in the midst of a crowd. A growing awareness that a person has no friends even in the midst of a crowd at worship is devastating. Inactivity will soon follow. Leadership must design programs to cultivate and encourage friendships.

2. Affirmation is essential for the well-being of your members. People want a simple "pat on the back." I've been traveling the church for fifteen years. Some things seem universally true. One is that churches have not been good at saying "thank you!" People quickly offer criticisms when someone does something wrong. A church needs to share deserved affirmation promptly.

3. Congregations must provide opportunities for people to do things that generate a sense of achievement. Many secular jobs provide little sense of value. A feeling of ultimate worth is essential to meaning in life. The church must provide the opportunity to make significant contributions if life is to have meaning and value. People need the opportunity to do something that has the potential to impact the lives of others positively.

4. Leadership must provide a mental challenge to keep some people interested. Christianity is vital, alive, and celebrative. A rubber band has no value unless stretched. Our minds are like that as well. Growth occurs when God or circumstances push an individual or church beyond present positions and understandings.

5. Broadening the knowledge base assists individual and corporate growth. Solid proven information finds acceptance in most avenues of life except the church. Drastic change is occurring daily in our world. Members resist change in the church because some are looking for one stable facet of their life. Knowledge of our world and proven techniques are essential for meaningful ministry to occur.

A Comfortable Chair

I've tried to discover a very practical definition of a "people spot." The following definition has come to mind: Do you know people who has their very own chair at their home? It is truly "their" chair. They have sat in it so long it is now form fit. In fact, it should probably be replaced. But it would take ten years to break in a new one. They rest in that chair, take naps in it, eat in it, read in it, and watch television in it. They become very uncomfortable if someone else sits in it. It is "their" chair. That's what a "people spot" is in the church.

This concept deals with the cultural behavior of people. It will vary from culture to culture. A "people spot" defines the manner people react to space and to each other. Thus a "people spot" is:

1. A physical space,

2. Where relationships with others may be developed, and

3. Where felt needs are being met.

Good Books to Read

	Lyle Schaller, 44 Steps Up Off the Plateau. Abingdon, 1993.
	Aubrey Malphurs, Developing A Vision for Ministry in the 21st Century. Baker, 1992.
	James Moss, *People Spots*

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