Megachurches, part of the problem???

Today I read in the Raleigh News and Observer that there’s a new study on the types of people who attend megachurches in the U.S.  It’s an interesting article but, as usual, I think they are casting the findings in the worst possible light.  I think there is some very good news in this study and some room to grow as well.  If you want to read the article click here - http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/1562002.html.

 

“Conducted by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research at Hartford Seminary and Leadership Network, the survey of nearly 25,000 people who attend 12 U.S. megachurches was conducted from January through August 2008. It is billed as the largest representative national study of that religious demographic to date.”

 

The study found that 5 million a week attend one of 1300 megachurches.  (Churches with over 2000 attenders.)  They tend to be younger, wealthier and better educated than the numbers you see across the board for Protestants in America.  Also, more of them are single.  Almost a 1/3 are single as compared to 10% in the average congregation. 

 

The bad news is they also tend to give less and volunteer less than people in smaller congregations.  Now that’s going to spark some comments I’m sure.  All my life smaller church advocates have told me that those people at those big churches are just there for the show and are not committed to building the church. 

 

I always find that unusual since I’ve never been in a small church that didn’t have to beg for volunteers.  Instead of suggesting that megachurch attendees aren’t engaged could it be that megachurch attendees are just a different demographic of people. 

 

Almost a 1/3 are single.  Now who is single in America today?  Young people and single parents, that’s who, exactly the kind of people who don’t have lots of money and may be short on time as well. 

 

The study also pointed out that nearly a ¼ were new to or returning to the church after a long time.  Also many other said they were attending more than one church.  These are not people who give and volunteer as they change churches or just try to learn what church is all about.

 

If you really want to gauge the health of a megachurch go and observe their programming.  Are they adequately staffed?  Are they working in inventive ways to reach stated ministry goals?  Are those who are volunteering growing in the Lord?

 

What’s better, 80 beleaguered volunteers struggling to keep open the doors of a church that is no longer reaching the community?  Or 1000 volunteers who are so slammed with new Christians and families in need that they can’t get a breath?  I’m guessing the second one will look and feel more like they are serving a living, active God who is on the move in this Earth today.

 

A few months ago I tried to tell a friend about a great new church in her community.  She stopped me and said they are going to go to Grandma’s church until she died; then her daughter piped in “and after that we aren’t going anywhere!”  That was the end of that conversation.  Obviously this small church was not making its point very well.  I wonder if that pastor gets mad when people head to the new megachurch instead of staying at the burial grounds?

 

I’m going to adopt different viewpoint.  Several Sundays back Perry Noble told his congregation at NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC he hated it when people called NewSpring a megachurch. (NewSpring is one of the fastest growing churches in the state.)  He said there are 2 million people in upstate South Carolina who need to hear the gospel.  As far as he was concerned their church was a microchurch!

 

He’s got the right idea.  Jesus is creating one megachurch here on earth and instead of measuring the haystacks we need to start measuring the fields.  

Memories of Jack Kemp

We lost Jack Kemp today. I’m sure many who knew him longer and far better will have a lot to say about this great leader but I wanted to add my thoughts because, for me, Jack Kemp was exactly the kind of Republican and American I’d like to be.

Since college I had been a Jack Kemp supporter. He always intrigued me with the way he spoke about American cities. For the last 40 years Republican leaders rarely even mention our cities, and when they do they mention them it only to denigrate them. But Jack understood that a nation’s cities were the foundation of a nation’s culture. When the cities are sick the whole country is sick. So he focused like a laser on helping the cities with little regard to whether it helped him or his party succeed.

Today, for the first time in a long time, young evangelical church planters and organizers are moving their families into the roughest neighborhoods in America’s cities. Going to where Jesus would go, they say. But in a very real way they are following a path beaten out by Jack Kemp who was 50 years ahead of his party on this issue.

I got a chance to meet Jack Kemp in recent years as he became one of the chief advocates for the D.C. Voting Rights Act. My boss, Tom Davis, crafted this legislation to give the people of D.C. a voting member of the House of Representatives. And from day one, Jack Kemp was an enthusiastic supporter.

I saw Kemp argue and threaten and exhort the leaders of my party to support this worthy legislation. And I saw him win, again and again and again. By and large most thoughtful leaders in the GOP privately agreed with Tom Davis and Jack Kemp. But they wouldn’t dare say so publically. I can tell you from personal knowledge that this bill had quiet supporters from the Eisenhower Building to the Capitol to the White House – who were afraid to stand up to the lowest common denominator in the GOP. (Mike Steele being a notable exception.)

But Secretary Kemp wasn’t afraid, he ran to battles like that. He reveled in his wins and shrugged off his losses. I remember seeing Kemp on the floor the day we passed the DCVRA out of the House. In spite of furious opposition, 21 courageous Republicans stood with Tom Davis and Kemp was there to shepherd them in. He was always willing to answer any questions and honest arguments. Every member was a target for him - that was his optimism coming through - he knew he could convince them all.

My favorite memory of Kemp was a few moments I shared alone with him one day where he laughed about how two right wing Christians were right in the middle of the nation’s last major voting rights fight. He encouraged me that it was ok to split from 90% of my party on this important justice issue because this is what Jesus would do.

So now Jack Kemp is gone when we needed him the most. Right when the GOP is struggling to figure out how to redefine itself once again so we can win a few elections. I think we need to take a few notes from Kemp’s life.
We need to quit worrying about outcomes and focus on being right. We need to care about people who may never vote for us and try to make their lives better. We need to affirm that cities and urban communities are vital to the health and future of this nation. We need to remember that leaders lead, they don’t poll their way to the top.

As Christians who work in the public sphere (since that is the primary focus of this blog) we need to remember that the best days are ahead of us, as Jack Kemp is surely confirming right now. So let’s adopt our brother’s optimism. Let’s take up his love for the poor. Let’s learn to love this place to which we’re called and fight for it with force and courage and enthusiasm.

It’s silly to say “rest in peace” in regards to a man like Jack Kemp since that is out of the question so instead I’ll just say enjoy your just rewards brother. You served America well, left a proud legacy for your family and will never be forgotten.

How not to be a political whacko . . .

Since the beginning of the Obama administration my email inbox has filled daily with alarms about outrage and betrayal. It seems that every day our nation is on the verge of total dissolution.

“There are no check and balances. There is no Constitution. The enemy is everywhere, controlling everyone and if you don’t forward this email to your local list of like minded voters you might as well join the blue helmeted Belgians that could come marching down the street at any moment!”

These emails don’t just come from the disaffected and marginalized fringe. I get the same emails from most local politicians in my party of choice. (That’s what I’m calling the GOP these days.) The only difference is they want my time and money as well as my email list.

In our defense, mainstream Democrats weren’t much different in the last eight years. In one sense, they are reaping what they sowed. “Those who demonize and criminalize shall be demonized and criminalized.” It’s the first rule of politics.

So just in case you care about current events but don’t want stain your reputation or ruin perfectly good friendships in the process, I’m offering a short list of truths that I’ve found helpful over the last twenty years. If you apply these truths you’ll be effective in the arena of ideas, avoid saying the most ridiculous things and possibly actually make a difference in the world.

JIM'S 10 MAXIMS TO HELP YOU NOT BECOME
A RIGHT WING (OR LEFT WING) NUT

1. Things are always way more complicated than they sound.
2. American voters are not by and large "idiots" – for that matter neither are foreign voters.
3. No more than 3 people can collaborate together without someone else knowing about it.
4. You are not the only person who has heard about this.
5. If no one else seems upset about something there's probably a good reason for that.
6. If your point of view was really the majority opinion the laws would be different.
7. People who don't agree with you love this country just as much as you do.
8. All media is biased; even the media you trust . . . and that's ok.
9. Almost all research is agenda driven, even the research you like.
10. The real reason nothing changes is because things are basically the way people want them to be.

These are the maxims that I follow to stay in the game, stay relevant and not look like a raving lunatic. Maybe they’ll be helpful to you as well.

Look, as Christians who are called to work in government, we have to keep things in perspective. Our job is to promote justice, encourage mercy and forgiveness and walk humbly before God.

This is the God whose inexorable plan has come to pass and will ultimately continue to unfold. Yes, my side might not win today but that doesn’t mean that God lost. In fact, this is as good a time as any to square my side more fully with the three goals I mentioned above.

Anybody up for that?

Movies I Like: The Day the Earth Stood Still

Over the weekend I got to see “The Day the Earth Stood Still.” The movie is a loose remake of the 1951 classic movie and I’d give it a 4 out of 5 stars. The story is interesting because it flips the script on human beings by treating them as helpless before the alien invaders. This is exactly the kind of movie I would have never seen as a kid. No movies with aliens, monsters or dinosaurs allowed. It’s too bad because this movie is a great study on the person and nature of Jesus Christ.

I have to say one reason the comparisons stood out so clearly to me was because I had just finished listening to Francis Chan’s Easter sermon on podcast earlier that day. If you hang around me very long you’re bound to hear about Chan, the Pastor at Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley. Chan has a raw, honest way of calling people to follow hard after Christ.

On Easter Sunday, Chan went chapter by chapter through the gospel of John demonstrating how Jesus was a radical leader bent toward challenging the prevailing culture. Chan made it clear the Jesus we know - the one sitting on a rock and petting sheep - was nothing like the real man who came to earth with a plan to invade and crush Satan’s kingdom.

In the movie, the aliens send one of their own, Keanu, played by Klaatu Reeves - wait reverse that – to carry out the alien’s verdict to kill all humans and wipe evidence of our presence from the planet in order to save it. It seems we have made such a hash of things that the alien observers have decided we need to go. These aliens are not all powerful but compared to us they might as well be. The humans never have a chance.

And that’s where the interesting emotional twist set in for me. For some reason, I rarely feel utterly powerless. Maybe it’s because I’m a rich American. Maybe it’s because I’m inexperienced. Maybe it’s just bad theology that taught me that I get to make a choice as to whether I want to be saved or not. Even in the areas where I have faced almost constant failure I still feel like if I just try harder I could succeed.

When Jesus came He confronted a world packed with agendas. But they meant nothing to him. The Romans weren’t even relevant to his plans. The religious, church-going crowds were so confused most of them didn’t even see who he was. He blew right by them. The outcast, unloved and screwed up knew they could do nothing to make Him care about them. Those were the ones who mattered to Him.

But He came to say what he said. He taught anyone who would follow Him. Then He gave up His life. No one took it from Him. They didn’t affect his plan in the least bit. He was like Klaatu.

This is why all art is so useful to us humans. You could teach me that Jesus came to judge and redeem the world but a story lets me enter into the experience in a whole new way. I know people who are trying to follow the Lord Creator by removing things from their lives. I think that’s a dangerous path to follow. Yes, we need discernment but we need to recognize that all creative expression can tell us something of the story of God and our place in it. I don’t want to miss that experience.

I'm an extremist? I wish!

No doubt you’ve heard about the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assessment that became public in the last week. The “assessment” dated April 7, 2009, was issued by the Office of Intelligence and Analysis at the DHS and titled “Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment.”

The document alerts law enforcement officials that “rightwing extremists” may exploit Americans who have strongly held beliefs on issues like Christianity, U.S. sovereignty, the loss of American jobs and the 2nd Amendment. In a town where people are willing to get upset about anything, except what really matters, this is has been treated as a national crisis.

I'm not too upset about this report. For one thing, I went to UNC, and, as Tom Tancredo found out this week, where conservatives have long been violently blamed for everything wrong with the world for decades now.

Secondly, they are partially right. Of course everything they said about Christian conservatives could also be said about left wing radicals, and has been many times - by many of my fellow Christian conservatives!

In a country the size of the United States, there are a certain number of unstable people. In my experience, they fall across all political and religious perspectives. If you doubt this, pick your favorite public figure, someone famous, now search them on You Tube and see how many whackjobs out there are criticizing them. There are radicals all over the place.

The problem with the U.S. isn't that there are radicals. It's that we've lost the ability to recognize any validity in other perspectives. We're all saying, "How dare anyone call ME a radical! But look at that teenager over there in a headscarf . . . I hope someone's watching her, tapping her phone, and reading her email.”

Why shouldn't a poorly educated liberal American analyst with no conservative friends be afraid of people like me and you? Right wingers have killed in America in my lifetime and if our ignorant DHS analyst wants to paint with a broad brush, how is he different from the conservative right winger who doesn't think liberals can be Christians?

Here's the thing, I WANT to be a radical. I want to live just like a radical. I want to follow in the footsteps of a radical who hung on a cross because the religious leaders thought he was a traitor and a heretic.

I grew up in a country where everyone called themselves Christians but they hated people who didn't look like them and chose to kill unborn babies for convenience. My people spend a few millions to help the less fortunate (when they aren't lecturing them on responsibility) but spend trillions to make themselves more comfortable. My country has 6% of the world’s population but 25% of the world's prisoners. Why would anybody want to claim to be in the majority in THAT country?

The problem with America isn't that some idiot thinks right wingers are dangerous, it's that nobody thinks Christians are dangerous. But as I look around I am seeing just a glimmer that the next generation is ready to stand up and live full out for Christ, while the critics complain about their tattoos. God bless them, maybe one day Christians will again be as feared as the one they claim to follow.

I'm fighting for Christmas this year

I don't know why it's been so hard to find the mood of the season for me. Maybe it's the stress of a new job. Maybe it just the stress of living this Northern VA life. Maybe it's the economy. Whatever it is it has been hard to feel like Christmas is coming.

Usually that is very easy for me. We come home from Thanksgiving and it gets cold and all of a sudden I'm just thrilled with the thought of the coming advent season. I love the dark afternoons and cold nights. I enjoy the crowded stores and lights in the streets. Mostly I enjoy taking the emotional journey of hoping, then believing then waiting for that blessed night when I can regard all the wonder of what God did for us. What he did for me.

But this year was just off. So now it's Christmas Eve eve. We are packing like crazy for the long drive south and I know by the time I can take a breath it will all be over.

What stinks is I really need Christmas this year. I need the sense that all is well. I need to feel that there is good news of great joy.

There's so much stress and pain in this world. Cholera in Zimbabwe, riots in Greece, slavery and oppression everywhere. And in my life I'm losing more battles than I'm winning.

I guess I need a Christmas miracle. We'll see what happens. I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection as I share in His sufferings. My sufferings are so mundane.

We need a little Christmas, right this very minute...

So where are all these awful churches everyone keeps preaching about?

You know the ones. They are creating these huge mega churches but they don’t preach orthodox Christianity. My pastor keeps telling me about them so they must be out there. I just can’t find them.

What about all the churches who have sold out to the culture and are more focused on smoke machines and lasers than preaching the entire gospel of Christ? Everyone says these churches are leading to the demise of American Christianity. But why is it that when I visit these churches or podcast their sermons I hear the “good news” that Jesus loves me and has died for my sins and the “bad news” that a life of following Christ will be full of troubles.

Then there are all the topical preachers out there who don’t preach God’s word but instead just focus on helping me solve the everyday problems of my life. I really want to get worked up about the lack of expository teaching; except I’m finding that God uses both types of preaching and teaching in my life.

When did we decide that it is ok to take potshots at other churches on issues that don’t matter? Why do our pastors feel so secure in feeding our innate desires to believe we’re better than everyone else instead of teaching us the discipline of love in the unity of the Body of Christ?

For instance, I don’t agree with everything Rob Bell teaches but, after listening to several dozen sermons, I’m convinced he’s essentially orthodox. More importantly I see and hear stories of changed lives and people following hard after Christ.

Mark Driscoll has, at times, been crasser than I would have preferred. And I’m not sure his masculine Christ really honors the whole nature of God. But people are getting saved in Seattle! People are coming close to the Lord and surrendering their lives to Him.

Erwin McManus uses pretty unorthodox language but when Hollywood types are entering into real conversations about faith and coming to see that the historic Jesus Christ died as their substitute how can I complain. It’s not like my church is reaching them!

In I Corinthians 12, there’s an interesting coupling of verses that we rarely talk about together. Verse 3 makes the point that no one who is speaking in the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed." Paul then goes on to give us one of the best description of the unity and diversity of the Body of Christ. He makes the point that we are part of one body under one Spirit.

So my question is when you curse Christ’s Body do you not also curse Christ? Are you so sure in your methods, theology and preaching style that you are willing to stand before the Lord and explain that you were right to attack His Body from your place of calling?