Welcome to the Influence Podcast! I’m George P. Wood, executive editor of Influence magazine and your host.

In this episode I talk to Prof. Matthew D. Kim about his new book, Becoming a Friendlier Church: A Pathway to Genuine Community, forthcoming from Baker Books. Our focus is why churches are unfriendly and how they can become friendlier.

“In this book, I want to draw attention to a crisis in congregations that may not be on many people’s radars: too many churches are less friendly than they realize,” Kim writes. “Unfriendliness might be furtively devouring their church’s ministry effectiveness, influence, and longevity.”

Every church thinks it’s friendly. But Kim writes, “Just as in the first round of American Idol, where some contestants overstate their singing abilities as they audition, many Christians believe they are good, friendly welcomers even if they’re not.”

Matthew D. Kim, Ph.D., is professor of preaching and pastoral leadership, holder of the George W. Truett Endowed Chair in Preaching and Evangelism, and director of the Ph.D. in preaching program at Baylor University's Truett Seminary.

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Show Notes

• 00:00 — Introduction and Sponsor Ad
• 02:27 — Defining friendliness and unfriendliness
• 04:43 — Why church friendliness is at crisis levels
• 07:03 — Apathy
• 11:50 — Busyness
• 17:32 — Prejudice
• 24:32 — Friendliness during a person’s greatest needs
• 27:27 — What preachers can do
• 30:04 — What are you reading right now that is interesting, helpful, and/or personally challenging?
• 32:14 — Conclusion