My list - 1 Samuel 3
Today's devotional is about serial church shoppers and the un-churched.
Stephanie and I were given the opportunity by God to launch a new church in northern Michigan. We watched a church emerge from 3 couples to over 150 in the 18 years we were there. God brought together this unique group of people to learn of Him and many to worship Him as their Savior and Lord. We are so thankful for that experience that God put us in.
Reading a blog this week by Carey Nieuwhof linked here: http://careynieuwhof.com/2016/04/5-key-differences-church-shoppers-unchurched/ I resonated with his 5 points about the differences between a serial church shopper and the un-churched. We saw these 5 things.
1. Church shoppers think their job is to evaluate; the un-churched are looking to learn.
2. Church shoppers move quickly from love to hate; the un-churched warm up to you gradually.
3. Church shoppers want your church to be like the last church (that they left); un-churched people don't.
4. Church shoppers blame the church when things go wrong; the un-churched take responsibility.
5. Church shoppers want to lead THEIR ministry; un-churched people want to get involved in THE ministry.
As I reminisced about those days and the people who came through the doors I could put examples with each of these 5 points. I got to the point that I would much rather have someone who had no church experience or that they just went to church as a kid and had not been back come in who was a ground zero spiritually than someone who was a "professional" Christian who had baggage that was more concerned about their needs being met than the mission at hand.
I am in a different place now and I looked at this list through different eyes. What if you are in a place that is established and full of people who have been members for many years? Are their some dangers to watch out for as an individual even within the church to know if you have went from concern of the mission of Christ to the concern of the mission of you? So I made up my own list.
1. Critical mode. I get to the point where I am evaluating rather than participating.
2. Hate mode. I get to the point where I can tell you more about what I hate or dislike about the church rather than what I love about the church.
3. Better mode. I get to the point where I am comparing us to other churches in town or those I have found on the internet that are obviously doing better than what we are doing.
4. Blame mode. I get to the point where I am looking outside of myself and pointing the finger often at others or societal changes rather than lifting a finger to help.
5. Leader mode. I get to the point where I am very territorial of my ministry or even my seat in the sanctuary and I don't participate unless I am the main focal point.
A quote from the blog, "Serial church shoppers are more interested in changing a church than they are in changing their life." I can be within a great church and get very discontent for the wrong reasons. Realize that Satan is behind those modes trying to weasel into the family of God to bring disunity and slow down the ministry of the gospel. Do some self examination today to see if any of these modes exist in your life.
1. Have I been spending my energy criticizing the church?
2. Have I been spending my energy looking for all the things that are wrong with the church?
3. Have I been spending my energy comparing the church with those "grass is always greener on the other side" churches on the internet or the television?
4. Have I been spending my energy pointing the finger of blame as a solution to situation?
5. Have I been spending my energy protecting what is "mine" and not letting anyone else into "my" area?
I encourage you to read 1 Samuel 3 today. Look at it as Samuel the "newbie" and Eli as the established church goer. Look at Eli's response to the message given to him from young Samuel. He received the hard instruction from the Lord from the "newbie." May we always be in a state to receive instruction from the Lord. Let's pray.
"Lord, what a blessing it is to be in Your family. What a blessing to have brothers and sisters in Christ around us that love us. May that love grow to the point and beyond to care for one another spiritually to speak to each other when we are going into a mode that doesn't help the body of Christ but hinders it. May that love grow to the point and beyond to care for one another spiritually to speak to each other when we have put the focus on ourselves rather than on You and Your kingdom. May our love in the body of Christ be much more than surface love. Amen."
Pastor Adam
Stephanie and I were given the opportunity by God to launch a new church in northern Michigan. We watched a church emerge from 3 couples to over 150 in the 18 years we were there. God brought together this unique group of people to learn of Him and many to worship Him as their Savior and Lord. We are so thankful for that experience that God put us in.
Reading a blog this week by Carey Nieuwhof linked here: http://careynieuwhof.com/2016/04/5-key-differences-church-shoppers-unchurched/ I resonated with his 5 points about the differences between a serial church shopper and the un-churched. We saw these 5 things.
1. Church shoppers think their job is to evaluate; the un-churched are looking to learn.
2. Church shoppers move quickly from love to hate; the un-churched warm up to you gradually.
3. Church shoppers want your church to be like the last church (that they left); un-churched people don't.
4. Church shoppers blame the church when things go wrong; the un-churched take responsibility.
5. Church shoppers want to lead THEIR ministry; un-churched people want to get involved in THE ministry.
As I reminisced about those days and the people who came through the doors I could put examples with each of these 5 points. I got to the point that I would much rather have someone who had no church experience or that they just went to church as a kid and had not been back come in who was a ground zero spiritually than someone who was a "professional" Christian who had baggage that was more concerned about their needs being met than the mission at hand.
I am in a different place now and I looked at this list through different eyes. What if you are in a place that is established and full of people who have been members for many years? Are their some dangers to watch out for as an individual even within the church to know if you have went from concern of the mission of Christ to the concern of the mission of you? So I made up my own list.
1. Critical mode. I get to the point where I am evaluating rather than participating.
2. Hate mode. I get to the point where I can tell you more about what I hate or dislike about the church rather than what I love about the church.
3. Better mode. I get to the point where I am comparing us to other churches in town or those I have found on the internet that are obviously doing better than what we are doing.
4. Blame mode. I get to the point where I am looking outside of myself and pointing the finger often at others or societal changes rather than lifting a finger to help.
5. Leader mode. I get to the point where I am very territorial of my ministry or even my seat in the sanctuary and I don't participate unless I am the main focal point.
A quote from the blog, "Serial church shoppers are more interested in changing a church than they are in changing their life." I can be within a great church and get very discontent for the wrong reasons. Realize that Satan is behind those modes trying to weasel into the family of God to bring disunity and slow down the ministry of the gospel. Do some self examination today to see if any of these modes exist in your life.
1. Have I been spending my energy criticizing the church?
2. Have I been spending my energy looking for all the things that are wrong with the church?
3. Have I been spending my energy comparing the church with those "grass is always greener on the other side" churches on the internet or the television?
4. Have I been spending my energy pointing the finger of blame as a solution to situation?
5. Have I been spending my energy protecting what is "mine" and not letting anyone else into "my" area?
I encourage you to read 1 Samuel 3 today. Look at it as Samuel the "newbie" and Eli as the established church goer. Look at Eli's response to the message given to him from young Samuel. He received the hard instruction from the Lord from the "newbie." May we always be in a state to receive instruction from the Lord. Let's pray.
"Lord, what a blessing it is to be in Your family. What a blessing to have brothers and sisters in Christ around us that love us. May that love grow to the point and beyond to care for one another spiritually to speak to each other when we are going into a mode that doesn't help the body of Christ but hinders it. May that love grow to the point and beyond to care for one another spiritually to speak to each other when we have put the focus on ourselves rather than on You and Your kingdom. May our love in the body of Christ be much more than surface love. Amen."
Pastor Adam
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