One strategic goal of AUCI is "we pioneer seven new program-size ministries by September 30, 2015." If the Association were to do this, where are they most likely to be successful?
The following is an attempt to answer that question. It's not a very precise method. And, admittedly, it is based on demographics and logic, not on prayer and inspiration. Take it for what it is and make your own judgment of it's validity. The logic of the study is to identify locations of a known business who's client base has similar values and demographics of congregants of the Unity movement.
CLICK HERE to see this Google based map showing the locations of Unity churches and Whole Food Market stores in the United States ... (it may take 5-10 seconds to load and maybe a second click.
Is there any correlation between people to shop at Whole Foods Market and those who attend a Unity church? I don't know. And I have no data to support the idea. But it seems logical.
Unity churches are marked in Red, Whole Food Market locations are marked in Green. Hover over a red marker to get more information about the church.
If you study the map, you may see opportunities in:
- Lexington-Fayette KY
- Philadelphia PA
- White Plains NY
- Bellingham MA
- Andover MA
- Wilmington DE
Why do this? This study took four hours to conduct. According to the 2009 AUCI Annual Report, the total budget of member churches is $137 million. Thousands of dollars and many thousands of hours will be invested in 2010, somewhere, by some people, in establishing expansion ministries. If this four hours of work can even slightly improve the chances of Unity's ability to grow, then it is well worth the effort.
If you have comments, be sure to click "Add a comment" below. I would very much like to see a lively discussion about this.
Here is the map (but CLICK HERE to see the map full-screen).
