Monday, January 3, 2011

Formulas are Great for Chemistry Class, But For Church...?

     I saw this video the other day and I was simultaneously disturbed, humored, offended, challenged, and entertained. So, of course, I thought I would share it with all of you. So, watch it and then we'll talk.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys4Nx0rNlAM



    Please understand up front, I am not one to complain and harp on the problem with church. I think that's covered in great detail on other blogs. Let me say, I love my church. I love the heart behind what we do. I know all of us reading this who are involved in church planning of any sort have good motives and want what's best. I am for the most part a very positive person and don't want this to become a negative church-bashing forum. I do, however, want to challenge us to rethink what we all have come to know (and love) about church. Now the video above was actually made by a church. North Point Community Church put this out for the same reason I'm writing about it. I have a great deal of respect for Andy Stanley, Senior Pastor at North Point, and all that he's done in his church.  This topic has actually been stirring in my mind and heart for many, many years but now I have a visual, tangible representation of my thoughts in this video. 


     I am, admittedly, part of the problem. But I would love to be in on the solution end of this. So what is the solution? Do we even need a solution? Is what we are doing "broken"? I think on the one hand how human beings are largely creatures of habit and like predictability. Consider the way we relate to God. It's pretty predictable. I think about the way I have prayed nearly my entire life. Just lately I've begun to realize that prayer is an ongoing conversation, not so much an isolated event during the day. If we are truly in "relationship" with God, then why do we keep having the same, almost word-for-word, Mad-Libs type of conversations with Him day in and day out: "Father, thank you for this day, thank you for my (fill in the blank-could be kids, family, job, house, food), help us to have a good (again, fill in the blank- could be lunch, day, vacation, church service) and watch over us today (a vital staple of most prayers). Amen." If my husband spoke in a rushed, formulaic manner every time he spoke to me I think after a while I would prefer him not to talk to me at all. But then again, I am human and bestow far, far less grace on those around me in comparison with our loving God who, like a good parent can overlook the stumbling, infantile speech and actions of us, His children and I am grateful for that! But the point is, I wonder as we plan out our church services and order our Christian lives and disciplines, like prayer, what God does think. I'm sure for the most part, like I said, that He looks at the heart and knows we mean well. But are we really doing all that we can to bring Him the glory and praise He deserves? I'm honestly asking this. This is not a rhetorical question kind of blog here. I am really wrestling with these ideas right now. Does church, as it is currently "produced" work? Are we making things more difficult and more structured than they need to be or on the contrary, do we need more structure and creativity in our services? What would Jesus himself think if He walked into our churches on a Sunday morning? Some suggest that we not have regular organized services at all, but instead, go out into the world and minister to the needs we find. Hebrews 10 gives a clear indication that we are to gather together, but the manner and frequency of gathering is pretty vague. 


19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.


     I feel like it's largely a cultural decision about the way church is carried out, but it's clear that we are to gather together and create an equipping environment of encouragement and love. That's the crucial aspect and the rest of the stuff we do would just be the details, but I feel like from the video that the details matter. A lot. The details say so much about who Christians are and ultimately reveal God to the rest of the world. 


    So what about the unchurched? Please, any friends of mine reading this who do not currently attend a church, for whatever reason- your input in this would be beyond valuable in this discussion. Are we, in our best efforts to program with the unchurched in mind, actually creating barriers for the very people we're trying to reach? Are our churches a place where they can both feel welcome and comfortable, but at the same time feel the presence of a God who loves them? I can honestly say that I think my church, Lancaster Community Church is far more purposed about creating an environment where these things happen than most. It's what drew us there and what keeps us there.  A lot of thought, prayer, and time go in to creating the way we "do church". I just wonder, respectfully, what we can do to break beyond the cookie cutter type of service that the video describes.  I am beginning to challenge myself, in the small role we play as worship leaders, what we can do to inject some change and creativity. My brother Shawn, our fabulous drummer, always jokes about the songs we do because the third verse always has to drop way down volume-wise and then build to this giant, rapturous crescendo. Though effective, it's very predictable and has become routine. But I don't know what to do about it. I'm afraid this blog offers more questions than answers, but it's what was on my heart today. If anyone wants to open this up and have some dialogue, let's begin by commenting below. Maybe we all just need to sit down and have an open and honest conversation about church-how God sees it, how we see it, and how the people we dearly love who will not walk through our doors see it. I think only then can we begin to move beyond the formula into the realm of real worship, real change, and real encounters with the living God. I think the worst thing that can happen is if we watch the video, do a cringe/laugh combination, and then go marching into church next Sunday and carry out what we watched. A favorite quote of mine is "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten." This applies so well to this topic. Maybe this is too much to digest on a Monday, especially a Monday after a long vacation! I've been struggling since I watched it last week and could use some insight and some solutions. Let's imagine together! 

2 comments:

  1. You should have seen the discussion of this video on Vimeo. North Point hasn't publicly announced why they created this video but having experienced enough of their innovation, I bet part of it was to challenge their teams and partner churches not to fall into a formulaic pattern.

    They constantly challenge, refine, rethink, and consider carefully what they do. Although they create great environments for the unchurched, their big metric is how many people they connect in small groups. This forces them to consider how to move people beyond big church and to make deeper spiritual commitments.

    In fact, it seems that every other year Andy asks all the Christians who have been there for a couple of years and have no intent to serve strategically to find another church. Reminds of the some of the boldness Jesus displayed at times.

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  2. I have visited North Point a few times for various Passion conferences, including Facedown (my face is on the DVD like 2 times! Score!), and we went to Thirsty a couple times. I've heard Andy Stanley speak at each of those conferences and I think he's really got a lot going for him. I wondered as I watched the video, what kinds of things NPCC did to break past the redundancy that is Sunday morning. I'm sure they still have an organized service with similar elements from week to week, but I was curious about what changes they have adopted to mix things up a bit and also what planning process they employ to come up with creative ideas for their services. Anyone know??

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