By Chris Moon
A wall at Compass Christian Church tells the story.
The Chandler, Ariz., megachurch has witnessed 285 baptisms so far in 2022. Copies of all those baptism certificates hang in a hallway near the staff offices of the church.
On and on they go, each certificate features the smiling face of a new believer.
The initial idea was to encourage the staff and to celebrate the ways the church was remaining on mission—even as Compass’s attendance continues to struggle back to its pre-COVID-19 levels.
But then the baptisms just kept happening, by the dozens. The wall started to fill up. To make more room, the certificates now hang at an angle, each one slightly overlapping its neighbor.
Church leaders have been praying for revival for months.
“I can’t help but believe that part of this is an answer to those prayers,” said senior pastor Brian Jobe.
‘AND THEN COVID HITS . . .’
Like most churches across the country, Compass saw its weekend attendance shrink during the pandemic.
The church had been seeing 3,600 to 3,800 worshipers each weekend. That dropped significantly during the pandemic and still hovers just below 3,000 today.
The drop in baptisms at the church was equally disheartening. Before the pandemic, Compass was seeing record numbers of baptisms each year—up to 443 in the year just before the pandemic.
“And then COVID hits. It was so disappointing,” Jobe said.
Jobe said he tries not to worry about numbers, but added, “We wanted to get back to what we were doing.”
He said Compass’s elders made baptisms and evangelism a matter of prayer at their meetings. Each week, church leaders walk by every seat in the church’s new 2,000-seat worship center to pray for the people who will sit there.
Jobe talks about baptism regularly during his messages, and he always offers a public invitation to receive Christ during worship services.
“It’s been a focus of prayer. It’s been a focus of strategy,” Jobe said.
‘A WORK OF THE SPIRIT’
Compass had a huge Easter Sunday this year. It saw 6,680 people at its services that weekend and baptized 180 people.
The church wants to keep the momentum going.
Jobe said NextGen pastor Derek Jones came up with the idea for the baptism wall.
“Not only do we want to keep the staff culture positive and keep us on mission,” Jobe said, “but we want to celebrate if we are on mission that we’re doing well.” Jobe said the wall is a way for the entire church to celebrate. Some Compass members haven’t seen so many baptisms in such a brief period. Others have seen things like this in the past and are grateful it is happening again.
“I know it’s a work of the Spirit,” Jobe said “We’re just along for the ride.”
Chris Moon is a pastor and writer living in Redstone, Colo.
Author: Christian Standard
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