Mega-Shift?

I need to give you just a little background on this post.

For a few years now I've contended that after the smaller stores disappear (are driven?) from the landscape, Wal-Mart will begin a chain of smaller, more convenient stores. I've always assumed they would advertise that they can use their big store purchasing power to make these smaller stores more affordable--always.

I've held this theory for so long that I had forgotten it. It just didn't happen. A couple of weeks ago, however, my friend, Jeff Miller, reminded me of it.Being very kind to my theory, Jeff told me it had come true, but not in the way I imagined. He said that the corner CVS/Walgreens proliferation (not Wal-mart) was filling the gap that was created by smaller stores going out of business. He's right. These stores seem to want to be within walking distance of anybody who needs a double fix of sinus medicine and Oreo cookies.

Jeff's insight settled the issue for me. I was right in theory, but wrong in how things would actually look.
Then--last week--I saw this sign in Lexington at the corner of Man-O-War and Harrodsburg Roads.
That's right. . . "Future Home of Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market." The neighborhood market is going to be bigger than I pictured. Apparently they are going to try some mid-sized (not small) stores. So, in some ways I was right and wrong again.

I think there are lessons--or warnings--for the church here, but I've only begun to think about what they might be. The Super Wal-Marts aren't going away and neither are the Mega-Churches, that's clear enough. I presume, however, that the Wal-Mart research has identified a need for something more intimate than a super store, a desire among the populace to avoid parking so far away and then walking so extensively once they're in the store. Or, maybe, the cost of building even larger facilities is just outlandish.

We're beginning to see the same thing with the biggest churches. Willow Creek Community Church has built its building as large as it can be on their site. Buying even more land in Chicago and building an even larger building would be cost prohibitive, so they've begun trying to duplicate their church at other sites around Chicago. Also, I've been hearing church leaders say, "We have to get smaller to get bigger."

It will be interesting to observe, over the next ten years or so, what happens to church sizes. My suspicion is that Wal-Mart has identified something that will spread to the church (as all business things seem to). Maybe the future of the big church will look like a coalition of medium sized churches branded according to the image of a nearby super-church.

Maybe we at Grandview should change our name to "First Christian Church--University Campus." Or, maybe First Christian could change their name to Grandview Chrisitan Church--Mall Campus".

Just kidding...and just thinking out loud about the social changes that will have an impact on the church over the next decade. File this under "For What It's Worth."