BROWN ON GREEN | “It Was the Best of Times; It Was the Worst of Times”

By David Brown, CPA

We often get in trouble when we start comparing ourselves to things or people. The book of Haggai refers to many events that happened when Ezra and the returning Jewish exiles rebuilt the temple. In chapter 2, Haggai asked who remembered the former Temple of Solomon and whether the current temple seemed like nothing compared to the original temple.

However, it is important to note that, over time, this temple continued to be improved until, in Jesus’ day, it was considered truly magnificent. When we make comparisons, sometimes, we don’t make allowances for what someone or something could be in the future.

Humans also tend to believe things were better in the “good ole days” — that events, conditions, or people in the past were better than they are today. I think Charles Dickens had it right when he stated in A Tale of Two Cities it was the best of times and the worst of times. This is true of any period. You will find things that were really good about a period, but also things that were really bad.

Some Free Will Baptists might lament that, in the past, we were better than we are today. Some might consider the 50s, 60s, or maybe even the 70s as a “golden age” for Free Will Baptists. While it may be true that during those decades we did some things better than we are doing them today, I would also hasten to say we were not doing some things in those days as well as we do them today.

We like to compare ourselves to other denominations, and, of course, our favorite target is Southern Baptists. According to a recent article by a Southern Baptist publication, 46% of their churches have an attendance under 50. The same article said 27% had an attendance between 50 and 100. It further explained church attendance between 100 and 250 accounted for 19% of their churches, with only 5% of churches between 250 and 500 in attendance. This leaves a mere 3% of Southern Baptist churches with an attendance of over 500.

As Free Will Baptists, we don’t do a great job of keeping these kinds of records, but as someone who travels extensively in the denomination, I suspect our numbers would be like theirs.

Most of us are aware we are losing churches, and the overall attendance of Free Will Baptist churches has dwindled in the United States. However, don’t overlook a bright spot! International attendance in Free Will Baptist churches beyond North America has exploded over the last several years and now exceeds 50,000. Around 30% of Free Will Baptists attend a church outside of North America.

Again, like Charles Dickens wrote: “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.”

About the Columnist: David Brown is director of Free Will Baptist Foundation. To learn more,
visit www.fwbgifts.com.