"Is the Church Missing the Point?"

Okay, friends, back to the book! Today’s thoughts are taken once again from Reggie McNeal’s book, The Present Future. Remember, I am sharing thoughts from the book that struck a chord with me, personally. I am interested in hearing what some of you might think about these issues as well.

Reggie makes a very interesting observation in his book. He says, “Church leaders seem unable to grasp this simple implication of the new world – people outside the church think church is for church people, not for them” (pg.10). Later he would make this comment, "In North America the invitation to become a Christian has become largely an invitation to convert to the church” (pg.11). Have we as a church missed the point? I wonder at times if we have become so over-focused on doing church right, that we have missed out on being the right kind of church.

Let me explain. All of my life I have grown up in the same church. The whole time I have watched many churches in my fellowship squabble over the “right” way to do church. Some of these discussions have become so intense, that men and women who claim to love and serve God have become some of the most unlovable people and said some of the most ungodly things. Wasn’t it Jesus who said, “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (Jn. 13:35)? I mean seriously, what message are we sending the un-churched around us when we fight like this amongst ourselves? I will tell you what I have been hearing. “Come and join our church because we are the ones that do church right?” But again, I come back to a strong point that I believe, as my grandma used to say, gets stuck in our craw every time we try to swallow. I believe Jesus gave us a mission to be the church, not do church!

Sometimes I believe we are so busy “doing” church that we miss out on the golden opportunities to be the church. What if, instead of fighting about how to do church, we were in the community fixing houses, fixing cars, mowing lawns, raking leaves, painting fences, helping people move in or out, picking up trash, supporting our local schools, etc.? What if, instead of fighting over our church service that we expect people to come to, we were taking church services to the people of our community? I wonder what would happen if a small group of people just started to host an evening worship service in their back yard on Sunday evenings. Does that make somebody’s blood boil? See, I know of some men that I have served with that would be so put out that I wasn’t worshipping in “the building” that they wouldn’t think twice about the people we could possibly reach. Why? Because we must worship the Lord in a church, at least that is what they would say.

Okay, forgive me for taking the bait on this one. If that is true, then let us examine the New Testament church in Acts for a moment. Yes, they did meet together in the temple courts to fulfill the Jewish custom of praying three times a day. I am sure that while they were there, they even praised God. However, the Scriptures also tell us that they meet in each other’s homes enjoying fellowship and praising God. So, if worship has to be in “the temple,” does that mean God did not accept the worship they lifted up in their home’s in the evening? I have served with some that I truly believe would answer “yes” to that question!

Reggie made me think! I wonder if he is making you think. Have you ever considered the number of people that won’t come to worship on a given Sunday; not because they don’t believe in or worship the same God that you and I do, but because they are working? You know the convenient store workers, restaurant workers, grocery store workers, utility crews, and public servants that work so that you and I can selfishly enjoy our Sunday’s. We show up to church and expect the lights and air conditioners to be working. We expect the gas stations to be open so that we can fill up and make it to church. We expect the restaurants to be open so that we can go out and eat rather than cook on Sunday afternoon. “Who is going to be the church to them?”

I know that I have gotten on my soap box about this, but I believe the North American church is missing the point of Jesus’ call to “Go” and make disciples of all nations. Enough from me, for now. What are some of your thoughts? I do want to know, whether you agree or disagree. Are we way off base? How do we fix it? What are we going to do?

"My Dream vs. His Call"

Dreams. Do you still have those? We all have hopes and visions of what we want our life to look like. As children, we all dream of what we will be, where we will live, and what we will be doing. Some of us dream about being presidents, doctors, lawyers, managers, etc. “Are you just where you believed you would be?”

When I was a senior in high school, my preacher asked all us to write down some information. He wanted to know where we saw ourselves in five years; where will you be, what will you be doing, will you be married, and how many children will you have/do you plan to have? He informed us that he planned to file them away and mail them to us in five years. Naturally, I filled it out but never believed that I would ever see it again. Here were my answers…in five years, I believed that I would be graduated from college and coaching junior high basketball in a smaller West Texas town. I believed that I would be married and even said that I planned to have at least two kids some day.

When I got this envelope in the mail, I opened it up and read it, and wondered how I came to be where I was in life. You see, I was just about to walk across the stage and receive my bachelor’s degree. I wasn’t even thinking about coaching anymore. I had felt called into the ministry and was currently serving as the youth minister in a small West Texas town. I was married, and my wife was pregnant with our first child. Some of the things had gone my way, but why not the career. I had loved sports all of my life. Just ask my dad! My whole life I had always said that I was going to teach physical education and coach basketball. I had it all planned out, too. I was going to coach junior high.

So, what happened?! Why didn’t I end up where I just knew I was going to be? I have to admit, there have been times that I wondered what kind of coach I would have made. I have to admit, there have been times that I wondered if I was really in the right place. I, like many of you, have looked toward the heavens and asked God, “Why me? Why here?” The greatest answer I have ever received from the Lord came when I was on a journey through the book of Proverbs. I ran across this verse, underlined it, and it has become a part of me ever since. Proverbs 19:21:

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”

Even now I am writing it without looking it up because it has become such a part of who I am. Coaching was my plan! Living in West Texas was my plan! But, I wound up in youth ministry right out of college. I wasn’t coaching basketball with junior high kids, but I was teaching (coaching, if you don’t mind) teenagers how to grow and mature as disciples of Christ. The Lord’s purpose prevailed over mine. I was still working with kids, but in God’s way, not mine!

Ever since that day, I have faithfully, joyfully, and willingly answered God’s call to serve others. Why? Because I took a good look at what I wanted…Contemplated where I actually was…And finally realized that this is definitely where God wanted me to be. I don’t know for sure if you ever question where you are in life, but I want to encourage you to ask yourself a couple of questions: (1) Are you still living for yourself, focusing on your plans within your heart? (2) Or, have you surrendered to the “purpose” of God, submitting faithfully, joyfully, and willingly to his lordship in your life. It is in true surrender to the Lord that you will find true peace and never ending joy. Share: In what ways has God empowered you in your profession to share the gospel and his grace with others?