Some thoughts on relevance
My friend Kat mentioned on her blog that she's heard a bit about the word "relevance" coming up more in churches. I had some thoughts that I posted on her blog, but I thought I'd put them here too. I think, for those of you who read this who are Christians its good to think about these things. For those of you who aren't Christians I'd be curious to hear if you think the church is relevant in the culture at all and how it is or isn't. (And don't worry-i'll put pics of Erin up soon and our trip to CA :0) But, here's what I wrote:
we talk about that idea [relevance] here in Greeley a bit. to us it means being important in the life of our community - hoping that if we weren't here people would miss what we do that enriches them (even if they never come inside our building). to be a church that is for more than just protecting and building up it's members and to engage the culture around us is what "relevance" means to us. it doesn't mean caving into relativism.
the Truth is still the Truth. the Gospel can't be compromised, but our comfort can and our preferences can too (and probably should a lot more often than we'd like to think). we are called to be salt and light and i don't think that means just yelling the Truth louder to a culture plugging its ears to us. instead, we should give them a reason to listen. how bout loving them? oh, and loving them right where they are (yes-right in the middle of their mess and brokenness even when they don't see it as such) without demands for them to change to suit our ideas of "good people". that's much more difficult to do and to do it we actually will need what we preach-a great Savior for a great need.
we talk about that idea [relevance] here in Greeley a bit. to us it means being important in the life of our community - hoping that if we weren't here people would miss what we do that enriches them (even if they never come inside our building). to be a church that is for more than just protecting and building up it's members and to engage the culture around us is what "relevance" means to us. it doesn't mean caving into relativism.
the Truth is still the Truth. the Gospel can't be compromised, but our comfort can and our preferences can too (and probably should a lot more often than we'd like to think). we are called to be salt and light and i don't think that means just yelling the Truth louder to a culture plugging its ears to us. instead, we should give them a reason to listen. how bout loving them? oh, and loving them right where they are (yes-right in the middle of their mess and brokenness even when they don't see it as such) without demands for them to change to suit our ideas of "good people". that's much more difficult to do and to do it we actually will need what we preach-a great Savior for a great need.
posted by debchastain at 8:50 PM
4 Comments:
Very nice comments, Hobbit. Sometimes I inwardly (or outwardly) groan when I hear people talking about relavance since I know that what will follow will be a litany on how the church has been too negative. The church has been too negative . . . sometimes . . . and sometimes too positive.
Relavance is sometimes nothing more than code for adapting ourselves to the point on non-entity. This is as pointless as your apt description of simply telling truth loudly. We have to affirm what is good and critize what is not so good and do it all in a way that does not simply make us feel better about ourselves. It is all too easy to self indulgently yell or self indulgently coddle. That's a fine line we have to walk.
Clarification: I meant you had an apt description of a pointless thing, not that your apt description was pointless.
i'm terribly sorry for the irrelevant comment but it was the only way to reach you...i sent an email on Blayne's blog check it please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
elli
Ya know, sometimes I don't feel very relevant or rather important or valuable. Like I am ghosting around the church, not really engaged and not buying in. The truth is that I want to buy in but somehow where we are now it is like forcing a round peg into a square hole. I can hardly focus on whether or not the church is relevant or should care if they are when I don't feel connected to the church in the first place. I wonder if there are people in our generation, maybe like me who are struggling to connect with their church. Forget about being part of how the church is connecting with the community around it. We are dissatisfied with the old way yet we don't long for modernism, there is something in postmodern worship that captures the old and new. If I can find that and feel connected and drawn to the Lord there. Then I can connect and reach out to my community with my church.
This is rambly. Sorry if it isn't completely coherent.
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