<\/p>\n
After years of declining church attendance, a recent report suggests a shift may be underway.\u00a0Researchers say median in-person attendance has risen for the first time in decades. Still, many churches are looking for new ways to reach people where they are.<\/p>\n
Across the country, congregations are using digital ministry to stay connected. One Norfolk, Virginia, church is showing how that outreach can work.<\/p>\n
Kingdom Embassy Ministries worships in the sanctuary and online, allowing the church to reach people beyond its walls. Pastor Gerald Thompson said the church’s digital push began before the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
“We prayed, and God directed us to do more digital and streaming,” Thompson said. “Mostly, it was prayer, and we didn’t know COVID was coming, but we got the equipment.”<\/p>\n
When COVID closed church doors, that early investment helped Kingdom Embassy keep its members connected, including those who could not attend in person.<\/p>\n
Thompson said the church’s congregation includes people of all ages. “We have a plethora of all ages here,” he said. “Our more senior member is about 92 years old, and she’s not able to attend church. I think that’s the biggest thing for us, to ensure that they feel connected.”<\/p>\n
Churches nationwide are still working to create that kind of connection.<\/p>\n
A Hartford Institute report found that median in-person worship attendance rose to about 70 adults in 2025, up from 65 before the pandemic.<\/p>\n
Thompson said Kingdom Embassy uses several digital platforms to bring members together.<\/p>\n
“We’re able to bring members online,” he said. “We created our own app. We have our own digital space where our members can commune online, and they can join there. The idea is to continue to spread the Gospel online on all the different types of devices.”<\/p>\n
For some people, watching a church online can eventually bring them into the building.<\/p>\n
During the pandemic, Mia Knight watched services from several churches online. A friend later told her about Kingdom Embassy. “I started watching online, and my spirit was in agreement with what I was hearing,” Knight said.<\/p>\n
She then decided to attend a service in person.<\/p>\n
“What I saw online was what I experienced when I walked through the door \u2014 that kindness, that love, that care,” she said. “When I came into the building, I could still sense that same presence. I feel like even watching online, that was like a precursor to where God was about to place me.”<\/p>\n
Church leaders say that is the goal: creating genuine connections, not simply attracting online views.<\/p>\n
Executive Pastor Rosalyn Thompson said the church’s digital outreach has also expanded to families overseas.<\/p>\n
“We actually have a family who lives here in the United States, but they’re from Tanzania,” she said. “They started watching us during COVID on TikTok. They have family members who are still in Tanzania watching the services and interacting.”<\/p>\n
Church leaders said those online connections can also become opportunities for prayer, encouragement and belonging.<\/p>\n
“We get inbox messages from people who talk about, ‘Man, what y’all talked about today, I needed that,'” Gerald Thompson said. “I think that gives a face. Again, we never see those faces, but what we do know is that there are people on the other side of that camera who need to hear about the Lord.”<\/p>\n
However, church leaders still believe digital ministry cannot replace the experience of worshipping together in the sanctuary.<\/p>\n
“You don’t feel the subwoofer. You don’t feel the kick, or the cheering, or the praise and worship from other people,” Kobby said. “Being in person can definitely give you that push that we sometimes don’t know that we need.”<\/p>\n
That is the delicate balance for many churches: using digital ministry to reach people where they are while still encouraging them to become part of an in-person community.<\/p>\n
“I think the biggest thing is just that we’re doing His will, and His will is being done,” Gerald Thompson said. “I love the fact that Jesus says, ‘Go into all the earth.’ He didn’t tell you how, and obviously we’re doing it digitally.”<\/p>\n
For churches like Kingdom Embassy, the mission remains the same. Its leaders maintain that digital ministry is not a replacement for church. It is an invitation.<\/p>\n
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