I have recently been reading an excellent book by Thom Rainer, Break Out Churches. How churches broke out of decline and became vibrant. He points out in his book, that any one church cannot be excellent in all things - that churches need to specialize to create focus so that they do a few things really well. It reminded me of a illustration I heard. How many knobs does an air plane pilot need to manage? All of them.
So, there is this difficulty -- individual congregations need to specialize, but the needs of a community mean that we need to do it all. I think it is time for the church to awake, join and deliberately meet needs across the community!
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Amen! You mean we shouldn't do it the same way we have been doing it for the last 100 years...!
But that would mean change...we'd have to give up our pews, and "profets" chairs and maybe even start using a few chorus' oh my, oh my! How could we do that? And those young people...why do we want them to join again.
Not trying to be insulting here. I am simply making fun of the mindset so common in my home region, though at times I struggle with this too.
I attend a church populated mostly by people from out the area because I dislike the mindset. Made the rude discovery that we have our own quirks and frankly still get stuck in ruts.
IMO
Many churches are locked in bureaucracy - they have a difficult time doing new things. This makes it difficult to empower people.
Lisa said:
Whatever happend to individual congregations getting together, recognizing thier seperate calings and then woking together to make the whole thing happen.
Whatever happend to individual congregations getting together, recognizing thier seperate calings and then woking together to make the whole thing happen.
As a famous philosopher once said The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one... I have a friend who was once the chaplain at a Military base and raised money and donations OFF THE BASE for the surrounding community that really needed it the most. He was supposed to go through channels as written in the military code of conduct however he wasn't able to get the Commandant's approval and he went at it alone. He was subsequently forced into early retirement....It was a judgement call and he lost even though he was probably right..
I know the Catholic Church switched from Latin to English which was more user friendly but that decision wasn't favored by many in the Heirarchy. So what keeps a Church that teaches from the Bible on course with the needs of a community...YOU SAID IT " FLEXIBILITY " How far can you go, however, without watering down the real messages that are written in the Bible...?
In following this thread of conversations, I am reminded of something I came to in my thinking about a year ago. Churches comprise the body of Christ. Meaning that, for every function and organ you find in a physical body, you can equate each to spiritual functions within Jesus' church body. I believe this can happen simultaneously on both micro and macro levels. Two examples: (1) Each individual church is comprised of talents and functions for a complete functioning body within itself. (2) Churches across regional areas and nations each function as parts of a complete body related to the larger area.
There are churches who are evangelistic in the front of the battle, churches who are prayer warriors, churches who are stand-in-the-gap intercessors, churches who are supply lines for the trenches, churches who are hospitals for the wounded, churches who are refuges like the OT refuge cities, churches who are builders after the battle, and so on and so on.
I believe the sadest aspect to all of this is, there are VERY FEW churches who actually know, or have bothered to find out, what their "divine calling" and "appointment" is in the global Body of Christ, as well as too many individual members who have not bothered to find out what their unique function(s) are within their singular church.
I also believe that when you step back and see all this from God's perspective, that all fits in Ephesians 4:11 and well as the additional gifts that Corinthians adds to the list.
Dave
Our church specializes in the youth, and the ones the rest of society has given up on. The only problem with a church that specializes in youth and young people...is that you do not have alot of "giving units" in the church. So...there is not always the finances there. Although I have to say--God has provided more than enough!
And the funny thing, is that a few hours ago I said to a friend on the phone....how are we all going to fit our feet in the same shoe. *grin*
Replies
But that would mean change...we'd have to give up our pews, and "profets" chairs and maybe even start using a few chorus' oh my, oh my! How could we do that? And those young people...why do we want them to join again.
Not trying to be insulting here. I am simply making fun of the mindset so common in my home region, though at times I struggle with this too.
I attend a church populated mostly by people from out the area because I dislike the mindset. Made the rude discovery that we have our own quirks and frankly still get stuck in ruts.
Many churches are locked in bureaucracy - they have a difficult time doing new things. This makes it difficult to empower people.
Lisa said:
Ah Ha! Rob is a Trekkie!
There are churches who are evangelistic in the front of the battle, churches who are prayer warriors, churches who are stand-in-the-gap intercessors, churches who are supply lines for the trenches, churches who are hospitals for the wounded, churches who are refuges like the OT refuge cities, churches who are builders after the battle, and so on and so on.
I believe the sadest aspect to all of this is, there are VERY FEW churches who actually know, or have bothered to find out, what their "divine calling" and "appointment" is in the global Body of Christ, as well as too many individual members who have not bothered to find out what their unique function(s) are within their singular church.
I also believe that when you step back and see all this from God's perspective, that all fits in Ephesians 4:11 and well as the additional gifts that Corinthians adds to the list.
Dave
And the funny thing, is that a few hours ago I said to a friend on the phone....how are we all going to fit our feet in the same shoe. *grin*