Numbers

I want more people to come to our church, and I want more people to come to REAL YOUTH. Some people get uptight when we talk about numbers (thinking that's not spiritual), or they think we are just the perfect size (where I can know everybody's name), but those numbers represent souls. I get frustrated when we aren't seeing many new people coming on Sundays and Wednesdays, because I want to be making a difference. I read a story tonight in a book I'm reading that got me thinking about this:
There was an older man in a small fishing village who woke early each morning to fulfill a special, self-given task. He made his way to the coastline to save the many starfish that were washed up on shore the night before. With the subsided tide they were guaranteed to lose connection with their life source, the ocean, and die within hours. Each morning, thousands were washed ashore. And while our friend could not save them all, he did his best to save as many as he could.
One day, a young tourist stopped the man and asked him, "Why do you work so hard to help these starfish? There are thousands. Surely you cannot save them all, and chances are many will be in the same predicament tomorrow. Why do you toil so, when you do not make a difference?"
The older gentleman was saddened by the words of the young man. he reached down, grabbed a starfish, and helped him safely back into the ocean. He looked at the man and said, "It made a difference to that one."
Now, I've heard this story before, but it really hit me tonight, as I was thinking about why I do what I do. I want to make a difference, I want bigger numbers of people, and I'm not apologizing for it.