January 2008 Archives
From The Crucifixion of Ministry by Andrew Purves:
The crucifixion of ministry is good news! My goal in this book is to offer a perspective on ministry and illustrate a practice that liberates ministers from the grind of feeling that "it's all up to me." I have two themes:
- Conceiving ministry as our ministry is the root problem of what ails us in ministry today.
- Ministry should be understood as sharing in the continuing ministry of Jesus Christ, for wherever Christ is, there is the church and her ministry.
The crucifixion of our ministries is good news: "We should expect that our ministries too should die, even be killed, that they may be raised with Christ."
C. Michael Patton visits a popular non-denominational Evangelical associated church and reflects on the experience:
I could go on but this experience has confirmed to me the desperate shape that the modern church is in and the need that we have for theological renewal. When things get tough (and they will), who will people turn to when the entrainment, laughter, and fun will serve no purpose. May God grant us a mindset to give people their true needs, not their felt needs.
Truth first, mission second, fellowship third, and if there is any room, throw in some entertainment.
I was asked recently if I know any "good" churches in the area. (The person asking put "good" in inverted commas)
I had to reply 'that depends on what you mean by "good"'
If "good" = catering to your personal wish list then that is very different to where "good" = a community that will call me and challenge me to live in a Christlike way.
For many the dominant questions when picking a church are related to the music, the kids and youth ministries and the interest level of the preaching. Is it any wonder we find ourselves in the malaise we are currently in?
As I have said before we can only be disciples in community so this question of alignment cannot be overrated.
This needs to be balanced with the very real acknowledgement that we do have needs. The person asking me the question has a teenage son, so while I believe ours is a "good" church I am not sure it would be a suitable church for him and his family as he may wish for his son to have a larger peer group.
He captures the tension of choosing a church as disciples, not consumers, while still acknowledging that we have needs.
