Does Church Membership Matter?

Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us watch out for one another to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.”

The first church I served after I graduated seminary ran between 200 to 250 in worship on Sunday morning. But we had over 900 members on the roll. That means we had three times as many members missing on a typical Sunday than we had present. While some of those missing members were elderly and no longer able to attend, hundreds of them were simply missing in action. Some of those missing members were still in the community and would occasionally show up for Easter or Christmas services. But many we had not seen in years. I am not sure the FBI could have found half of our missing members! Yet they remained on our membership roll. I remember wondering why we just didn’t cross all those names off our roll.

Though at the time I would not have wanted to admit it, I suspect that the reason that we kept all those missing members on the role was because it sounded a whole lot better to say we had more than 900 members than to admit we only had 250. Years later I look back on that experience and realize that the goal of our church was not just to add names to the roll, it was to multiply Christ-followers through evangelism, discipleship and missions. Adding names to the roll did not accomplish that goal. For a name on a roll to have meaning and purpose, the individual represented by that name has to be really involved in the church and growing in their faith. Our church had a lot of names on a roll, but most of those names meant little to the life and vitality of that church or to accomplishing the mission God had given that church. As harsh as it may sound, those names were empty of meaning and value.

There are millions of people across America who have their names on the roll of a church but who do not attend with any degree of regularity. My encouragement to those who find themselves in such a situation is to return to your church, roll up your sleeves and become active. Not just active in the organization of the church, but active in fulfilling the mission of the church. Be the Christian you claim to be! My encouragement to those who are in leadership of a church is to ask yourselves if it is time to meet with your long-term inactive members to determine their real commitment to Christ and the mission of your church. If they are no longer committed to the mission of the church, remove their names from the roll. Not out of anger or spite, but out of integrity and honesty. Membership should mean something. But if we continue to carry more names on the roll who are not active than who are, we have devalued membership and made it mean little. We must fix this. It might make our churches smaller on paper, but is highly unlikely to reduce the number of people actually involved. In fact, I think it will increase the number of those who are involved because when inactive members are challenged to become active again, some of them will rise to the occasion and accept that challenge. And that is good for both the individual and the church.

Lord, help our connection to our church be meaningful both to the church and to us. Amen.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves at the Executive Director of the Baptist Convention of New England. He has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

The Value of Contextualization

 1 Corinthians 9:20-22 - To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win Jews; to those under the law, like one under the law—though I myself am not under the law—to win those under the law. To those who are without that law, like one without the law—not being without God’s law but within Christ’s law—to win those without the law. To the weak I became weak, in order to win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some.

I grew up in a city in the Midwest. As a teenager I moved to a small city in Virginia. After college I lived in a city in South Carolina. Since I had lived in a city most of my life, it was quite a culture shock when I moved to rural Vermont in 1993. It was a small village with less than 1,000 residents. We moved there to serve as missionaries with the North American Mission Board. We served a rural church with less than 20 members, which was struggling for survival.

It has been my custom for years to walk in the mornings and pray about what God is doing in my life. That first week of living in a rural area I struck out walking down the main street, which was also the only paved street in town. I did not get very far before I encountered a cow that had escaped from the pasture and was standing in the middle of the road. Having grown up in the city, I did not know quite what to do, so I froze in my tracks. My life flashed before my eyes. My heart raced with fear. Would this cow charge me? Would it trample me? Would it eat me? Surely this vicious creature was a killer cow!

I do not know how long I stood in the middle of the road looking at that cow, but someone drove by in their pickup truck and asked what I was doing. I replied that a killer cow had gotten loose and I did not know what to do. They looked at me, looked at the cow and laughed hysterically as they drove away. Eventually I realized that the poor creature was just a harmless old milk cow. I slowly eased past her and went on my way. I knew I was not in the city anymore!

To live successfully in a rural area, I had to adjust to the presence of cows in the middle of the road. I also had to adjust how I did ministry so that it fit my context. I learned to show up at the post office each morning at 9:30 AM when everyone came to get their mail. I could visit half the town in an hour. I learned that I was the pastor for the whole community, not just my 20 church members. As the community pastor I provided weddings, funerals, counseling and hospital visits for the entire community, even though many of them had little or no affiliation with our church. I learned how important it was to make a contribution to the annual 8th grade fundraiser. I learned not to wear a tie, as it made people think I was either a Mormon or a bill collector, neither of which were very welcome in that small rural village.

During the eight years I served that church, I learned a great many things about how to minister in a rural village. However, I never had to change the Gospel itself. The Gospel is always relevant to all cultures in all time periods and to all people groups. There is no other Gospel but the one found in the New Testament that begins with the sinfulness of mankind and ends with the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. But methods and programs used to communicate the Gospel are constantly changing. One generation might use flannelgraph and chalkboards, another generation might use video projectors and smart boards, but the message of the Gospel remains the same.

Since my fateful encounter with that killer cow so many years ago, I have learned to communicate the Gospel in a variety of ways as I have started churches and led evangelistic activities across New England. Each town is a little different, but in each one God has called a group of people to Himself. My ministry is to join God in His work and communicate His Gospel in a way that the called can hear and respond. When that happens, the Gospel goes forth and God is glorified, and His people rejoice, even if it looks differently than what we are used to.

Lord, help us learn to share the Gospel in ways those around us can understand. Amen.

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This devotional is from the book “Heavenly Mundane” by Dr. Terry W. Dorsett. Dr. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Called Up for Active Duty

Galatians 6:9 - And let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

The other day on Facebook a friend posted this cartoon. I don’t know who the creator of the cartoon is, so I can’t give him or her the credit he or she deserves. But the cartoon made me laugh and also made me want to cry all at the same time because it illustrated such amazing truth.

In far too many churches, a handful of people do all the work while the majority watch from the sidelines. Everyone wants the church to be there for them when they have a problem. But few want to do the work that keeps the church alive so that it can be there to help people in times of crisis. Greater numbers of Christians are “inactive” than ever before in American history.

But imagine how it would change churches if all Christians were called up to active duty! Imagine how many youth workers and Sunday School teachers and deacons and worship team members the church would have. Imagine the financial resources the church would have. Imagine how many soup kitchens, after school tutoring programs, homeless shelters, crisis pregnancy centers and adoption programs we could operate more effectively. If massive numbers of believers became reactivated in their faith, revival would come to America in a matter of weeks.

So what about us? Are we on the front line? Or are we hiding in the back hoping our draft number won’t come up? It’s time for all of God’s people to volunteer for active duty. A war is waging for the souls of men and women and we can’t afford to have anyone holding back. It’s time to serve!

Lord, let us not become weary in doing good but help us remain faithful in our service to You. Amen.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He has written a book about the spirit of offense that prevails in our current society. You can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Why I Joined a Denomination

Baptist Convention of New England 2015 Church Planting Breakfast

I have many fond memories of two churches I grew up in, one in Illinois when I was a child and the other in Virginia, where my family moved when I was a teenager. Those two churches shaped my spiritual growth and helped me understand my call to ministry and missions. But neither were part of a denomination. In fact, on more than one occasion I recall passionate sermons on why denominations were bad and how we should avoid churches connected to them. (One of those churches has since changed  their position on that issue and is now loosely connected to a denomination, but that is a subject for a different post.)

Growing up with a skewed view of denominations, it was with skepticism that I listened to one particular college professor who was also a bivocational pastor of a small church connected to the Southern Baptist Convention. He often talked about how his denomination enabled his church to do more than he had ever dreamed of in reaching both his community and the world for Christ. Regardless of my initial skepticism, after three years of classes with that professor, I began to rethink the whole denominational issue.

After a lot of thought and scripture study, I came to realize that the concept of denominations was great, basically a denomination is simply a group of churches working together accomplishing more than each could on their own. But what I continued to struggle with in my college days was how denominations were structured. Due to my firm belief in the local church as the primary spiritual institution through which God works, the idea that denominations controlled their churches by owning the church property, ordaining and assigning the pastors and requiring pastors to make vows of obedience to church hierarchy, was more than I could accept as biblical.

Before researching the subject adequately, I mistakenly thought that ALL denominations directly controlled their churches in these ways. After educating myself on the subject, I learned that there were a number of denominations who rejected such control mechanisms. In fact, I came to see that many denominations actually agreed with my position on local church autonomy, including the Southern Baptist Convention. When I graduated from seminary, weary of the isolationism that non-affiliated churches often immerse themselves in, I sought a position in churches connected to the Southern Baptist Convention. Not only did the SBC Baptist Faith and Message represent a conservative biblical view of theology, but their structure allows churches to be totally autonomous while also cooperating together to accomplish things they could not do on their own.

My connection to the Southern Baptist Convention has been a healthy one. After only three years of service to a SBC church in South Carolina, I was able to go to New England as a missionary. I now lead SBC work in New England through the Baptist Convention of New England. Who would have thought that a kid who grew up in "anti-denominational" churches would now be one of the leaders in a the largest evangelical denomination in America. Proof that God does have a sense of humor and can help us grow in understanding of biblical truth.

If your church is isolated and alone, instead of accepting the falsehood that all denominations are bad, do the research. You will learn that some denominations are indeed liberal. Some are indeed controlling. Some are not healthy. But there are a number that have remain faithful to the scriptures and have worked hard to balance local church autonomy with cooperative efforts. The Southern Baptist Convention is one of those. It is worthy of a second look. It is not perfect. No man-made organization is. But being isolated and alone as a non-affiliated church has its weaknesses too. For me, being connected to other churches of like faith and practice is vital to being part of God's plan for world redemption. I am proud to have become a Southern Baptist by choice, not tradition. I encourage others to do the research and make the same journey.


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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Building Good Relationships Between Church Plants and Sponsoring Churches

In my role as a church planting missionary, I encourage existing churches to sponsor new churches in nearby communities. The goal is to produce healthy communities of faith in areas underserved by vibrant churches. For this to work out well there must be a meaningful relationship between the sponsoring church and the daughter church. A great way to view this relationship is to use the analogy of parents raising children. Parents provide for and protect their young while teaching them to make good choices and develop into responsible adults. There are always some disagreements along the way, perhaps even strong ones, but when done correctly, it is a beautiful experience for all involved. The same is true in regards to relationships existing churches and daughter churches.

One of the most essential keys to healthy relationships between sponsor churches and their missions is good communication. The pastors of the two groups should meet often for prayer, encouragement, and planning. In many cases this will be weekly, or bi-weekly, especially at first. As time passes, it might shift to monthly, but rarely will a great relationship be maintained with less than that. Though it is possible to do this via phone or Skype when schedules get busy, face to face meetings are always preferred.

In addition to good communication between the leaders, the rest of the congregation must understanding the vision and purpose of the new congregation. This can be done in a variety of ways but often includes the pastor of the new church making presentations to the existing church about the plans, timetables and focus of the new work. It may also include the mission pastor preaching several times in the mother church before starting services in the new church. The goal is for the existing church to be fully committed to the new work.

There are times when the new church will share a facility with an existing church. This is particularly likely when there is a language or cultural group in the same town as the sponsoring church, but for which the sponsoring church is not equipped to reach. For example, if the existing church is Spanish speaking but is concerned about the lack of churches that offer services in Creole, they may start a Haitian congregation and allow it to use their building so that two completely different congregations are utilizing the same facility. When a building is shared, communication becomes even more important. Scheduling of rooms, sharing of the cost of utilities, sharing of volunteers for cleaning the building or having workdays to maintain the building all require good communication between the two congregations. Each group will have to accept some level of inconvenience in order for the other group to be effective, but good communication will allow both bodies to accomplish their mission.

Even when a building is not shared, there will almost certainly be some sharing of finances. Often the sponsoring church provides a significant portion of the new church's income, especially in the first few months. They may even handle the money, keep the books and sign the checks, all depending on the situation and what kind of leaders God brings to the new church. Good communication is needed to work out the logistics of this, but it can be an amazing picture of the body of Christ when diverse people pool their resources for kingdom expansion.

Many church planters say that the most important part of their relationship with their sponsoring church is the friendships forged between the leaders and the members of each congregation. Those friendships often endure long after the new church has become self-sustaining and the formal sponsorship has ended.

Sponsoring a new church is a lot work, but many pastors can attest that it is also a faith growing and vision stretching time in the life of the sponsoring church. If you are interested in sponsoring a church, contact the leadership in your denomination. If your denomination is not involved in church planting, or your church is not connected to a denomination, you can still be involved in church planting by becoming a partner church with someone else’s church plant. Many sponsoring churches are not able to handle everything for their daughter church. That creates room for other churches to help in smaller, but significant ways. As churches work together, new communities of faith are planted and lost people come to faith in Christ. It sounds very much like the New Testament!

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Terry Dorsett has been a church planter and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. Find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Author Interview with Linda Bonney Olin

As my regular readers know, from time to time I interview Christian authors on my blog who I believe have something unique to say to our culture. I met Linda Bonney Olin through an online writer's group I am part of. She has a unique approach to helping people understand what God is trying to say to them. I recently interviewed her and you will find that interview below.

Terry: Linda, in between raising two kids, working outside the home, and helping your husband run a farm, somehow you have found time to serve as a lay speaker in the United Methodist Church and write in a wide variety of genres. What drives you to write and speak?

Linda: I began simply to fill a need. I became certified as a lay speaker in 1997 in order to conduct

worship services when the pastor of my small rural church was away and also to present innovative programs for a bit of variety. I occasionally wrote skits and scripted conversations for my son and his puppet pal. While leading adult Sunday school classes and special programs for my congregation and other local churches, I developed Bible studies, longer dramas, and a little music.

A turning point came in 2007. I prayed my heart’s desire to write something that would have eternal impact, like the wonderful hymns of Charles Wesley and Fanny Crosby. I didn’t ask for fame or fortune, or even publication, but only for the Lord to speak through my writing to someone who needed to hear his message. He agreed, providing I would write according to the Holy Spirit’s daily leading and put his direction ahead of human counsel and my own bright ideas. Who wouldn’t jump at a partnership like that? I retired from my management job and trusted God to meet our financial needs, which was no small leap of faith with the uncertainties of farm income.

Admittedly, I haven’t always been 100% faithful to my end of the bargain, but the Lord graciously prods me back on track when I forget that bit about human counsel and bright ideas. Meanwhile, he has fulfilled his promises many times over, helping me produce hymns, devotions, inspirational poems, Bible studies, blog posts, and a little fiction for publication. A nonfiction how-to book about personal puppet ministry is completed too, waiting for the Holy Spirit to point me to the right publisher. He always guides me to the information I need to carry out his assignments. And I’ve had the pleasure of using that knowledge to help other authors with their book projects too.

Terry: One of the books you wrote is entitled Giving It Up for Lent. It comes as both a workbook and a leader’s guide. I was moved when I read it. Tell us about this particular book.

Linda: That project originated with a weekly supper and study series put on during Lent by several local churches. The idea was to refresh the old tradition of giving something up for Lent, by challenging participants to make significant sacrifices of time, talent, or treasure that would bring glory to God and benefit to others, instead of token “selfish sacrifices” like giving up candy to lose weight. As my church’s representative on the program committee, I wrote and presented the introductory discussion of sacrifices described in the Bible and added the dramatic comedy The Sacrifice Support Group to lighten up the topic a bit.

The play depicts a mixed bag of church characters. In Act One (which ended the first weekly session of the series), they are challenged by their pastor to make those God-serving Lenten sacrifices. Knowing how tough it will be to stick to their sacrificial plans, they form a mutual support group. In Act Two (presented in the final session) they meet to discuss their sacrifice experiences; they all resolve to make their sacrifices an ongoing part of their lives. The play is very simple to put on. In fact, at the original Lenten program I drafted "actors" and handed out scripts during supper; we performed it as Readers Theatre with no rehearsal at all.

The series went over so well that it begged to be shared. I published the drama script of The Sacrifice Support Group as a standalone book and later published Giving It Up for Lent as the full study package.

Terry: Who do you hope will benefit the most from this book and why?

Linda: The obvious answer is church groups who want a fun, potentially life-changing study. More than that, though, the study encourages Christians to adopt spiritual disciplines that glorify God, which is the biggest thing, and do good for our families and communities. The lasting benefit can be enormous, depending on the choices readers make.

Terry: Can you share with us 2-3 key things you hope people will gain from the materials you write?

 

Linda: First, I hope and believe that God will use my work to touch people in ways that have eternal significance. In accordance with my covenant, I leave it up to God what form that significance will take and who will be the target. He might bring a reader to salvation through his revelation of Jesus Christ in my work. He might simply deliver much-needed comfort or a kick in the pants, or anything in between. Some people use my writing in ways I never expected. Non-singers, for instance, meditate on the lyrics and Bible verses in my first book, Songs for the Lord, in their personal devotions, even without the music. Isn’t that cool?

Second, sometimes my dramas touch upon matters that are disputed between Christians of different faith traditions. I hope readers will approach those—and all my work, really—with an attitude of goodwill so they can receive the deeper faith and understanding the Lord has in store for them. For example, not every church observes the season of Lent the way I'm accustomed to. But every Christian can benefit from considering the discipline of sacrifice, whether during the weeks leading up to Christ’s sacrifice on the cross or any other time. So Giving It Up for Lent has value for everyone, and I hope the folks who don’t recognize Lent won’t bypass the book for that reason.

Third, I pray that those who sing my hymns and perform my dramas will be blessed as richly as I have been by the intimate presence of my Holy GhostWriter through "my" words.

Terry: If you could offer one piece of advice to other aspiring Christian writers, what would it be?

Linda: Only one? Ha! I have a whole list!

1. Follow the Lord’s plan for your writing, just as you do for any other aspect of your life. He knows your unique voice and the audience who needs to hear it.
2. As the Bible often says, “Fear not!” Do not be intimidated by what other people say “real” writers do, like writing a minimum number of hours every day. And don’t worry that your crummy first efforts will displease God. Do you think he’d prefer you to waste his gifts and ignore his invitation to bless readers on his behalf? Of course not. So pray, sit your behind in the chair, and let the words flow onto paper or keyboard.
3. Then study the craft of writing, so you can give the Lord and the world a quality product. Unless God’s plan for you included a quill pen that miraculously moves across the paper by itself, be willing to revise and refine your writing and have it edited and proofread.
4. Join a local writers group where you can read your work to knowledgeable readers. Resolve to cheerfully endure the pain of unfavorable comments (we all get them and they can hurt). Listen to the reader’s point of view, instead of trying to talk her around to your way of thinking. Later, after the adrenaline drains off, consider how her input might make your work stronger. Besides giving me honest critiques and valuable suggestions, my local writers group is a posse of kindred spirits who encourage me when things aren’t going well and rejoice with me in times of victory.
5. Attend a Christian writers conference. I’ve attended Montrose Christian Writers Conference almost every year since 2007, the last time as a faculty member. The knowledge, the peer support group, and the industry contacts I’ve acquired there are priceless.
6. If you are itching to write a 300-page tome, fine; but consider cutting your teeth on smaller bites. There are lots of opportunities for short pieces in the Christian market, especially if you are willing to contribute your work for ministry instead of money. Writing short devotions, poems, and hymn texts in between spells of work on a book has helped me develop writing skill, given me the satisfaction of some completed projects, and built my publishing credits in magazines, devotionals, and anthologies.
7. When rejection letters roll in (I could start an impressive origami collection with mine), do not fall prey to discouragement. Revise the piece, have it edited and proofread if you previously neglected that step, find another publisher whose profile your work fits, make sure you are following the publisher’s writers guidelines, and resubmit. Pray and persevere.

Books and blogs offer a ton more of useful advice for Christian writers.

Terry: Where can people find your books and learn more about you and your work?

Linda: Everyone is invited to my Faith Songs web site at LindaBonneyOlin.com. Besides the book pages, check out all my resources for ministry, music, writing, and more. In the Audio section, you can hear the melodies of the songs in Transformed: 5 Resurrection Dramas and Songs for the Lord.

Or you can go directly to my Author Page onAmazon. 

And I’m active on Facebook—the only Linda Bonney Olin there. Stop in and say hi.

Terry, thanks very much for inviting me to your blog. I’ve enjoyed your books, and I’m impressed with the frank but respectful conversations you have here.

Terry: Linda, it was great to have you with us on the blog today. I also want my regular readers to know that Linda loves to interact with others about her ideas and writings. So if something she said in this interview sparks an idea, feel free to post it in a comment below and she will do her best to interact with you.

Is Hypocricy a Legitimate Reason to Avoid Church? - Guest Post by David Wesley Gould

It is not uncommon for people to say that they don't go to church because of the hypocrites.

But how many know what an actual hypocrite is? This is a key element to the discussion. It can also help us have a better understanding of the state of the Church, and why people don't join with us in becoming all God designed us to be. One may think the church must be overrun with hypocrites. But is that true? And are hypocrites keeping people away from the church?

Some people accuse church people of acting one way at church, and another way when they are other places. That is probably true to a great degree. Yet, I would say that these accusers also act differently when they visit a church than when they are at the local bar. Hmmm.

Most Christians will admit to not being perfect. They will claim that by the grace of God, they aren't who they once were, but they also are not who they will become. They sometimes miss the mark when following Jesus. They have trusted Christ for salvation, but their actions don't always measure up. So while they claim one thing, you may at some point in the day catch them doing something else.

Let me just say, that is not being a hypocrite. If that person keeps you from church, you don't really understand what it means to be a Christian.

Now, there are people who claim to be Christians, but are only faking it, and using the name to gain an advantage. They do what Christian people do, but there is no true relationship with God, and they are only play-acting in order to fool people. In fact, that is the basic meaning of the word we translate ‘hypocrite’. The Bible speaks of hypocrites.

Υποκριτής [hupokritēs] - Greek - an actor under an assumed character (stage player)  - hypocrite.

Back in the day, an actor would hold up various masks to portray different characters. So to be a villain, he would place one mask over his face. To portray a hero, he would hold up a different mask. One person could be multiple characters. That is literally a hypocrite. And it is from this idea that we get our word ‘hypocrite’… one who wears a mask.

In the church, no one is an accidental hypocrite. A hypocrite is a person who is intentionally trying to deceive. They exist, but most people who are accused of being a hypocrite are not trying to mislead others.

The problem is, in the church, a hypocrite sometimes looks more like a real Christian than does a true growing Christian who happens to be struggling. So when you see a person once or twice, there is basically no way for you to know if they are a hypocrite, or a genuine Christian who is simply a stumbling disciple. That is one reason I don't buy into the "I don't go to church because of the hypocrites” objection.

Frankly, God wants to save hypocrites just like he wants to save prostitutes, druggies, liars, and gossips. The same people who complain because of the hypocrites in churches also complain when there are no others who need God. Wait… What?!?

So while there are certainly hypocrites who go to church, there aren't enough to legitimately keep you away. A person isn't a hypocrite just because they struggle and are tripped up in their Christian walk. The last thing that person needs is an outside spectator calling them a hypocrite.

God has a way of weeding out hypocrites. He also has a way of saving them. It is through the church. Don't let the enemy trick you out of God's gift of the Church.

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David W. Gould is ordained in the Wesleyan Church. He has pastored an inner city church in Nashville, TN and also served in various capacities at the District level. He currently writes and speaks on church and culture issues, and preaches in revival settings. David is also very involved in compassion-based ministries and has spent much of the last decade working with ministries to the homeless and poor.

Lower the Lights in Order to Raise the Voices

Yesterday I had the honor of worshipping in two different churches. Both of them are focused on reaching young adults. The two services were quite similar in nature. Both happened on college campuses. Students made up the majority of both congregations. Both churches had young pastors.

One of the services featured a portion of the service that was done by candlelight, since it had a Christmas emphasis. I noticed something remarkable when the lights were turned off in preparation for the candlelit portion of the service. The volume of the voices singing suddenly increased significantly.

Though students in both churches sang during the worship portion of the services, when the lights went off, they sang much more robustly. Perhaps the students felt more self-conscious when the lights were on, not wanting anyone to see them singing? If so, then clearly the darkness allowed them to express their musical passion more fully than they did when the lights were on. Perhaps all the other distractions in the room went away when the lights were out and they were simply able to focus more? Clearly something happened that allowed the students to focus more clearly in a dark room.

Though I do not want to read too much into one experience, perhaps this is something that we should think about in our churches. If a darker room with fewer distractions allows congregants to worship better, then we should consider lowering the lights and raising our voices to the King of Light.

Spiritual DNA

After years of ministering in a wide variety of situations, I have observed that the initial environment in which a person comes to faith often remains their primary preferred religious experience. For example, I have a friend who came to faith in a house church. He was drawn to the close knit fellowship and the sense of family. Though he no longer attends a house church, he is still active in a small congregation that has a close knit family feel. At least one time since I have known him, he switched churches because the church he was active in got “too big.” I have several friends who came to know the Lord during the Jesus Movement. That movement was known for its distrust in “organized religion” and a more organic approach to faith. That movement also tended to like folk music. Most of my friends who came to know Christ in that movement still prefer a “folk” sound to their worship and often refuse to “join” a church even though they may attend it for years and be very active in it. They still struggle to see the value in “joining the organization.” Then there is this older couple I know that came to faith in a highly structured church that used a strong liturgy. Though they have changed denominations because the church they grew up in has abandoned biblical theology, they still sought out a church that recites the Lord’s Prayer every week and celebrates communion at most services. In their minds, it just is not “church” if a service does not have those things. In each case, my friends have pretty much remained in the same type of environment in which they came to faith. Though this was often NOT the church of their childhood, it normally is the church in which they found real faith in Christ. Those early days of Christian discipleship are important in forming our spiritual DNA. And when various groups come together for a larger worship experience, they bring these aspects of faith with them.

I am enriched by seeing all the various ways in which people can worship and  still relate to each other as Christians. Though the Gospel never changes and biblical truth is the same for all, the various aspects of church, such as liturgy, music style and local church polity are different. Instead of being fearful of those differences, we should celebrate them. The person who prefers the high church can learn something from the close knit house church. The house church can learn something from the liturgy. The 60 year old Christian hippie can teach something to the 20 year old Christian hipster and the hipster can teach something to the 60 year old man at church who still sports a pony tail.

If we keep our focus on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, and we keep our learning based on the Bible instead of man-made distinctives, we can worship, fellowship and serve with those who look at things from a different perspective than we do and be enriched by it.

For more devotionals like this one, consider Touching the Footprints of Jesus. 

Howdy Doody Time – Part Two

In my previous post I shared how churches that have a greeting time during the worship service as a way of demonstrating warmth and friendliness actually may be demonstrating the exact opposite. You can read that post here. In this post I want to share some other reasons why churches might want to reconsider if it is appropriate to have such a greeting time, which I jokingly refer to as “Howdy Doody” time.

Since Howdy Doody time is often placed in the middle of the worship service, in my experience it takes the focus off of the worship of God and places it on the fellowship of people. While fellowship between believers is important, it should never take the place of the worship of God. If a church really wants to have a fellowship time as part of their order of service, it should be done in such a way that it does not interrupt the flow of worship. For example, I was once in a large church in New Mexico that had a fellowship time right at the end of the service. After the closing prayer the worship leader asked everyone to shake hands with five other people before they left and said that two of them had to be people you did not know. The congregation, which was obviously used to that, did that very thing and I recall it feeling very authentic and appropriate, much better than doing it during the chorus of one of the songs sung during the middle of the worship service. It is important that nothing break the flow of worship once it starts. In the words of one worship leader I know, “Once you go vertical; do not go horizontal again until the service is over.”

Another challenge with Howdy Doody time is that it takes up valuable time, which in some time conscious churches is more of an issue than others. For example, not long ago I was the guest pastor at a rural church and they had a fellowship time right before the sermon. I spoke there several times and it was always awkward as I stood in the pulpit and waited for people to finish. On one particular Sunday one fellow just kept talking and talking and talking. Everyone else was in their seat and I was standing in the pulpit waiting, and he just kept on chatting with his friend in the aisle. Since I was only a guest speaker, I was not quite sure what to do. Finally one of the deacons said something and the fellow realized he was holding up the service. When I asked about it afterwards, I was told it that was a frequent occurrence from that particular person. It seems unfair for the pastor to have to cut his sermon short, or to have to listen to complaints about the service running long, because a handful of people lack the ability to keep appropriate boundaries during Howdy Doody time. It is better to move the fellowship to some other place in the order of service, such as the end, so that it does not take time away from the worship of God or the preaching of His Word.

Finally, it concerns me that sometimes Howdy Doody time simply becomes a time for gossip about who is wearing what and who did what last week. Since gossip is rarely positive, and often sinful, having a Howdy Doody time during the worship service may actually be encouraging sin and perhaps stirring up anger right in the middle of what is supposed to be a sacred time of worship before God. Why in the world would we want to encourage that?

After writing my last post, I heard from a few people who said that their church had a Howdy Doody time that was done right. While I applaud that handful that may be doing it right, I have yet to be in a church that was doing it right. I fear that we often only think we are doing it right because it feels good to us. Do our visitors think we are doing it right? Does God think we are doing it right? Perhaps we should consider those questions in our determination of whether Howdy Doody time fits into a God-honoring worship service or not.