Most United
Methodist Churches spend less each year on evangelism and faith sharing than
they do on paper cups and plates. Jesus said that “where your treasure is,
there is your heart also.” What, then, does this say about the state of the
hearts of our churches? It simply says that sharing our faith with those
outside the walls of our church buildings is of little importance to us. How
ironic when the central mission of the Church is to “go make disciples” that we
have abandoned resourcing the area from which disciples are made. We have cut
off the blood supply to the heart of our congregations and wonder why they are
developing heart disease.
Here is a basic premise to struggle
with:
The purpose of
the Church is to reach those outside the Church.
If we fail to
reach those outside the Church then we cease being the Church.
To put it
another way, what if McDonalds, whose obvious purpose is to sell food, began
focusing on keeping its employees busy and happy doing maintenance on their
facilities, providing them with recreational options and challenging them to
become better people while abandoning the areas of customer service and food
sales. Eventually their customer base would shrink, people would quit coming in
and those employees would be without a place to go to work because the
restaurant would close, leaving them unemployed.
In local churches all over our
country, their focus has shifted from reaching those who are not connected to
Christ to a kind of inward looking, self-serving focus. They program enrichment
and recreational activities to serve those already connected with little if any
thought to reach those outside their walls. Their practices and rituals are so
confusing that unless one has been part of the system for years, they leave you
feeling bewildered and confused when you should be focused on worshipping God.
Most of our churches hold to the philosophy that if the people in their
community wanted to come to church, they know where the church is and when it
meets, regardless of whether that most basic information is even on the sign
out front. Little effort is made to accommodate those who haven’t been in
church for years and have little or no understanding of the practices and
rituals of the faith.
An example I often use to
demonstrate this is an experience I had as a young pastor. I was asked to
preach one Sunday morning in a rural church in northern North Carolina. This
traditional United Methodist church was ideally set upon a hill in the midst of
beautiful rolling farm land. As worship began I was handed a bulletin and took
my place along side the Lay Leader who was leading worship that day in the
absence of the pastor. When it came time for the congregation to recite the
Apostle’s Creed, rather than facing the Cross as I had been taught to do, they
turned their backs to the platform and faced the rear of the church. I was
utterly confused. The rest of the worship service proceeded without further
incidence but I could hardly wait to ask my host why the congregation turned
their backs to the cross to recite the Creed. He explained that years ago,
before the Creed was included in the hymnal, they used to have a large copy of
it hanging from the balcony railing. In order to read it, the congregation
would turn and face the banner and read it aloud together. Despite the fact
that it was now included in the hymnal and that the banner had long been
removed, the congregation continued to face the rear of the sanctuary when the
Creed was recited. Imagine how odd this would seem to a first time guest who,
probably sitting in the back of the sanctuary, suddenly had the entire
congregation turning to face them and reciting a theological diatribe. In
essence this congregation continued a practice that was long obsolete only
because they had always done so.
Many churches have also forgotten
that their central purpose is to reach those outside of their walls because for
years evangelism was a dirty word associated with crying television preachers
and over-exuberant door-knockers taking false surveys asking questions about
your imminent death and eventual destination. Mainline churches sputtered along
in a fog of denial that clouded the realization that their churches were
loosing literally millions to other churches, or worse, to a complete lack of
faith all together. An entire generation is coming of age without the benefits
of orthodox faith formation, teachings of the Church or the valuing of
Christian tradition. They are embracing cafeteria versions of spirituality that
combine Eastern mysticisms, Buddhism, the New Age Movement and any other
self-gratifying spiritual practices fresh off the shelves of Barnes &
Nobles that affirms whatever experience allows them to alleviate their
conscience and fill the spiritual void that is within them.
What then is
the answer? What can your church, or my church, do to reverse decades of
decline? We need to restore the hearts of our congregations. To help them
realize that they are the hope for a world separated from Christ. Your church,
with all of its shortcomings and limitations, is a conduit of the Holy Spirit
designed to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a lost, disconnected and dying
world. The answer is not with another
program, or another pastor. The answer is with you, where you are, doing what
you can. It may not be grand or glorious, but it can be faithful. First,
however, you must get ready. This workbook is designed to help you engage in
the process of the recesitation of your church’s heart. Here are the key
points:
PREPARE
Prepare for tomorrow
Realize the potential
Embrace past success
Paint the picture of God's future
Assess assets and ministries
Resource responsibly
Encourage constantly and
consistently
Each area is one part of the
process. This process is meant to be a systemic approach, that is, each area is
dependent and interdependent upon the others to achieve renewal of your
congregations heart focus. You are the expert of your local setting. You will
have to rely upon your understanding of the indigenous peoples, traditions,
customs and rituals to help guide you in making these heart adjustments. Just
like every patient is different, so every congregation is different. Use the steps
as a guideline to help you focus and evaluate and then begin to make the needed
changes. Remember, it has taken years for most of these churches to get in the
condition that they are in, it may take years of “therapy” for them to have
their hearts restored. Do not be discouraged. The key to success is in
persistence, not speed. I will spend some time on each area over the next few weeks, its time to prepare for God's move!
