Pastor’s Blog II.IV

I’ve been thinking about the church. Actually I’ve been thinking about the church a lot lately. True, it is my job to do this but I see it both from a professional (my job) standpoint as well as a personal (devotional) standpoint. Allow me to wander as I share what I have been thinking in regards to the church.

How much of what the church is about is to be done or accomplished on Sunday morning? We put a lot time, energy and resources into what we refer to as our Sunday morning worship service. From a staff standpoint we invest huge resources into those few hours on Sunday. From a volunteer standpoint we access huge numbers of volunteer hours to accomplish what we accomplish each Sunday morning. Is it worth it? Are we being biblical when we invest that much effort into a few hours of the week? Is it the best use of our resources? Are we fooling ourselves? What exactly are we accomplishing on Sunday morning?

We average around 400 people each Sunday at Cornerstone. If we say that we have them for about 2-3 hours and multiply that by 400 that is 800-1200 hours of time each Sunday. Are we getting a good bang for our buck?  I am completely committed to providing clear opportunities for us to worship on Sunday mornings. I am convinced of the need to clearly communicate God’s Word each Sunday morning. I am thankful for the facility we have for Sunday mornings. I believe many people have the opportunity to exercise their gifts on Sunday morning. But what about Monday through Saturday?

What is the direct connection of Sunday to the rest of the week? Is there a connection? Or is Sunday just that nice little break from all the rest of the stuff in our lives? I cringed even as I typed that question.  If we say that Sunday is important…why is it important? What does the Bible say about us meeting together once a week? Is Sunday more important than every other day of the week?

Maybe it is time to totally re-think what we do on Sunday morning. Maybe it is time to scrap the whole thing and start with a blank sheet of paper. If we had never had any exposure to a church service but wanted to begin a gathering for God’s people or those seeking God what would that group experience look like?  Please understand that I believe God loves the church. Many years ago I fell in love with the church and that has not changed. The church is an incredible place. I just feel like God is poking me saying, “ think about it. Think about what you are doing. Think about what the scriptures say. Think about it.”

I want to expand our thinking about the church. I want our vision of the church to be both clear and biblical. I want us to embrace the disturbance of the Holy Spirit. I want us to connect the dots of how the church plays itself out from Monday through Saturday. I want us to grasp this idea that God is with us each day all through the day. I want us to understand that our spiritual walk with God is never divorced from any other area of our life. I want us to stop compartmentalizing. We may be involved in secular culture all week long but spiritually God has plans for us during our interaction with that secular culture.

Church is so much more than Sunday morning. What do you think?