I am not UPC or AOG but have been growing quite fast. I think I went from 185 to 195 in one year.
From the looks of the UPC folks I see at Wal Mart and restaurants they appear to be growing quite a bit also, particularly the women. It is hard to tell who the AOG people are, particularly the women since they don't have the blue jean skirt with no slit and tennis shoes uniform. They may not be growing as much as the UPC.
I hope these observations help.
__________________ "I think some people love spiritual bondage just the way some people love physical bondage. It makes them feel secure. In the end though it is not healthy for the one who is lost over it or the one who is lives under the oppression even if by their own choice"
Titus2woman on AFF
"We did not wear uniforms. The lady workers dressed in the current fashions of the day, ...silks...satins...jewels or whatever they happened to possess. They were very smartly turned out, so that they made an impressive appearance on the streets where a large part of our work was conducted in the early years.
"It was not until long after, when former Holiness preachers had become part of us, that strict plainness of dress began to be taught.
"Although Entire Sanctification was preached at the beginning of the Movement, it was from a Wesleyan viewpoint, and had in it very little of the later Holiness Movement characteristics. Nothing was ever said about apparel, for everyone was so taken up with the Lord that mode of dress seemingly never occurred to any of us."
Quote from Ethel Goss (widow of 1st UPC Gen Supt. Howard Goss) book "The Winds of God"
Growth in terms of what? People switching churches or affiliations or new converts to the Lord from just being a sinner or from false religion like Mormonism etc ?
__________________ Let it be understood that Apostolic Friends Forum is an Apostolic Forum.
Apostolic is defined on AFF as:
There is One God. This one God reveals Himself distinctly as Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
The Son is God himself in a human form or "God manifested in the flesh" (1Tim 3:16)
Every sinner must repent of their sins.
That Jesus name baptism is the only biblical mode of water baptism.
That the Holy Ghost is for today and is received by faith with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues.
The saint will go on to strive to live a holy life, pleasing to God.
I am not UPC or AOG but have been growing quite fast. I think I went from 185 to 195 in one year.
From the looks of the UPC folks I see at Wal Mart and restaurants they appear to be growing quite a bit also, particularly the women. It is hard to tell who the AOG people are, particularly the women since they don't have the blue jean skirt with no slit and tennis shoes uniform. They may not be growing as much as the UPC.
I hope these observations help.
__________________
You become free from who you have become, by becoming who you were meant to be. ~Mark from another forum I post on
God did it for us. Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we're in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ. ~Romans 3:24 from The Message
Growth in terms of what? People switching churches or affiliations or new converts to the Lord from just being a sinner or from false religion like Mormonism etc ?
Nah, just membership.
I wonder with the surge in popularity with Sarah Palin and her connection to Pentecostalism if there has been a move towards the denomination, further more, which one; AoG or UPCi?
I'm just curious and I wonder if there has been any recent stat's released... Such as "UPCi claim 52 million members worldwide" "AoG claim 60 million members worldwide"
I wonder with the surge in popularity with Sarah Palin and her connection to Pentecostalism if there has been a move towards the denomination, further more, which one; AoG or UPCi?
I'm just curious and I wonder if there has been any recent stat's released... Such as "UPCi claim 52 million members worldwide" "AoG claim 60 million members worldwide"
I don't think that is an important issue. I feel that way about mega churches who get a lot of their membership from smaller and less "cool" churches, not first time converts to Christ
__________________ Let it be understood that Apostolic Friends Forum is an Apostolic Forum.
Apostolic is defined on AFF as:
There is One God. This one God reveals Himself distinctly as Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
The Son is God himself in a human form or "God manifested in the flesh" (1Tim 3:16)
Every sinner must repent of their sins.
That Jesus name baptism is the only biblical mode of water baptism.
That the Holy Ghost is for today and is received by faith with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues.
The saint will go on to strive to live a holy life, pleasing to God.
UPC "Total worldwide membership, including North America, is listed at 4,036,945."
AoG ..."approximately 57 to 60 million adherents worldwide."
Wikipedia
__________________ "It is inhumane, in my opinion, to force people who have a genuine medical need for coffee to wait in line behind people who apparently view it as some kind of recreational activity." Dave Barry 2005
I am a firm believer in the Old Paths
Articles on such subjects as "The New Birth," will be accepted, whether they teach that the new birth takes place before baptism in water and Spirit, or that the new birth consists of baptism of water and Spirit. - THE PENTECOSTAL HERALD Dec. 1945
"It is doubtful if any Trinitarian Pentecostals have ever professed to believe in three gods, and Oneness Pentecostals should not claim that they do." - Daniel Segraves
I would be surprised if Palin made any measurable difference at all.
__________________ "It is inhumane, in my opinion, to force people who have a genuine medical need for coffee to wait in line behind people who apparently view it as some kind of recreational activity." Dave Barry 2005
I am a firm believer in the Old Paths
Articles on such subjects as "The New Birth," will be accepted, whether they teach that the new birth takes place before baptism in water and Spirit, or that the new birth consists of baptism of water and Spirit. - THE PENTECOSTAL HERALD Dec. 1945
"It is doubtful if any Trinitarian Pentecostals have ever professed to believe in three gods, and Oneness Pentecostals should not claim that they do." - Daniel Segraves
You've heard the old adage, "Figures can't lie but liars can figure."
What do they count for members?
All those who "attend" on Easter?
Those who hold a membership card and tithe regularly?