USA Today published an article this morning about the wave of anger building over gas prices in the US. It’s nothing new. We experienced the same high prices last summer which were aided by Hurricane Katrina. Last year, Wal-Mart reported their customer base being affected by the high gas prices, and many people dramatically changed their lifestyle to cope with the rising costs. Did last year’s pricing influx jar society enough to get them prepared for this year’s surge or will we continue to see people making dramatic changes to cope with this summer’s gas prices?

According to a survey by USA Today and Gallup Poll, “more than 70% of respondents said they would make adjustments in their daily life if gas prices remain high.”

Could this affect the church? Potentially. 33% said they would cut back on driving, and 9% said they would stay at home. Of course, at this point, it is all talk. There are a good number of factors involved in the “if” and “how” and “to what extent” rising gas prices will affect each church. I recall hearing about a church last year that gave away gas cards as prizes during a special event.

How did gas prices affect your ministry last year? Have you or do you plan on doing anything special like gas card prizes in response to gas prices? Feel free to share your thoughts by posting a comment below.