LeadershipConneXtions

What's Wrong With the Church? Dear Sirs...

Many years ago a London newspaper ran a series of essays that addressed the question of what is wrong with the world. They invited well known journalists and authors to submit essays which the paper would run in its series.

G.K. Chesterton submitted the shortest essay. It is reprinted in full for you to read.
 

Dear Sirs:

I am.

Sincerely;

G. K. Chesterton

hmmm....

I wonder if the church today would be well served if its critics had a healthy dose of Chestertonian humility?  For very few of them are responding with an answer like his to the question:
  

What is Wrong With the Church Today?

Instead, their answers point to everything but themselves. The problems are always external to them. Out there in the others, in the system, in the situation!!!  In this tactical approach and missing the key ingredient, they fall into bad spirituality, questionable emotional intelligence, weak psychology, terrible theology and then the inevitable miss on ecclesiology. 

Here are a few thoughts that are congruent with Chesterton's "essay." I use these to launch leaders (and hopefully critics) into a deeper self-assessment, discernment, discovery (Awareness). For these things are true in the life of every critic and Christian love and humility requires that we address these inner realities well.

Who can discern his (or her) errors? Forgive my hidden faults.  Psalm 19:12
 

If things go wrong in this world (or in the church) this is because something is wrong with the individual, because something is wrong with me. Therefore, if I am sensible, I shall put myself right first. For this I need a knowledge of the innermost foundations of my being... The true leaders of mankind are always those who are capable of self-reflection.  Jung


   
 

If our goal is to so reshape our organizations (and our churches) that they will survive and flourish in the new century, our most immediate need is to shape ourselves.  C. Michael Thompson


Our lives are mostly a constant evasion of ourselves.  T.S. Elliot

Nothing is so difficult as not deceiving oneself. Wittgenstein

We labor unceasingly to preserve an imaginary existence and neglect the real. Pascal.

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind . . .  Jeremiah 17:9,10

 So I ask and answer . . . 



    

What is wrong with my church (which I inadequately love)? 

Dear Sirs: 

I am, 

Regrettably, 
Brian Rice

This is not the final answer, but it must be the starting point in the conversation. At least it must be for anyone who wants to make a meaningful contribution.

I'll return to this theme of the church in a few days. Tomorrow, "A Brief History of Spirituality..."

Brian K. Rice  
Leadership ConneXtions International
www.lci.typepad.com

Why We Love the Church (A Few Personal Thoughts Inspired by DeYoung and Kluck)

Why We Love the Church: In Praise of Institutions and Organized Religion
by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck

I liked their book. Not everything in it, but a lot of it.  I also part ways with them on some major things. What I really liked is their willingness to love what  Christ loves and to write honestly about the Church. Not just write about its flaws (which there are many) but about its beauty, goodness and accomplishments (which are substantial).

They engage in reflection (and theologizing) about the church. Good stuff, vigorous ideas and stated in very accessible language.  They "got me" thinking.
 

Why I Love the Church
Why I Love My Church (most of the time)
Why My Church Loves Me (most of the time)
Here are some of my thoughts and they are not listed in order of importance.

I love my church because . . . they let me be a part of it. They encourage me to hang out there. They like me. They want me. In other words, there are a lot of gracious people there who are willing to overlook my faults and idiosyncrasies and failures and sins. 

I love my church because . . . there are some incredible people that are a part of it. There are stories being lived out in front of me that take my breath away. I hear story after story about journeys that I think - someone should write a book about that person. These stories are stories of the powerful working of God and about their "mostly" cooperative responses to that work. These are stories about people who are desperately lost and broken apart from God and their stories are about new life, dreams, hope and a whole lot more.

I love my church because . . . it isn't afraid to try new stuff. Okay, here is a personal bias. I am HUGELY wired for change. One of my greatest passions is growth and development. And my church is a growing, developing, morphing, "becoming" group of people. And for the most part, most of the time, most of the people are mostly okay with change. That is kind of incredible.

I love my church because . . . it is all about grace. It is simply in the DNA of the church. It is the bottom line. It is the foundation. It is atmosphere and ethos. It is the guiding principle. It is the litmus test. It is the clarion call. It is the Inner Voice of the organization. It is part of the charism of its founder.  It is... i am running out of ideas, but you get the point. If there is another group of wilder misfits and a motlier crew, all who are being united and transformed by grace -- my hat (that I don't wear) is off to you).  (And by the way, I don't carry the bag either.)

I love my church because . . . it is passionate about important stuff. Stuff meaning:  Jesus. Mission. Discipleship. Service. Kids. Teenagers. Hurting people. Leadership. Spirituality. Beauty. Generosity. Truth. The Bible. Culture. Evangelism. Transformation. Our City. Racial Reconciliation. Oh yes - and being the Body of Christ. And my church is doing a lot of these things well. Not perfectly. Not by a long shot. But pretty well. Oh yes, sometimes we really mess up and fall really short. Three steps forward and two back. Or is two forward and three back?  Anyway . . . We are managing to keep the main thing the main thing... mainly.  

I love my church because . . . I have great friends there. We do life together. We grow together. We have iron sharpening iron conversations. We serve together. We follow Jesus together. We forgive one another. We get to do all the "one another" stuff in the New Testament.  (Hmmm, I don't have one of those buttons on me at the time either.)

I love my church because . . . it connects me with people really different from me with a ton of people that I would otherwise NEVER hang out with, see, get to know, come to appreciate, learn to respect, have the opportunity to extend grace to (and have some given right back to me), argue with, pray with, and learn how to be the body of Christ.

And one more for this post.
I love my church because . . .  Jesus is all over the place and making everything else possible.

Why do you love your church?

Brian K. Rice
Leadership ConneXtions International
www.lci.typepad.com

 

Quitting Church: Why People Are and What To Do About It - It is a Lot More Complex Than Duin's Assessment

This is a long post with a more substantial reflection on the church, than what I normally do on this blogsite. There are a few times when this post begins to take on the quality of one of my Rant and Rave posts. No apologies. I am passionate about the church.

I also thought about doing a "re-write" to tone some stuff down. It is not my intention to hurt anyone. But I do want to speak strongly in the midst of a conversation where I experience the critics speaking very strongly.
 

Let me run a few questions by you.

MARRIAGE
Why is marriage in trouble in the USA today?
Why are people quitting marriage in such large numbers?
 

HEALTH CARE
What is wrong with the health care system?
What can we do about it...what should we do about it?

GOVERNMENT
Why are so many people so cynical and pessimistic about the government?
Why are so many people just giving up on expecting true change from great political leadership?
How can we change their viewpoint to they are excited once again about the government?
Or should we just bail and sit on the sidelines and gripe and complain?

For the three issues mentioned above - here are a few more questions.
How simple or how complex do you think those issues are?
How simple or how complex do you think the perspectives, answers, proposed solutions will be?

I think the issues are extremely complex and the answers are just as complex.


THE CHURCH...
Why are the Faithful Leaving?
What Can We Do About It?

These are the two big questions Julia Duin raises and answers. I am not satisfied with her assessment or her answers. 

What follows is a pretty strong criticism of Duin's highly critical book. 

Of her ten chapters, eight of them are focused on specific issues: Church is irrelevant, it is not providing community, it is not culturally engaged, singles are not welcome or helped, teaching is weak, the pastor is the problem, women don't have a true voice, and the Spirit of God is not showing up. In these eight chapters, you can find another 40 or so complaints listed.  (And I agree with many of our criticisms about the church. They are true for some churches at some times.)

Also, please understand that Julia Duin is one who has quit the church. For Duin, the "leavers" are blameless "with very few exceptions." (pp. 177).  I am sure she includes herself as one of the blameless. She has left the church and it is the church's fault.  The church is just not meeting the needs of people or her own needs. That language recurs over and over through her book. 

I grew a little weary of this whining about "my needs aren't being met." I also grew a little skeptical about the "not my fault" mentality that was looking for the herd of "leave takers" to confirm her choice.

I almost despaired thinking about how to write a post(s) in response to the endless specifics with which I disagree. Then the next day I read a book by two authors who (in essence) did a far better job than I could do (although there are definitely things they say which I think are inadequate or misguided). The book is Why We Love the Church. I'll have a few comments about that in another post.  

Here is why I don't value Duin's contribution.

She quit, she complains, and she assesses blame as wholly elsewhere and on the other! I have been in enough counseling situations, enough church conflict situations, enough messy leadership scenarios to know -- there is always more than one side to the story... and that one person, one party, one position NEVER has all the blame. A little more self-awareness and humility on Duin's part would have been nice.
 

If you quit and bail -- you lose the right to criticize on what you've quit. Sorry, that is just the way it is. On anything. 

If you want to criticize, then hang in there. Do the hard work of love. Okay, so you've been hurt. WHO HASN"T BEEN HURT?  You've been disappointed and let down! Join the club called humanity. 

You think you can do church better. Than do it. Do it for about ten years and then tell us how you did it. But along the way, here is what I think you will find. You aren't going to do a very good job at it. You will hurt people. You'll disappoint them. You'll let them down. You won't meet their needs. And they will criticize you at every step. And they will QUIT on you. They will take their leave of you and they will put all the blame on you.

Please stop with the banal answers of - be more relevant. Be more loving. Have more community. Have better teaching. Do a better job of leading.  As if we don't know this already. As if thousands of us are not trying to do these very things. As if we haven't learned a few things along the way. And as if there are not multiple ways forward. 

Oh yes... one more thing. Please give up on the naive idea that the "House Church" is the answer. Lots of us know it isn't. It is just as hard as any other "form" or "method" or "style" of church.  Here is what we are going to see in about 5 years.  Books titled: 

Why I Quit My House Church:  My Needs Weren't Being Met.

Disillusioned with the House Church: Memoirs of a Post-Emergent Pagan.

Help for Those Hurt by Dysfunctional House Church Leaders

If You Thought Big Church Was Bad... Why I Left the House Church Movement

The house church already has problems with mission, teaching, community, and leadership. 

Imagine this scenario. Thousands of untrained leaders. Not trained in understanding the Bible. Not trained in teaching or facilitating. Not trained in processing relational conflict. Not trained in leadership. Not trained in missional outreach. Not trained in the spiritual disciplines. Not trained in much at all. And now they are a "new kind of leader for a new kind of church."  Where do I sign up?  (Sarcasm intended.)

Oh wait. We've already had that situation. It was/is known as the small group movement. 

Today the small group movement just got a lot sexier and edgier by taking the name "House Church." Wonderful! But a poorly led, poorly taught, poorly nurtured, poorly missional group is going to be a mess whether you call it a small group, a House Church, or Revolutionary Cell, or Christian Coven (sorry, more sarcasm playing around with those who play around with the idea of Pagan Christianity) or whatever you decide to name it. 

And this is only going to get worse, not better.  I can share some personal anecdotes of my own on this as well. Some from years ago and some from last month. I've heard plenty of anecdotes from people who have left a house church which they described as deeply dysfunctional, bad leadership, lousy teaching, ingrown, not missional, etc.  Hmmm. That sounds familiar.  I guess human nature erupts in small groups as well as large ones.

By the way, for the record, I have no problems with House Church as one more method, way, strategy for doing church in our time. I do have a problem with utopian views about the house church. I do have a problem thinking it is THE way to do church.

*****************

Okay, there are real issues in the church.  Lots of them. There are real problems. These issues and problems are very complex. We mess up a lot. We fall terribly short so often. There are many, many nuances in every issue. There are always multiple reasons for every problem. There are always about as many perspectives on an issue-problem as there are people involved. 

And we need to do something about the problems. 

Here is what I am left with. 

Jesus loved the church. I am pretty sure that Jesus still loves the church. Jesus has not Quit on the church. I am also pretty sure that Jesus wants us to love the church also. Jesus, because he doesn't quit on the church and because he sacrificially loves the church, has the right to criticize and rebuke his church (for an illustration of this read Revelation 2 and 3). I'd like to suggest that we be about the imitation of Christ on this. That means, do not Quit, Bail, Leave, Flee, or Abandon...  If it gets that bad, then you have the opportunity to practice loving your enemy.  Go for it and see what God does in you even if he does little around you.  (Note: In a later post, I'll address the fact that renewal of broken systems sometimes means going outside the system and starting something new.)

The New Testament church was a very messy affair. All you have to do is read Paul's letters and you see that it has always been this way. For Paul, the church was worth fighting for, praying for, suffering for, dying for.  And he did. He loved the church as did his Savior.  Paul was always committed to the imitation of Christ.

I have been tempted more than once to quit, to bail, to throw in the towel. I've been hurt too. I've been misunderstood, taken advantage of, criticized, not appreciated, not had my needs met... 

And in all of this, Jesus brings me back to the great goal and outcome of our faith, which has never ceased to be... 

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and spirit. And love your neighbor as yourself. Some of those neighbors are church people.

Love one another. By this, all people will know you are my followers. I am pretty sure that no exegetical gymnastics is going to be able to translate the word love as Quit on one another.

Love is patient and kind... love always hopes and always perseveres. (i.e.  Love does not Quit.)

Love doesn't quit and complain from the sidelines. Love engages, love suffers, love sacrifices, love redeems...

So I've stayed the course, prayed for grace and healing. Recognized my own sin and shortcomings as well those of the "other." I've become a little more humble along the way. A bit more grateful. And certainly more dependent on mercy and forgiveness. (And still grumbled way too much... but tried to do it under my breath.)

The church that Jesus died for is not a church we want to Quit on.

And finally... (to mercifully end this way to long post on a semi-humorous note)

. . . here is one creative, marketing appeal for church...

The only problem is, when you join it, it may begin to...
Sorry... had to get that one in.

Brian "a very great sinner who needs the Church" Rice  
Leadership ConneXtions International  
www.lci.typepad.com

Quitting Church (A Few Thoughts Inspired by Julia Duin)

Last week I have had some "spirited" discussions with some friends about the church and its relevance (and image and attractiveness) to the culture around us. 

• Why do people come to church? 
• Why don't people come to church?
• Why do they come but not come back?
• Why do they come for a time, but then leave?

We did not come to any sort of consensus on our answers. 

In the 1970s and 1980s, evangelicals (and the conservative church in general) had a good thing going. The ranks were swelling as people left the historic mainline denominations, which for the most part saw continued decline through last century and which has continued into this new one.

But as the first decade of the new millennium draws to an end, all is not well with conservative Christianity and its churches, whether evangelical, fundamentalist, pentecostal or charismatic.

We know people are leaving the church.
We know church attendance among conservative churches is dropping.

Whereas a Gallup Poll said that in 2006, 43% of Americans attended church (129 million), other studies show a much smaller percentage, more in the range of 18-20%. 

We know that 10% of the churches in America have about 50% of all church attendance.  

And we know that while many of these churches are quite large and have a good Front Door, there is also a considerable Back Door. There are a lot of people leaving conservative churches.

George Barna has been a leader in speaking and writing about this trend. (How good he is, is another matter!)

David Kinnaman spoke clearly about this issue in his recent book - Unchristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks ABout Christianity...and Why it Matters.

Dan Kimball wrote about the emerging (and postmodern) generation and why they are not attracted to our church - They LIke Jesus But Not the Church.

The emergent authors in general, rightly I might add, have this issue on the front burner of the conversation.

Julia Duin, a religion editor of The Washington Times, has weighed in on the issue in her book:

Quitting Church: Why the Faithful are Fleeing and What To Do About It.

I am going to weigh in on her perspective which I think is deeply flawed in many ways: shallow in its interpretation, naive in its solutions, and sad in its tenor. 

I do not doubt (for the most part) the statistics of what is going on. Nor do I deny the anecdotes which she provides as illustrations of the statistics. Nor am I insensitive to her personal, painful experience. What I do find problematic is her assessment of why, and her answers are almost insulting for those who are still working and struggling in the church which they love. Here is where I am pretty post-modern. There are not "brute facts" on this matter. There are only interpreted facts. I think her interpretation is flawed and biased in a number of ways.

Her book is an example of how complex this issue is and how thoughtful we must be if we are to move forward. 

So over the next several days, I'll have some of my reflections on this issue.

I look forward to hearing from anyone who wants to weigh in on this issue.

Brian K. Rice
Leadership ConneXtions International  
www.lci.typepad.com

Consumption as a Way of Life (and Faith): Part Two

How many advertisements do you think you are exposed to every day? The New York Times reports that every day, every American is exposed to 3,500 "desire producing advertisements."

We live in a culture that seeks to stimulate our desire to have things we didn't know we needed or wanted. The world of advertising/marketing strives to stimulate your desire to buy, by stirring up our unhappiness and inciting dissatisfaction when we realize we don't have something.

And of course, tied with every product is the promise of enjoyment and happiness (when you own that product or experience).

Hand in hand with this cultural way, is an economic system of buying now what you can't afford through the use of credit cards and delayed payment. We delay payment so we do not have to delay gratification. This comes with an inflated cost due to compound interest and an eventual burden of debt that makes us unhappy which then fuels our need to buy something else to cheer us up. 

Jethani says, "Although lack of self-control has always plagued humanity, for the first time i history an economic system has been created that relies on it."

Consumption is a way of life.

After 9/11, we were encouraged not to let the terrorists win. They would win if we changed our spending, shopping habits. President Bush proclaimed to the terrorists that Americans would continue to "fly and buy."

In our current economic crisis, the last thing the powers that be (i.e. principalities of business and government) want us to do is cut back on our spending. Our economy needs jump-started with a new wave of spending.  (Excuse me - isn't that what got us in this bind in the first place?!?)

Remember, from yesterday, that I said it is not that being a consumer/customer is wrong. What is wrong is the way we are now engaging in those activities.
 

And the world of faith and church has not been immune.

Here is what every Christian leader knows (or should know:

(1)  Whether we like it or not, the person sitting in the pew is a customer/consumer and they expect the church (or para-church, or whatever) to provide what it is they are looking for.

(2)  We know that if we do not provide it, there are others who will. And as in most things, you can take your "spiritual business" elsewhere.

(3)  We also know you want and expect the latest and the best. We know the customer is naturally a critic.

(4)  And if we are really good at all this, we figure out how to "brand" our product so it is even more recognizable, marketable and profitable.

Our strategies may vary widely.

We may decide that we don't care what you think you want. We will give you what we think you need.

We may decide that we must work very hard to change you as the customer/consumer so that you come to want, what we are providing. 

Or we may just give in and cater to things the way they are and give you want you want.

There may be other options, but these are the ones that come to mind right now.

What I believe is that this reality is true for the church of modernity and post-modernity.  It is true for the evangelical church and the emerging church.

Rob Bell knows exactly what his customers want. So does Brian McLaren. So does Bill Hybels and Rick Warren and Andy Stanley and Joyce Meyers and John Maxwell and Benny Hinn . . .  And so do the people who market their products! You can also bet that each of those individuals gets regular reports on how well their products sell... how large the numbers of customers are at their events..

Every individual I mentioned, even though they each have strong personal convictions about what is right and true, also know their audiences have expectations and wants. And they design their offering to provide what is wanted. Then the world of Christian marketing and merchandizing kicks in to both promote and deliver that product, not to mention, make a profit off of it.

At what point do we lose our soul to the machine of Christian commerce?

By the way, it is more than a little ironic that SKye Jethani, who launched this conversation for me (and who had some profound things to say about it), is right in the center of the Christian marketing enterprise with his role at Christianity Today. For example, just click here to go a blog he does and see it surrounded with a plethora of advertising... all designed to appeal to (OR) stimulate your needs.

Hmmm.... this is starting to sound like a Rant and Rave, and I try to do those only occasionally.

As you can tell, I don't pretend to have good answers to this. I'm just glad if I can be one of those spreading a little more awareness of the situation/problem.

Hey, this is one issue I would love to hear some of your thoughts.

Is the church becoming too consumerist?
Are Christians becoming just like the culture around us?
How are you doing on these things?

Brian K. Rice
Leadership ConneXtions International
www.lci.typepad.com

Sunday School in Decline in American Churches

One thing I have always appreciated at Living Word is the large numbers of children we have and the programs we have for them. Children are a priority for us and in recent strategic thinking, we are making some major new initiatives for our children.

Here is an article from the Wall Street Journal on the decline of the Sunday School program.

What do you think about the decline of the  Sunday School movement / program?

And, why do you think it is in decline?

Is the decline inevitable?

Brian Rice
Leadership ConneXtions International

Yes They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Like (Peter Schultes)

Well, change one word and you have the right title. Yes They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love!

Maybe that is part of the problem! We aren't loving one another deeply enough, strongly enough, consistently enough, unconditionally enough . . .

David Naugle says of love:

It is the mark of the Christian.

If Christians sported a tattoo, then love would be it.

It is the distinguishing mark of our faith.

It is the final apologetic that is needed.

It is the validity of the Gospel.

Naugle used a long quote describing the early Christian church in the 2nd century.  These words were not written by a Christian author, but by a secular authority about the Christians   [The Apology of Aristides.]

They walk in all humility and kindness, and falsehood is not found among them, and they love one another. They despise not the widow and grieve not the orphan.

He that has distributes liberally to him who has not. If they see a stranger, they bring him under their roof and rejoice over him, as [if he] were their own brother, for they call themselves brethern, not after the flesh, but after the Spirit and in God; but when one of their poor passes away from the world, and any one of them see him, then he provides for his burial according to his ability, and if they hear that any of their number is imprisoned or oppressed for the name of their Messiah, all of them provide for his needs, and if it is possible that he may be delivered, they deliver him.

And if there is among them a man that is poor and needy, and they have not an abundance of necessaries, they fast two or three days that they may supply the needy with their necessary food.  

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

Houston, We Have a Problem

It was a book by J.I. Packer, Quest for Godliness, where I first encountered these words that have now been repeated endlessly by others who share the assessment:

North American Christianity is 3000 miles wide and 1/2 inch deep.For our international readers, continental United States is about 3000 miles wide.

To say it in a more contextualized way, North American Christianity is 4800 kilometers wide and one centimer deep!

But what exactly does this mean? Well, the Barna research group gives some concrete data to this. You may not agree with their definition of substantially deep personal faith (I for one think it is lacking in some significant ways) but it is a way to launch this conversation.

The Barna research defines a biblical worldview that is substantially deep as consisting of the following beliefs:

1. Jesus lived a sinless life.
2. God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe and He still rules it today.
3. Salvation is free gift from God and it cannot be earned.
4. Satan is real.
5. A Christian has a personal responsibiity to share her / his faith with others.
6. The Bible is accurate in all the principles it teaches.
7. Unchanging moral truth exists.
8. Such moral truth is defined by the Bible

Now, out of the 95 million Americans between the ages of 18-41, about 65 million say they have made a commitment to  Christ that is still important to them. Yet, only 3 million of that 65 million embrace the eight beliefs listed above.

And, of the 73 million Christian adults over the age of 41 who say they have  made a commitment to Christ that is still important, only 9% of them believe the worldview mentioned above.

This is the superficial faith in the United States that Packer says is 1/2 inch deep.

By the way, post-modernity is not to blame for this. PoMo has only been around for a handful of years. The issue is that we are now reaping and seeing the consequences of how faith was preached and practiced in modernity through the last half of the 20th century.

Evangelicals, charismatics, pentecostals, fundamentalists - all of them/us - 3000 miles wide and 1/2 inch deep.

I think it is safe to say one thing: What the conservative North American church has done for the last fifty years HAS NOT WORKED to shape in its adherents the life of maturity and substance.

Remember the definition of insanity. Doing the same thing you have done in the past and thinking you will get different results..

It's way past time to throw open the door to lots of creative, innovative, paradigm-busting possibilities for how we follow Christ and do church and see where the wind of the Spirit blows.

Colorado Springs, Wheaton Illinois - WE HAVE A PROBLEM?

Brian Rice

Rene Padilla on the North American Church

Rene Padilla is an evangelist/author/missiologist from Argentina. He has lived and ministered in both Latin and North American contexts. Padilla had this to say about the North American Church:

"Far from being a factor for the transformation of society, it has become merely another reflection of society and (what is worse) another instrument that society uses to condition people to its materialistic values."  (Mission Between the Times)

This is also one of the critiques of the emergent church about the mainstream evangelical church. Instead of confronting our culture with another way (that of Jesus), Christianity has been co-opted by both the mainstream evangelical and even more by the Prosperity Movement to legitize our culture of materialism.

Although maybe this month of December Christmas shopping is not the "opportune" time to offer Padilla's insights.

Brian Rice