‘Don’t let me speak to empty seats’

One of the biggest challenges we face in the life of the church is the decline in attendance. Many churches have closed, and our ability to engage modern culture is challenging; we certainly need a renewed life and passion within the faith community or even a renewed creativity.

I’ve been thinking about P.T. Barnum, the famous circus impresario who died in 1891. He once owned a highly controversial ‘American Museum’ situated on the corner of Broadway and Ann Street in New York City. The Greatest

Showman movie showcases his incredible rise to fame.

Within five years of opening, the museum attracted half a million visitors annually until a fire destroyed it.

Barnum then partnered with James Bailey and formed the Barnum & Bailey Circus, which took America and the world by storm for the next 146 years. Barnum was very creative, regarded as an American icon, and a symbol of spirit and ingenuity.

In the 1920s, Aimee Semple McPherson, a flamboyant female preacher, was called the ‘Barnum of the pulpit.’

She presented the message of Jesus to the masses of Los Angeles and Hollywood in extravagant music hall performances. Born Aimee Elizabeth Kennedy in Ontario, Canada, she grew up in a devoutly religious household. Her conversion happened after attending a revival meeting with her husband. McPherson gained fame for her dramatic sermons, drawing large crowds wherever she went.

She was known for her theatrical sermons and used stage props, costumes, and creative storytelling to convey biblical stories and messages. McPherson pioneered using radio to reach a wider audience, establishing one of the first Christian radio stations in the United States.

Her presentations attracted three times more visitors than Barnum’s circus ever did. She believed that the Bible was the ‘divine drama’ and deserved to be presented extravagantly, not just taught in the dreariness of church services; she wanted to see life and energy. McPherson’s inspiration came from the arts, and through her communication, people were moved to give their lives to Jesus Christ in vast numbers.

She conducted an excellent 20 presentations every week, culminating in a lavish Sunday night service that attracted thousands. Barnum’s critics detested the shows and the abuse of animals, while MacPherson’s critics came from the religious establishment.

Several leaders of L.A.’s most influential churches thought she was turning her nose up to decorum and the traditional ways of ‘doing church.

Her response was typically forthright: “Show me a better way to get willing people to come to church, and I’ll try it, but please don’t ask me to speak to empty seats!”

Let us consider the new and creative ways to bring the ancient and beautiful message alive; this is still our modern-day prayer, “Lord, show us a better way.”

Phil Collins is the lead pastor at Willow Park Church.