The State of the Church

I have been giving some interesting thought to the congregation of St. John in the past few weeks.  Much of it is a wrestling of what it means to be the church in this day and age along with wrestling with the challenges of what it means to be a rural congregation whose membership is spread far and wide in the surrounding area.

One of the great challenges is Christian Education.  There is a need to pass on the faith to the next generation.  There is a need to challenge folks and help them grow in their own faith walks.  There is a need to help folks of all ages grow deeper in their understanding of who God is and what God intends for their lives.

And yet...

We live in a society that demands time without regard.

Athletics, school, family, church, scouts, work, festivals, kids, parents, even ourselves demand moments or chunks of our time. 

And we have become a people who find it hard to meet all those demands.  We have a hard time prioritizing what should and should not come first.  As more and more things demand more and more of us, we find it difficult to breathe and actually enjoy life.

So, in the midst of that chaos, how in the world can we even find time for learning and growing in our faith?

How can we find time to exercise our brains in regard to our walks with God?  How can we find time to help our children learn and grow in this faith thing?

The church used to hold a privileged place in people's time slots.  Folks made time for worship and education and Sunday School and meetings and special events.  But those days are rapidly passing.

And so we find that when we try to add a weekly Bible Study--no one comes.
When we try to revamp Sunday School--no one comes.
When we try to conduct church business--few stay.
When we ask for input and guidance through letters and email--silence reigns.

Yet, when we hold one time events and gatherings--we overflow.

It's gotten me thinking...

What if...

What if...

What if the church centered itself on worship.  What if this became our main thrust as a congregation?  What if we made this the primary focus of what we do?  What if, as our mission statement guides us, actively reaching out as a strong Christian influence in our community by showing God's love through kindness, caring, and involvement with others inside and outside our community of faith, entails gathering for worship and praise and hearing God's Word and receiving His sacraments first and foremost...

and then...

then...

As people are equipped through worship, they go into the world with their varied callings?  And when in their varied callings they uncover opportunities for the church to make its presence known in a big way?

This doesn't prevent the church from being involved and helping others in the community, but it makes doing those things dependent upon our worship and our grounding in God's Word.

Further, the church can equip people to learn more about God and His Word by offering resources for families and individuals through internet communication.  We can still hold classes and events, but they would take a back seat to parents teaching in their homes.

Of course, when folks get a creative goose from the Spirit to try special events (like a Zumba aerobics class), the church gladly opens its doors for folks to do so.  But this would come, not from the council or pastor or any authority figure, but it would come from folks who take an interest and want to see if it could happen.

The mission and ministry of the congregation, therefore, isn't dependent upon a pastor or particular paid staff...it isn't dependent upon the council...rather, it's dependent upon the people of the church.  Pastor's change.  Council members change.  Leadership changes.  Staff changes.  The people stay.

What if?

What if?

What if?