This story is from someone I have known for about 20 years.
He joined WELS and encouraged his entire family to leave the Lefty Lutherans.
At one point my doctrinal bulletins became too much for his true-blue WELS wife, so I took him off my list at his request. I understood the reaction. I knew friendly WELS pastors who stopped talking to me because I kept addressing the same doctrinal issues they avoided.
Later this layman wrote me to say their WELS congregation's staff went off to Willow Creek to be trained.
A fortune was spent on the building.
Everything changed at the church, which was now 100% church growthy.
I am not sure, but I think he was indicating in his note that he was leaving the Lutheran Church for good, perhaps going to an Eastern Orthodox church
Attendance had increased at their former congregation.
True, some congregations have driven away their Lutheran members and attracted some generic Reformed members. Nevertheless, the denomination's statistics look like Wall Street's on a bad day.
