Sometimes I like to hear just the bare nekkid truth. No wishy-washy posing or cover-your-butt-so-everyone-will-like-me double talk. Needless to say, watching the presidential debates has not been my favorite pastime lately.

I recently finished a book called The Present Future by Reggie McNeal. McNeal is a consultant for the Baptist Church in South Carolina, so he doesn't deal much in the realm of flighty theoretical mumbo-jumbo. He's a straight-up Baptist preacher, which usually means he'd just be telling you that you're going to hell, straight-up. However, McNeal has been captured by a missional God who is intent on bringing his kingdom to bear on the earth and has not given up on his Church to be a part of that program. There are some parts of his book I don't buy (I think some of his theological justification is a little thin in places), but the man doesn't hold anything back.

This quote made me stop dead in my tracks:

"The point is, all the effort to fix the church misses the point. You can build the perfect church - and they (people in the world) still won't come. People are not looking for a great church. They do not wake up every day wondering what church they can make successful."

I wish I could scream that from the rooftops - People in the 21st century, average Jane and Joe American, don't give a rip about making the church down the street a success. If they are even interested in church at all (which according to McNeal the numbers are staggeringly low the younger you go), their relationship to the church will primarily be about what benefit can be received rather than offering their service or resources. The 80-20 rule of participation, for most established churches at the present time, would be generous.

My question is, should we who are attempting to redefine church, Christian praxis, and mission in light of postmodernity think we should expect anything more? Seriously, what makes you think just because your church is not authoritative or hierarchical people are going to jump right in and begin taking their rightful places as priests and missionaries and begin acting as if they are the church? Do you really think Christians who have escaped borderline (and in some cases not-so-borderline) spiritually abusive situations are just going to turn right around give themselves over to your cause to build the next great house church movement to reach postmoderns?

If so, you're kidding yourself. We live in an age of chronic institutional apathy. People will betray you and your organization for something new and brighter down the street as fast as you can say (name your favorite sports star who jumped ship for more money to an arch-rival team).

Does this sound depressing? Well, of course it is. Church leaders are some of the most depressed people alive largely because they wake up everyday fighting to keep their organization afloat amongst the vast sea of consumer choices available to their congregations. It is literally sucking the life out of countless pastors, youth group leaders, children workers, church secretaries, elder boards, and on down the line. The ones who can hire the best and brightest staff to convince the best and brightest people to show up on Sunday and pay their dues are the ones that survive.

Please, can we stop the madness? Are we just supposed to keep feeding the beast because that's the only show in town?

Hello?

If you are reading this and have some vested interest in a community of faith - whatever your flavor, old-school or new-school, emerging or submerging - do yourself a favor and stop caring about the following things:

1. The number of people in your church. Really, it doesn't matter.
2. The "relevancy" of your common worship.
3. How often or if ever a new person shows up at one of your common worship times.
4. The size of your church budget, building, or paid staff.
5. What any other church in the world is doing - good or bad or otherwise.

And please start caring about the following things:

1. Actively looking for the evidence of God's kingdom - where what he wants done is done - at work, at home, at Starbucks (heaven forbid), at the beach, and anywhere else you might find yourself in the course of living your normal life.
2. Simple, honest worship.
3. Having friends that don't give a rip about your church. Maybe you might just rub off on them.
4. Giving away money to people who need it; using existing, familiar (and free) spaces for common worship such as homes, restaurants, parks, or community centers; flattening the organization's need for paid leadership and support roles.
5. Go on a unique, unreproducible journey with a group of people and rejoice with other groups of people who do the same.

I'm not making any promises here. If you do these things it won't make the perfect church, but you most likely won't be mired in burnout or depression either. Maybe the best I can offer is my own personal experience. Three years after I [mostly] stopped caring about those five things and started caring about those other five...well...I still suck as a Christian, but I don't suck as bad! Hurrah!

I really, really, really, really, really, really love being a part of the Church Jesus is building.

thanks for the reminders about 'success' as defined by... and thanks for reminding me that the things of Jesus are the things of real importance.
Blessings Friend.
--randy buist ( rbuist at watersedge dot tv ) on 12/10/2004; 12:27:07 AM

I've seen the book advertised, now I have to get it! There is definitely a move of God going on and it is heading toward the bare-nekked Truth. The church is getting stripped down, dressed down, perhaps even torn down! I don't believe God ever intended us to play church, play with his money or play with his word. Subsequently, there is a bit of chaos going on, heh? The younger gen is searching and certainly not going to follow me (at twice their age). I love our House Church but I don't get many 'takers' for dinner either. It's God thing. He's doing it His way! Let's be faithful in the little things.
--John ( johnandyo at verizon dot net ) on 11/8/2004; 10:55:42 PM

daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang! Well dress me up and call me "Sally," bishop Bishop has hit it on the head.

I've been shocked, shocked to find my neighbors not flocking into our house. Shocked (and here I'm shifting from sarcasm to genuine surprise) that young adult Christians would rather stage a Judgement House and hand out tracts in NYC than join us for dinner.

What your describing is the hardest thing I've ever tried to do. The gravitational pull of normal church--at least for people already in the church --is huge.

Good thoughts. Thanks, B.
--craig ( pelkeyland at enter dot net ) on 11/8/2004; 9:09:56 AM