Through some of the reading that I have been engaged in I came across a great question. I have been wondering what the church is doing right and what we are missing the boat on. Also in the equation would be the the preservation of what it central and critical to the nature and mission of the church. What are some of the irreducibles of the church that we should never “water down” because of the risk of being unfaithful to our call as the poeple of God. I know that there would be some things that would differ on this list depending on things like theology and understanding of mission…
The question being asked is, “Is the church attempting to answer questions that no one is asking anymore?” Are we relevant or are we talking to things that are not resonating with the hearts with the people we are ministering to and with?
In seeing some of the things that I have seen that are emerging in worship, discipleship and service are interesting. I there are some things that I can’t see giving up or giving into, but there are also a bunch that don’t take away from the foundations of the church. It first glance some of these things (twittering during church, online campus, worship in the round…) could be thought of as intrusions to the foundation, but maybe a better take would be that these things are just different. They may not be within our comfort zone, but then there may be a good chance that it is resonating within the hearts of those we are trying to reach for the Kingdom.
I think that this will always be a struggle to find balance, but it is great to keep this healthy tension to be as relevant as possible. On second thought maybe this new way is all about the questions. Through community and conversation maybe the questions are key. I know that it is a shift for many to not be told an answer, but to arrive at it for themselves. I don’t know…fun to think about. 🙂
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