I am amazed by viral videos. How many of us haven't seen such great YouTube classics as The Nooma-Nooma guy, Double Rainbow, the Bed Intruder Song, and so many others? What makes these videos popular? Why do they gain so much momentum? Are they really that funny or entertaining? (Not always). Are they always unique? (Not really). Are they a good use of our time? (Hardly ever).
So what makes them so popular?
I think it's momentum. The video starts small, a few people see it, nothing major. But then people begin to share it. They use their social media networks to spread the video's appeal. They post it on Facebook, refer to it in twitter, link to it on their blogs. And suddenly it is off. People have to watch things that are shared. They feel they must respond. They might think it is stupid in the end; they might find it a waste of time; they might totally buy in and begin posting it for all of THEIR friends to see... But they rarely ever simply ignore it.
Oh, that Christianity would be the same! In fact, at one time it was. People couldn't help but share the good news of Jesus. They wanted others to know what they knew. It started off small: 12 here, 500 there, 3,000 on Pentecost... But then the movement was off! They couldn't make it stop. It was like the mustard seed: starts off small, but eventually provides shelter for all the animals.
What can we do to make Christianity viral again? What can we do to make it appealing to those around us? How can we make them interested enough to take notice, not just writing us off as stupid or irrelevant?
That is the discussion we will be following for the next four days. Stay tuned, and learn how to become viral!
Showing posts with label Missio Dei. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Missio Dei. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Church: What's the point?
Why does the church exist?
Now, how many of you think I am off my rocker for even posing this question? You can be honest, it won’t hurt my feelings. The question is important, because we live in an age where people are giving up on “organized religion” for personal spirituality or spiritual growth. Many people are simply walking away from the church. Why does this group exist at all? Why did Jesus and his disciples set up a church to continue on his tradition after he had left?
Many people simply write off church as non-essential. It is too hypocritical, too long, too boring. (Important: These are not my feelings, they are the ones statisticians report.) They see church as simply being one more thing to add to their already-too-large list of activities; something’s gotta give, and it often becomes church. So we are left to wonder, Why does the church exist in the first place? Is it even necessary?
I think Luke clues us in to the answer. Acts covers the foundation of the church and its actions for the Kingdom of God. Luke begins the book of Acts with this thought: “In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up into heaven…” (Acts 1:1-2). Luke’s choice of words is very important. Listen to them again: “… I wrote about all the Jesus had begun to do and to teach…” The rest of Acts is the continuation of Christ’s ministry on earth.
It’s no wonder that Paul picks up on this idea in his own writings. Paul refers to the church as the Soma Christou, the “Body of Christ” (1 Cor. 12; Eph. 3-5; Col. 3). We are all called to be part of the body of Christ. A hand cannot grasp, an ear cannot hear, and feet cannot walk on their own; these actions are worthless without a body to make them whole. Body parts are just that: parts of the Body. They have no use outside of that function. So too are Christians: we need to be connected to a body of believers in order to grow and live our full potential.
Why is the church important? Because we carry on the work of Jesus in the world. Is being part of a church easy? Rarely. Is it worth it? Usually. Is it what Christ would have us do? Absolutely.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Calling Us Out of Comfort...
I want you to imagine these circumstances:
You live a comfortable life. You have worked for years to get a nice big house with a comfortable yard. You are 75, and are just settling into the comfortable years of your life. You are content and satisfied and are ready to take up fishing, whittling, or some other hobby. Suddenly, your whole world is thrown for a loop. God speaks to you, and he calls you to leave everything you’ve ever known behind: your house, your community, your extended family. Pack up and move, but don’t worry about where. Just go and I will lead you where I want you to go.
Sounds crazy, right? What would you say? Is God serious? Does he really want me to give up my comfort just to follow his crazy plan? How do you think you would react?
As crazy as it sounds, it is EXACTLY what God asked Abraham to do. The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." (Gen. 12:1-3) The next thing we are told is that Abraham went; but I have a feeling that Abraham felt exactly as we would. What exactly is God thinking?
Yet God did something amazing through this ordeal. He leads Abraham from
Man, I’m glad God has never called me to anything like he called Abraham. Or maybe he has. Maybe God has called us to give up comfort and “safety,” step out on a limb and bless the life of someone else. Maybe God wants to change the world through you, whether in small of large ways. Maybe God wants you to step out on faith and invite that coworker to church. Maybe he wants you to volunteer for FriendSpeak or
Each of us has a place in the mission of God. Will we choose to accept it? None of us are too old or too young, too set in our ways. We all have excuses, but God has solutions. So let’s get out there and change the world!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
A Church Like Cheers
I have been pretty discouraged today. I think it has something to do with the last book I am reading for my Book Review for the Christian Chronicle (due to be published in March.) I am working through the book Quiting Church, written by Julia Duin, the religion editor for the Washington Post, and I am becoming discouraged with the state of the church in America.
Although the Barna Group estimates that church attendance has remained the same for over 40 years (around 43% of the population), recent polls have shown that this number is grossly inflated. Realistically only 18-22% attend church regularly (with regularly being defined as once a month!) Statistics also show that only 4% of today's teenagers will be involved in a Bible-based church
by the time they have their own families. The vast majority of people are simply dropping out of church for various reasons: scandals in church leadership, lack of authenticity, lack of leadership/pastoring, etc. Many former church attendees simply see worship and "church" as irrelevant to their daily lives. It doesn't touch on the issues that affect us the most: emotional issues, sexuality, social justice, etc.
One of the issues that is most common is the lack of community within churches today. Intriguingly, there are stats that point to us creating our own problems. There are over 331,000 churches in America. However, 80% of the American church population attend 10% of those churches (33,000). The mega-church is in mega-boom. (At least, theoretically.) Thus, most churches are small but most people attend large churches. They want to be a part of a place where there are dozens of ministries available for every age group, social demographic, and personal preference. They want to lose themselves in the crowd to feel uplifted. Yet the very thing they crave often is the most damaging: they trade in authentic community to be surrounded by a community. They want to feel cared for, and they long to be an integral part of a community of believers, yet we often do nothing about it except quietly walk out the back door, forsaking church altogether.
What is the solution? What is the best way to go about bringing these Christians back into a community with one another?
An obvious choice is planting churches. New churches grow faster than older churches. It is simply the life cycle of the church, and this isn't a negative thing. Church planting isn't a disparaging of the established church. Think of it this way: whatever church you attend was once a church plant. Someone had in mind to reach a new group with the Gospel. (Unless you are a part of a church split, then the divisions get tougher!) Yet if we plant churches that look exactly like EVERY OTHER CHURCH then I think we have missed the point. We need to be a place where authentic community takes place. And as our unchurched population is telling us, that obviously doesn't seem to be happening in the vast majority of churches in America. So how can we reach this unchurched population? How can we encourage them to become a part of an authentic community with God? How can we help them not forsake the community of believers?
I believe we need to approach this problem with missional eyes. People are struggling to understand God in the midst of their situation. They long to feel connected with God, and they need the encouragement of other brothers and sisters in Christ to spur them on. They need AUTHENTIC community. Essentially, we need a church like Cheers!
Many of you remember this early '80's sitcom. I love the theme song that introduced the show:
"Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes you want to go...
Where everybody knows your name,
and they're always glad you came.
You wanna be where you can see,
our troubles are all the same
You wanna be where everybody knows
Your name."
Now, granted, I am not advocating changing the Lord's Supper from crackers/juice into beer/peanuts. But we need to be realistic: there is more authentic community at the local bar than in our church gatherings. We need a church where people are always glad you came and everybody wants to know your name.
How do we go about doing that? How can we create authentic community? I think it is the most important question that we, in our endeavors, can attempt to answer. So, what are your thoughts? Mine will be coming soon.
Although the Barna Group estimates that church attendance has remained the same for over 40 years (around 43% of the population), recent polls have shown that this number is grossly inflated. Realistically only 18-22% attend church regularly (with regularly being defined as once a month!) Statistics also show that only 4% of today's teenagers will be involved in a Bible-based church
by the time they have their own families. The vast majority of people are simply dropping out of church for various reasons: scandals in church leadership, lack of authenticity, lack of leadership/pastoring, etc. Many former church attendees simply see worship and "church" as irrelevant to their daily lives. It doesn't touch on the issues that affect us the most: emotional issues, sexuality, social justice, etc.
One of the issues that is most common is the lack of community within churches today. Intriguingly, there are stats that point to us creating our own problems. There are over 331,000 churches in America. However, 80% of the American church population attend 10% of those churches (33,000). The mega-church is in mega-boom. (At least, theoretically.) Thus, most churches are small but most people attend large churches. They want to be a part of a place where there are dozens of ministries available for every age group, social demographic, and personal preference. They want to lose themselves in the crowd to feel uplifted. Yet the very thing they crave often is the most damaging: they trade in authentic community to be surrounded by a community. They want to feel cared for, and they long to be an integral part of a community of believers, yet we often do nothing about it except quietly walk out the back door, forsaking church altogether.
What is the solution? What is the best way to go about bringing these Christians back into a community with one another?
An obvious choice is planting churches. New churches grow faster than older churches. It is simply the life cycle of the church, and this isn't a negative thing. Church planting isn't a disparaging of the established church. Think of it this way: whatever church you attend was once a church plant. Someone had in mind to reach a new group with the Gospel. (Unless you are a part of a church split, then the divisions get tougher!) Yet if we plant churches that look exactly like EVERY OTHER CHURCH then I think we have missed the point. We need to be a place where authentic community takes place. And as our unchurched population is telling us, that obviously doesn't seem to be happening in the vast majority of churches in America. So how can we reach this unchurched population? How can we encourage them to become a part of an authentic community with God? How can we help them not forsake the community of believers?
I believe we need to approach this problem with missional eyes. People are struggling to understand God in the midst of their situation. They long to feel connected with God, and they need the encouragement of other brothers and sisters in Christ to spur them on. They need AUTHENTIC community. Essentially, we need a church like Cheers!
Many of you remember this early '80's sitcom. I love the theme song that introduced the show:
"Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes you want to go...
Where everybody knows your name,
and they're always glad you came.
You wanna be where you can see,
our troubles are all the same
You wanna be where everybody knows
Your name."
Now, granted, I am not advocating changing the Lord's Supper from crackers/juice into beer/peanuts. But we need to be realistic: there is more authentic community at the local bar than in our church gatherings. We need a church where people are always glad you came and everybody wants to know your name.
How do we go about doing that? How can we create authentic community? I think it is the most important question that we, in our endeavors, can attempt to answer. So, what are your thoughts? Mine will be coming soon.
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