For those 2 of you out there that follow my blog regularly (okay, one is actually my wife but who’s counting), you know that I often reference posts from the Church Marketing Lab, aka churchmarketingsucks.com. Lately I haven’t read a ton there that made me say “huh…” but one of today’s posts piqued my interest.
Much of our search for a church in our area after moving centered around the same issues listed in this post and to be truthful, these same issues will be the things that either keep us there or drive us away if that were to happen. The point here being that the people who make up the body you choose to spend your time with should actually be modeling the life of Christ in their gatherings, otherwise they are meaningless and impotent. Yikes, tough words that I better be careful to live up to.
Here’s the short list:
- Mediocrity
- Strife
- Unwillingness to adapt (Lack of relevance)
- Teaching lacks truth
- Not led with passion
Boiling this list down involves one thing… selfless and constant pursuit of the lost. A fresh and never ending desire to do whatever it takes to reach the unchurched with the message of salvation through Christ. If your desire is selfless and unending you will not accept mediocrity; you will not allow strife between members of your church to distract you from your mission; you will adapt to your culture at all costs; you will teach the truth without fail and without watering it down; and you will lead this charge with vigorous passion as if this is the last day you will have to pursue your mission.
I think the key here as church leaders is to be sure that we are both modeling this behaviour and demanding the same of others. We should NEVER provide an environment where the above are accepted or tolerated. People who lack passion or love for the unlovely should always be uncomfortable sitting in their seats while the rest of the church reaches out.
Are you creating pew warmer unrest in your church? I think you should.
