This article asserts that the traditional Western church is constructed to meet the needs of a Christendom paradigm. Now that the strength of Christendom has eroded significantly, the church must adapt to a new contextual reality. Drawing heavily from Loren Mead and Howard Snyder, a dynamic model of the church-in-mission is proposed that recognizes “the rediscovered mission frontier” at the church's front door and that features an ecological view of the church renewed through worship, community, and witness. The case of Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church provides a hopeful example of how one church observed the changing context and effectively restructured for a new reality.
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