Profile of a Dying Church

Not long ago, I was on a weekend trip with my family and we decided to attend church on Sabbath morning in the area we were visiting.  We were in a small community so I expected that the church would be quite small also.  That was confirmed when I went to Adventistdirectory.org to find the address for the church.  It said that the church had 19 members, and was part of a four-church district.  We have loved worshipping in small churches before and really looked forward to worshipping in this one.

Since I was in a new area and completely unknown, I intended to go into the church as an apprehensive first-time visitor, testing out how the church would respond to visitors in their midst.

On Sabbath morning, we were running a bit late for Sabbath School (which started at 9:30) but I punched the address into my trusty Garmin GPS and made the quick trip to the church.  Imagine my surprise when Garmin said that we’d arrive and all I saw was a manufacturing warehouse.  I double checked the address. It was right.  We continued down the road about half a mile to find a place to turn around, when we saw the sign for the Seventh-day Adventist Church.  We found it! 

We pulled up in the parking lot, counting five cars in the lot.  As we came up to the door of the church, there was a little sign that read, “Church at Study: 10 AM.  Church at Worship: 11 AM.”  So we weren’t really late after all!  I go in the door.    It’s a split level entry to the old country church.  I meet a lady coming up from downstairs.  “Hi,” she says, “we’re visiting today from (a town about 50 miles away).”

“We’re visiting too.   From more than 50 miles away.”We talked for a couple of minutes there in the lobby of the church.  As I scanned the lobby, I expected a greeter or some other church member to come back and direct us to Sabbath School.  I picked up a bulletin from a little table with a big sign in bold capital letters: “CHURCH BULLETINS.”  The bulletin said that they meet for church at 11 AM twice a month, and 9 AM twice a month.  I had to look at the calendar to see if we were here the right week for the 11 AM service.  We were.  Thankfully.  There were no church members around anywhere, but I heard something faintly through some swinging double doors that I assumed led into the sanctuary. 

We opened the door and went in. The sanctuary was completely dark.  A large video screen dominated the small sanctuary.  On the screen was a woman inviting people to join in the hymn-singing of the Sacramento Central SDA church.   There was 3ABN watermark on the lower part of the screen.  The directed singing was a nice touch, considering it was such a small congregation.  When she sat down, Doug Batchelor stood up to teach the Sabbath School lesson.  I expected with nearly a dozen people in the sanctuary now, we might turn off the satellite feed and have a rich Sabbath School discussion.  Instead, Pastor Doug taught the Sabbath School lesson while we continued to sit in the dark.

As Sabbath School drew to a close, the man whom I assumed was the Elder stood up and said, “Now it’s time for a potty break while I switch the DVD’s.”  After a few minutes, the Elder gathered everyone up once again and explained that since it was a small church, all they really did was watch DVD’s.  They were currently in the middle of a series by Morris and Lee Venden.  He had a brief prayer, turned the lights off, and pressed play.  Only after church was finished did any of the church members say a single word to me or my family.  If I had tried hard enough, I probably could have walked right out the back door without anyone saying a word to me.   It was definitely an educational experience.

Just imagine if I had been an un-churched visitor, walking in the door of an Adventist Church for the first time.   What if I had been hurting and needed some compassionate human interaction?  What if someone else will be there crying out for a connection with God this week?

Here’s the thing: if we want to be a part of dying church, the formula is simple.

• Make sure that the church is almost impossible to find for a first-time visitor.
• Make sure that the actual service times don’t correspond with those that have been published in other places.
• Don’t expect visitors.  And be sure not to be prepared to welcome them into church.
• Make sure that there is no human interaction through any part of the morning worship experience.

If we want to be the body of Christ, meeting the needs of the people that come through our doors, this approach won’t do.  Here’s a question:  How’s your church doing?

All In

I’m not a poker player.  I don’t think I’ve even played a single hand in my life.  But there has been a time or two when I’ve seen the World Series of Poker on ESPN.  I’m intrigued by that moment in any poker showdown when a player sizes up his cards, takes a deep breath, and with both hands slowly shoves the whole pile of chips to the center of the table.  It’s a calculated choice.  It’s a moment in which the player’s survival in the match rests on the fate of a few cards.  He’s all in.  That takes guts.  And faith.  And a bit of luck.

            Each one of us gets to that moment at one point or another.  It’s the moment when we cast our vote, we throw our hat in the ring, we totally commit….to something.  You see it when a basketball is flying out of bounds and a player goes flying into the  first row of seats to try and keep the ball in play.  You see it when a young violinist spends 12 hours practicing everyday, preparing for a world premiere she may never see.  You see it when the alcoholic has lost everything and decides that it’s time to get in rehab and clean up.  We all have our moments.  The question is, what are we committed to?  When do we go “all in?”

            

God calls each of us into relationship with Him.  But it isn’t some take-it-or-leave-it, only-on-Sabbath, part-time relationship.  He invites to be “all in” with Him.  He longs for a 24/7, always open connection that transforms our lives.  It’s scary.  It’s intimidating.  It’s invigorating. 

This weekend we’re exploring more about what it means to be “All In” with God.   You don’t want to miss it.  I hope to see you there.  Sunnyside.  Saturday.  11:20.

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. ~~ Romans 12:1

What if the Church Marketed like Starbucks? (or Starbucks marketed like the church?)

You know, sometimes a church does whatever it can to make a new person feel out of place.  I know (at least I think) this isn't the case, but it's almost as if we don't want new people to come in the front door for fear of them upsetting the balance of what we do.

This video is a favorite of mine, bringing attention to some things we do in church without even thinking.  What do you think?  Is this on the mark?

Celebrations

So I'm not really a Lakers fan. But watching them win tonight got me thinking....wouldn't it be great if we would celebrate every baptism with the same exuberance with which the Lakers celebrated their NBA title? I mean, without the wierd group hug/bunny hop thing. But if they can muster that much excitement for a trophy, why can't we be that passionate about people who make decisions that alter their eternal destiny?

Do you know someone who has recently made a decision to follow Christ? Let 'em know you're celebrating with them.

Luke 15:10 "In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Revisiting Daniel 7

So I've been working on a sermon for one of my preaching classes. Daniel 7 was my assigned preaching passage. This passage has been preached so many times by Adventists that I was not sure how to preach a sermon that hasn't already been preached by someone. As I was studying, I got stuck on verses 15-18. Daniel tells about this vision then shares that he is completely terrified. Then he goes out in search of answers.

Daniel finds an angel that is willing to answer his question and asks, "What is the meaning of all of this?" I found it interesting that the angel didn't answer everything in detail like we are often so anxious to do. Instead he basically aid, "there will be four kingdoms that reign over the earth. Then God's people will inherit a Kingdom from God Himself. Simple. Concise. Anyone could understand. Granted, Daniel wasn't satisfied so he asked more specific questions to which the angel answered, point by point. But in the angel's eyes, this vision wasn't about beasts, or horns, or time frames. It was about God bringing salvation to His people. What a powerful idea! I'm not saying that the other stuff is wrong or unimportant, it's just refreshing to me to be reminded that regardless of what history brings, the bottom line is that God is working on behalf of His people to bring salvation. In uncertain times like these, that's welcome news.

Waiting

Isaiah 40:31
³¹ Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.

Ever since I can remember, this has been one of my favorite verses of Scripture. If I wait on the Lord, He will provide. It's an amazing message…that has really got messed up in my head. This is the verse I've turned to when things just weren't going right. In the midst of my struggles I'd pray, "Lord, I'm waiting for you to do something." It was more like, "Lord, I'll sit tight in my self-pitying funk, waiting for you to clear out the clouds of my circumstances and bring a rainbow of promise." Well, thanks to John Waller, I've got a new perspective. In his song, While I'm Waiting (from the album The Blessing), he writes something profound.

While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

Waiting on the Lord doesn't mean sitting around until God does something. It's actively serving. Actively worshipping. Actively joining God in whatever He's doing in the mean time. It's not the definition of waiting that I grew up with. Yet it makes so much sense. No matter how tough (or confusing, or unsettled, or frustrating) I think my life is at the moment, I still have the joy of serving God while He works to reveal the answers in my life. I want to be one who waits like that. You?

Adventist Evangelism

You know, we really need to re-think how we go about our evangelism. I've been in the Adventist church for my whole life now, and I can identify three types of evangelism that we generally try.

1. We do door-to-door evangelism, selling our books to unsuspecting vict-, I mean, people.

2. We hold public evangelism campaigns, inviting in for a four (or five) (or six) week series in which we seek to convince them of the truth as we believe it.

3. We write it off as old-fashioned and just avoid the whole idea of evangelism all together.

I can't help but wonder if there are other ways.

Mark Beeson has posted an interesting rant from Penn Jillette, you know, the Vegas magician who also happens to be a devout atheist. In the video, Penn tells the story of a guy who shared the gospel in a simple way. Two things strike me. First, this atheist skewers Christians who believe in "heaven and hell" yet don't care enough to share with those who don't know. Second, he comments on the way in which this guy shared the gospel. Unapologetic. Non-defensive. Full of genuine care and actual friendliness.

We have a message to share. We can't get away with just writing off evangelism. But it seems our evangelism has become more focused on producing baptisms than on investing in people.

I can't help but wonder: might we be more effective in our evangelistic effort if our M.O. was that we are people who care about other people? If we shared our message unapologetically, non-defensively, yet out of an abundance of genuine care and respect for the people we're sharing with, we might see that the beauty of the gospel and the people through whom it flows would have an attraction that we've never seen before. There's no doubt: there is a precedent in Scripture for mass evangelism, but some of Jesus' best work was one-on-one, demonstrating his care for the individual.

I know, Penn Jillette is only one voice. But how would our evangelism change if we listened carefully to his experience?