PASTORING A NEW CHURCH IN KNOXVILLE

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We see in the Bible that Jesus not only wanted to change the lives of the disciples, but the lives of those around them.

Bondye Bell

The Church and Consumerism

While I've already given attention to the role of the Church within Christianity at large, it’s also important to examine what role it should play in our day-to-day living.  It’s important to be reminded of the impact the church can make in the lives of people.  It’s truly sad to see so many people affected negatively by the church, especially when God established it to be a place of encouragement, truth, rest, refuge, community, and commitment.  The church was established to give glory to God, and one of the ways it does that is by impacting the everyday lives of Christ followers in a positive manner.

Part of that positive impact comes through receiving.  From the church we receive spiritual encouragement and companionship.  We receive the great comfort that we’re not in this life alone, and we’re not supposed to be.  Especially during trying and difficult circumstances, the church is meant to be a reminder of the invisible attributes of God’s love, care, comfort, and wisdom. In the church, the invisible becomes visible through the lives of those around us.  Christianity stops being an idea and starts being personal in the body of Christ.

It’s a great blessing to think about all we “get” from the local church.  It’s so good, in fact, that it’s tempting to get comfortable just being recipients.  Maybe that’s why so many people’s affections have cooled for the church—all we ever think about is what we get from the church, either good or bad.  But that narrow focus reveals that the consumerism of our culture has invaded our faith.

We treat the church like a fast food restaurant, demanding to have what we want when we want it.  And if one church can’t offer it, we don’t come back. We either go down the street or we quit going entirely.  Why?  Because we’re consumers—church consumers.  Exclusively focusing on what we receive in a church context is really only looking at half of what God intended for our relationship with the church to be. 

We need to be reminded that church is not the place where we solely come and get fed and ministered to.  Instead, it is a place where we are to give—to give our time, talents, energy, and passion in order to serve and meet the needs of others.  We do this for people both inside and outside the church as we utilize our gifting from God.  Through giving we stop being consumers of church.  We stop going to church and start being the church.

 
NOTE:  You can read more about this in my study, Blemished.

Reaching Twenty-Somethings

A while ago I was asked to write for Answers Magazine about twenty-somthings and the challenge of reaching people who aren't going to church.  Here's an excerpt of that article:

On a recent flight I found myself deep in conversation with three delightful young adults, all in their twenties, from diverse backgrounds. One, who worked in California’s wine industry, was en route to meet a potential new distributor. Another gentleman, who owned a gas station and mini-mart in a rural Southern U.S. town, was headed on family vacation. The third, a nurse from Midwestern suburbia, was traveling home for her high school reunion.

Despite our varied origins and occupations, our time together was rich. Each of these young adults was educated, articulate, and comfortable sharing opinions about a variety of topics. Our discussion was friendly and enjoyable. That is, until the issue of faith arose. More specifically, our dialogue took an unfortunate decline when they began to share their experiences with the local church.

The saddest part may be that their feelings often seemed justified. While I interjected at times, I ended up spending the majority of time simply listening.

As I sat there, I wondered how we can reach their generation. Traditional approaches—like inviting them to church—don’t seem to get very far. A quick chat on an airplane isn’t very effective either. While I wanted to believe that an articulate argument or a heartfelt plea would suffice, I couldn’t help but conclude that something more was necessary.

In fact, I came to a very simple yet profound conclusion. The thing that would draw this generation to Christ and His church would be if His people were actually committed to Christ, and if the Church actually functioned how God intended it to. 

Read my advice in the rest of the article.

Moving Toward Change

Change is universal—that’s old news.  You’ve either already experienced a major change in your life, you’re experiencing one right now, or you’ll experience one in the future.  But becoming someone who can embrace change and whatever outcome it brings is more complicated than just talking about it. 

 “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘the One who is, who was, and who is coming, the Almighty.’” 

Likewise, Hebrews 13:8 states:

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” 

These verses speak of God’s stability in a world of instability.  And though God never changes, we see in other parts of Scripture that He clearly intends for us to change. The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 12:2:

“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” 

This establishes the fact that change, in the form of sanctification (being made holy), is at the forefront of our faith. We see similar teaching in 2 Corinthians 5:17, where we read:

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.”

So, here’s what we can conclude about change in our lives: 

1. The world is constantly changing. 

2. God doesn’t change, and thus He’s clearly not of this world.

3. If He’s not of this world, He is indeed God.

4. Since He’s God, He’s worth following.

5. Following Him changes us. 

In the initial encounters between Jesus and His first disciples, change had a unique look to it.  Jesus wasn’t moving the disciples through change.  He was moving the disciples toward change.  He wasn’t freeing them from it.  He was calling them to a life of it.  

Fighting For The Church

Rules for Self Discovery

Rules for Self Discovery:

1. What we want most;
2. What we think about most;
3. How we use our money;
4. What we do with our leisure time;
5. The company we enjoy;
6. Who and what we admire;
7. What we laugh at.

— A.W. Tozer

Cultivating Biblical Hospitality

In the fall, HomeLife magazine is featuring our family's commitment to make our home a hub for spiritual growth and ministry.  As part of that, Carrie was asked to contribute a brief sidebar on cultivating biblical community.  For a limited time, you can take a sneak peek at it below.

It doesn’t take very long for someone to ask, “How do you do that?” in regards to our family’s commitment to making our home a significant tool for ministry.  Immediately their mind runs to issues of cost, boundaries for personal space, and organization.  But, most frequently, the question arises of how I balance it with the responsibilities of being a wife, mother to two (soon-to-be four), and an active member of our church and community. 

And, in truth, I don’t really have any secret formula.  But, I will share what I tell them.  I tell them that it doesn’t happen alone.  As a family, we believe in our mission.  Thus, we all take part in the work of the mission.  Jason helps with cleaning, meal preparation, and more.  In addition, our boys want in on the action, too.  Our oldest son loves to greet people at the door.  He also takes pride in asking everyone what they want to drink.  Someday he’ll actually be old enough to pour it himself.  But, the point is that he’s involved and he’ll grow into his role of hospitality eventually. 

But, most importantly, we commit our home to the Lord in prayer every day.  Each night we thank God for our home with the boys.  But, we also all pray for those friends and family that God has blessed us with.  These things are intimately connected.  Because, above all, hospitality is an issue of the heart.  The more you love people, the more likely you are to serve them.  And for us, serving is often done best within our home.

THE WALK

I had the huge privilege of teaching at The Walk in Knoxville a couple weeks ago.  I taught as part of their on-going series entitled, Check Your Status.  I was entrusted with the topic of religion.  I taught from John 21 where Jesus demands a love that signifies total commitment.  If desired, you can view that below beginning around 24:00.

If you aren't familiar with The Walk, you should check them out.  It's one of the finest college ministries in the country.  Another huge thanks to my buddy, Tim Miller, for the invite.  He's the best of the best.  Also, you should check out the next message in the series.  My old college roommate and now pastor at Arrowhead Church, Ben Shoun, brought a powerful message on the topic of politics.