Three People You're Likely to Meet in Your Church (Which One Are You?)

While it is agreed you will see people with all sorts of different makeups in your church (socioeconomic backgrounds, races, personalities, jobs/careers, ages, etc.), all people attending can in large part be grouped into three major categories that have very little to do with any of those makeups.
They are:

• Observer (one who makes an appearance regularly or irregularly, has little to nothing to do with the function of the church and simply shows up for the show, so to speak, and leaves; it's not that they are not interested in the church, but that is their only desired level of involvement; this is usually a temporary phase as they will usually transition into one of the other categories over time or out of the church altogether)
• Participant/Contributor (one who understands the mission/purpose of the church and Scripture and wishes to be a part of it, both personally and corporately; it is a growing stage - as they learn more their participation evolves to fill needs and be part of the larger goal or vision)
• Consumer (one who is there to consume anything that means something to them; if they enjoy social work, then they serve at every function; if they love a good sermon, then they go to a church with a dynamic pastor; if music what moves them, then they go where the band is exactly their style; consumers are not big into changing, but would rather see the church evolve to fit their needs and often times assumes that others around them have those exact same needs; when the product well runs dry or stale to them, the consumer leaves and looks for another church able/willing to meet their needs)

While these are not fool-proof categories, they are good for our present conversation.

Of the three categories, churches need Contributors and Observers. They are vital to the life and growth of the church. Observers are people who do not usually understand what church or theology are and are observing as a way of learning and deciding. These are not the seemingly cold individuals who show up every week and leave before the prayer is over so as to avoid any contact. These are the individuals who new or old are showing up, observing the religious practices, rituals and beliefs of the church, weighing them with what they see outside the church (to include what is seen in the lives of the believers), comparing them to their own lives and deciding if there appears to be any merit or truth to God, the Scriptures, the church or its mission. The presence of a large number of observers shows participants/contributors are taking their mission and purpose seriously.

Contributors are the people of the church who at one point in their lives were observers or consumers and came to understand the mission of God the Father ("to seek and save that which is lost", to restore man to Himself, and to make possible a relationship between Himself and man). They then changed categories and sought to become regular participants in His church and His mission. How does such a change take place?

Simply put (harder to actually commit to or follow through with): repentance. They realized the folly of their faith/worship and turned away from self worship and self service and began worshipping God.

Consumers kill churches or, worse yet, breed more consumer-based churches. The idea that man is at the center of the Gospel kills churches. God did not seek to worship man by saving Him; Christ's death on the cross and man's subsequent ability to turn to God was all about God's fame, not man's. If churches place the burden of their mission, resources and efforts in reaching the consumers, they will either: (1) kill their church (in the long run), (2) burn their pastors/lay leaders out, (3) mislead thousands with false theology (because their theology is more anthropology, with theological overtones), or (4) create more consumer churches that will do one or all of #1, #2 and #3. Unless consumers repent, they WILL leave churches or destroy churches.

Which one are you?

A participant? Do you read for yourself in Scripture about God's passion for Himself and mission for mankind (to give them His absolute best - Himself)? Do you show up at church looking for ways to serve the elders, leaders and observers? Do you look for ways to be part of the vision of the church? Is repentance a key part of your life (turning from self centered worship and giving worship back to whom it belongs - God)?

A consumer? Do you read Scripture to help get you through the week or make your day a little bit better? Do you show up at church because it makes you feel better and meets some sort of felt need? Do you expect your pastors/leaders to be available to you around the clock (and compare them to other pastors you hear about in the community)? Do you participate in serving or long-rang vision plans of your church only if you think there is something in it for you or your family? Are you overly critical of the programs or ministries of your church?
If yes: Is it altogether impossible that maybe the centrality of your faith has been placed in the wrong place, and you've become one who worships the created instead of the Creator. If this is you, repentance is necessary and reordering your worship is key to becoming a real contributor/participant in God's mission for mankind.

An observer? Are you seeking truth? Looking for answers and trying to reconcile what you understand faith to be with what you read in Scripture or see before you? Trying to distinguish the difference/relationship between morals and faith? Do you have big questions in need of real answers, not just the typical Christian mantra "you just gotta have faith"?
Continue asking questions and seeking answers from true men and women of faith and a Bible-centered church. If there is anything I might be able to do to help you in this endeavor, feel free to email me (christianthechristian.c2@gmail.com) or post a question in the comment section. If you'd like help finding a Bible-based church in your area, email me.

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Photo borrowed from Bilbeny.
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Rethinking "Worship"

A couple days ago I posted a response to a conversation started by my Twitter friend Tami about "Why I Can't Listen to Christian Music." Something I wanted to address (and made very brief mention of, or eluded to in the post) was this notion that worship is founded in music. Don't get me wrong, I love singing songs of praise and love to my King, but worship is so much more than singing once or twice a week in corporate worship. Worship is my living response to God and His grace and mercy (and patience!), not the songs I sing. Now that I've said this some people are going to instantly jump on me (or become defensive, at a minimum) for insinuating that some people think music is the only way to "worship," but I beg for your patience before raising arms against me. :-)

I was reading an article by Dan Kimball called "Communicating Well in a Fast-Paced World" that discusses the misuses or misunderstandings of certain words used by the Church/believers and the theological (the way people know and understand God) ramifications of those words. The first one mentioned is "worship" and I think his words are worthy of repeating:

"...if you were to grab a 20-year-old who is part of your church and ask him or her “What is worship?” there is a very high probability he would say “music” or “singing.” After all, we call the musician who leads the singing the “worship pastor” or “worship leader.” After the sermon is over, the worship leader usually says something like, “Let’s now worship,” essentially equating worship with the singing. So naturally, when we ask a 20-year-old to define worship, the first thing that comes to their mind is singing. As they are in a conversation with someone and say, “I love to worship at my church,” it usually means they love the music. We know as leaders that singing is but one very limited understanding of what worship is. But week after week we let it go, reinforcing the common perception through our language. In the hectic and fast-paced nature of life and ministry, we may not be stopping to wonder if the people we lead are understanding theologically what “worship” really is. This does have theological implications to our day-to-day living. If the people we lead subtly begin equating worship with singing together, then we aren’t understanding the concept of holistic sacrificial worship as Romans 12:1–2 teaches. So worship takes place mainly at a meeting when we all sing, not as a lifestyle. An extreme dichotomy can occur in one’s spiritual formation and how they live their life and view themselves as a worshipper."

Could not have said it better (hence the reason I didn't!). Interested in seeing his views on some other key words ("church," "pastor," "sanctuary" or "meeting place")? Check out the rest of his article here (highly recommended!).

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Why I Can't Listen to Christian Music: My Response

This is my first inter-blog dialogue. My Twitter friend, Tami (a worship leader from Illinois), wrote the blog “Creativity or Why I Can’t Listen to Christian Music” and invited me to write a response to her post. I encourage you to click the link to her article (it’s a great read from the heart of a musician) before continuing my response.

MUSIC IS POWERFUL. Music is wonderful. Music is inspiring. Music is an instrument of worship.

As powerful and useful as music is, however, it is not the object of worship. It is man using God-created notes, and utilizing our God-reflected creative ability to sing about the Creator and His work. Any time it becomes more than that we have to step back and ask “who is really being worshipped through this music?” Unfortunately, the conversation about music usually talks more of the music (its uniqueness or creativity) or the musician(s) than the Creator. That is problematic – especially in “Christian music.” See Romans 1:25.

“Worship music,” as it is labeled (and a topic worthy of its own blog postings), is the musical section at a Christian bookstore. A true musician who is transformed by God knows of no other type of music. If they write and sing a “love” song, it is based in and reflects upon real love that is given by God for man and wife to share together. If they write a song about “What a Wonderful World” they rejoice in God’s Creation. The motivation for the songs they produce, the intended audience and their hearts as musicians are all founded in the same place – God, Himself. Music written solely as “worship” is odd to me because I did not know I was to classify or categorize my musical listenings, singings, and enjoyments. Worship is our attitude and response to God, not a musical selection.

Musical style is highly subjective. As Tami points out – what one person likes, another may loathe. I am not a major fan of K-Love for the same reasons as Tami; however, I know that my reasons for not liking it are because of my taste in music: (I like) indy-rock type music, some alternative, some rap, and not a lick of country (sorry country fans). I like music that sounds different, not cookie-cutter. I like deep lyrics that lead me to think and ponder. I also like fun songs that sing of true love, beautiful creation, passion, and that tell wonderful stories. I do not like much of K-Love-type music for two main reasons: (1) they seem to play the same music (or types of music – stuff that sounds the same) repeatedly, (2) I do not like a lot of the style(s) of songs they play (as I stated before).

To respond a little to Tami’s post, specifically…

“Now I know I’m coming off as a music snob; but music tastes are, you must admit, quite subjective.”

A danger indeed (sounding like a snob or pretentious) for all people in giving their opinion, especially since she conceded the fact that tastes are subjective (different from one person to the next). For Christians, however, being pretentious not only turns people away from us and our music, but away from the God we sing about and desire others to know.

“…I find what’s out there to be (overall) lyrically trite, musically lackluster and monotonous, and somewhat “un-anointed”…to be perfectly (and probably shockingly) frank.”

This is a pretty tough statement to make. I understand (and agree in large part) what she is saying, but to call music “un-anointed” is a slippery slope and all together problematic. Only God and His Spirit know what is anointed, we as fallible people can only guess. We do know what we like. We also know what moves us, but to call something “anointed” or “un-anointed” simply because it inspires or speaks to us (or doesn’t) is a conversation we are not capable of having because we are not objective beings.

“We need to starve in our hearts the notion of consumer Christianity, take the stars out of our eyes, stop wishing for Dove awards and seek the reward of knowing this Man who knows us so well.”

What a powerful conclusion! How different would much of Christian music look (on the radio or *gasp* in the church) if this happened?!?!

I appreciate your heart Tami – to serve Him, to love Him, to know Him and to help Him be known. I appreciate your passion for this subject. I just pray that as this dust settles, music or no music, we are all satisfied with and moved by the King of Splendor, the God of Wonders, the Great God, the Awesome God.

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