Carlos Whittaker

Sep24

Today millions of people need their church staff to not start planning CHURCH next Sunday until they show them CHURCH today.

Posted by loswhit in Religion

Yesterday millions of people stood in rows and sang songs.
Yesterday millions of people sat in rows and listened to a person talk about God.
Yesterday millions of people left a building and went back home.

Today millions of people are waiting to see if “going to church” worked.
Today millions of people are going to be severely disappointed.
Today millions of people need to see that church wasn’t yesterday and it wasn’t in a building…
Today millions of people need their church staff to not start planning CHURCH next Sunday until they show them CHURCH today.

It’s better that way…
Los

http://musicalmindset-realnoimitation.blogspot.com/ Brad

Preach it Los! Some serious truth there!

http://themadhattermemoirs.wordpress.com/ Jonathan Montan

ditto

Andrew

I understand the need and the plight. But, it is the plight that has me befuddled. How does the “staff” show church today when the congregation seems to like keeping “church” within the four walls once day a week? In your opinion how does the “staff” do this?
Ron

Is the staff living life with the people or is the staff only available during “office hours”. Is the staff open to the people or is the staff only consumed with production and numbers. Are there relationships between the staff and people or are people anonymous to the staff.
Matt

“church” doesn’t work when Christ, His purpose and His Kingdom are replaced by us and our agendas…

When Christ, His purpose and His Kingdom are pursued, then what we do is irrelevant because it’s Christ doing and moving and saving and healing…not us.

If Christ is moving “inside the four walls”, then that’s where people should be.

No church is the same nor is their calling.

“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-13

I agree with you to an extent…but I’m not so sure that our “planning for Sunday services” is NOT what people need right now.

How can we minister to people on Sunday if we don’t plan now?

The most important thing I can do is spend time with Jesus…that’s when he will change ME.

It’s only then that I can aid in His works.
http://www.prayerpunk.wordpress.com PrayerPunk

I had a friend who quite the choir at another church. Later they gave him a hard time for quiting “God’s show.” Now I know not all staff think of it this way, but I do know to many of them do. The word church means community, and so the first step is for the staff to stop treating church as a show, but as a community that they serve. The same goes for the people. They can’t just be passive spectators, they need to become participants, not just on sunday, but everyday.
Amy

Can you elaborate? Having been on a church staff for over 10 years, I can testify that most staff I know are working SO hard to balance life just like everyone else.

We have to work on getting ready for Sunday. And yes, we also spend our time listening to volunteers, loving people through crisis & victory, & sharing life with one another.

Your posts seem to want to “call out” church staff a lot. I get that. But please know that many of us are just doing the very best we can with God’s help.
Brandon

I wonder if the point is less about “church staff planning Sunday morning” and more about church staff creating, mobilizing, empowering and leading people into opportunities where the Church has the chance to actually be something matters to the world around it. Can’t help but wonder what brokenness would look like if the church mattered more because of the way we plan love.

This from a church staff worship leader/youth ministry guy who is exactly one hour away from a big churchy meeting about how we raised the bar 6% in ministry last year. Can’t wait to get my 6% on.

Los, whatever your getting at here, thanks for stirring the pot and creating discussion.
http://paulwilkinson.wordpress.com Paul Wilkinson

On Saturday, Canadian blogger Darryl Dash linked to a 2011 post (that’s forever in blog years) at the blog LifeAsAMission which dealt with the top five problems faced by mega churches.

His middle issue was “Sunday-Centricity” which is so true at so many churches I’ve visited or watch online. Often the meeting room which takes up the greatest physical space is only used one day a week. He noted, “these gatherings becoming the driving point of our ecclesiology and the aspect of community life that eats up huge amounts of resources.”
gabriella

have you read adventures in churchland by dan kimball!?? he is my pastor at vintage faith church in santa cruz and the book is SO good!!
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