SimpleChurch Journal aka House Church Blog

Church Growth Hormone Addict

This is an article worth summarizing, particularly if you have been a church-growth junky in your past life (as I have).  It is written by Ray Baumann:

I used to be a Church Growth Hormone addict. For my first eight years in the ministry, I was on a daily diet of books and videos centered around the latest church fads and trends that focused on church growth. I was on the cutting edge of ministry thinking, learning more and more about marketing and the psychology of connecting people. I believed that numbers equaled success...

For pastors, it's the number of people that are sitting in the seats that seems to be the measure of success. This is something, however misguided it may be, that we all strive to obtain. Now, more than ever before, there are numerous books that place emphasis on the subject of church growth and there seems to be a greater desire to be a mega church. This desire then facilitates the thought pattern of, "If I grow the church, I'm doing more for God than the next guy."

Just like the professional athlete on steroids, pastors have been caught taking Church Growth Hormones for growth's sake. Many have seen the fast, "successful" results and have signed on, thus endorsing this dangerous pill. They have improved their performances on Sundays and Wednesdays to attract people. The Church Growth Hormone contains some very ugly ingredients. Let's take a look.

The ingredients are as follows: man-centered theology, relevant messages that solve people's problems by meeting their needs, events and programs that reach out to the community, and music that is contemporary and entertaining. For best results, remove pews, dress casual, and install a 5000 lumen projector. If taken weekly and if you follow a regimented marketing strategy, you are guaranteed growth. The side effects may include unbelievers in leadership, false converts, uncommitted members, and shallow minds.

On my own, there is no way that I could see the damaging effects of what I was participating in. To top it off, I was encouraged in this sin by many people. If anyone asked how the church was doing, what they really wanted to know was how our attendance numbers were, not how God was working or what He was doing in our congregation.

You can read the entire article here.

I still possess the skills to attract an audience.  It's just not that difficult to do.  But how much more fulfilling it is (for me) to be part of the growing army of intentional, missional believers who are committed to living in authentic, biblical community.  Now that's what I'm talking about!  I think it is James Rutz who envisions several million believers leaving their pews and streaming onto the playing field to engage the world for Christ.  That is an event that will provoke the type of real church/kingdom growth that can change a world!

Community Life: the "Shared Life"

Call me sentimental, but this time of year seems like a good time to reflect on community life. Chris Marshall wrote: "I often say that church is not someplace you go but it's a people you belong to."

(Please share your own experiences with The Shared Life via comments below).

I have had some awesome community-life experiences and... I have been immensely disappointed at times. Big surprise!

First-- Some Background on the Shared Life

It seems to me that nothing is more basic to the simple-church / house-church thing than sharing life with others-a small community of intimate friends. In this context we are able to live out the "one-another" aspect of the Christian life:

• Honor one another
• Bear with one another in love
• Encourage one another
• Accept one another
• Serve one another

This type of powerful caring cannot take place in a crowd. It requires a small group of people who are committed to each other and to God's purposes for their lives.

In the context of this type of community life healing takes place. Henri Nouwen suggests that "when we are willing to confess both to ourselves and the other that we too are broken, that we too have a handicap, and that we too need a place to grow, we can build a home together and offer each other an intimate place." It is this intimate place that provides the seedbed for healing and transformation!

In addition, this type of community life provides an environment where we learn to root for each other to discover and enter into God's very best. Eldredge coined the term "intimate allies" to describe the way in which we support each other in our personal journeys as well as find ways to "go on quests together."

A Personal Shared Life Experience

I could share many wonderful stories of experiences I have had in community, but the following story stands out:

About two years ago I was going through a very difficult time with a son who was struggling spiritually and acting out in several self-destructive ways. I have been through several seasons of loss and pain, but this was a particularly grievous time. True to my usual self, however, I had escaped into some form of numbness and was not fully aware of how deep my grief was.

This was my condition as I stumbled into a house church meeting, a meeting of friends and people who are committed to the shared life. I came, frankly, with nothing to offer others or God. I simply came. I ate with others and then sat as worship began to take place around me. I was too disengaged to take part. I simply closed my eyes and sat still in a foggy, numbed-out state of mind.

My friends knew what was going on and I assumed they were content to just let me be and to soak in a bit of God's presence.

However, after sitting for some time, with eyes closed, I felt something touch my foot. I could not imagine what it was. Opening my eyes slowly I realized that a woman-a dear friend and caring person-had kneeled down in front of me and was washing my shoe-clad foot. I was stunned and surprised, but I could not really take it in. My emotions were running in slow motion. I continued to sit and try to absorb what was happening. Then, moments later, my other foot was being touched. When I looked again, I saw an older man-one of my closest friends and mentors whom I look up to and admire-kneeling at my other foot and washing my shoe in a gesture of God's love for me.

Even now, two years later, my eyes become moist as I remember the spontaneous, cathartic release of tears and sobbing that broke from my heart as I took in the love that was being shown to me. His love, shown through others, broke down the walls of numbness and self-protection that allowed my raw wound to be exposed and thus healing to begin.

Challenges with the Shared Life

Ah, but there are also the challenges. The times when community life just seems to make you want to pull out your hair (if you have any) and scream "aaaaggggghhhhhhh!!!!!" Perhaps I should avoid specifics here (I never know who ends up reading one of my blog posts) and just say that there are times when all of us want to make community life all about our self: "What's in it for me?" "Why isn't anyone paying attention to my needs?" "Why are others being so self-centered?" "Why is so-and-so being so hurtful?"

None of us absolutely love working through conflicts, dealing with difficult people, or persevering when community life is less-than rewarding. But that is all part of the package. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

Yet, I personally hang in because I believe it is God's purpose for transformation and because it is, at times, an indescribable life-supporting gift.

As I have expressed, I would love to hear the experiences of others!