The National Back to Church Sunday initiative in Dayton, Ohio, united 110 churches to reconnect with their communities, addressing the gap between the 82% of unchurched individuals open to invitations and the 2% who extend them. Through prayer, training, and city-wide collaboration, churches equipped their members to engage with neighbors. With 341,185 households receiving invitations to return to church, the initiative strengthened churches, increased attendance, and deepened community ties. Dayton’s success proves that a simple invitation can transform lives and revitalize entire communities.

Does life have a purpose? What happens after we die? Why does God allow suffering? These questions lie at the heart of the faith journey. Yet many of the lost view the church as a place where questioners are unwelcome—it’s a space for those who already have answers. But the churches of Chicago set out to change that. Through exploreGOD, over 1,000 churches united to invite their neighbors into open conversations about faith. The 7-week sermon series and discussion groups made the thousand churches feel like one Church, and the impact was staggering—thousands visited an exploreGOD church, discovering Jesus and a place to call home.