Measuring Success

February 19, 2010

I recently read a great blog titled “Consumerism vs. Community”. This might be a little off the subject, but I’d like to share the thoughts it brought up in my mind.

The blogger writes about a rather large church with incredibly engaging services and an appealing environment. Attendance was in the thousands, and people were excited to be there. But he says something significant was missing– community. Here’s where I really started thinking and I couldn’t help but wonder- In most of our churches today do we realize just how important community is? Kevin Ford says “The quality of community is the quintessential test of the health of a church”. That’s pretty strong, but is he right?

I’m really not trying to be judgmental here, but honestly, when I look at most churches today I see a lot of things, but I don’t see strong community. This seems to be true regardless of the denominational affiliation, worship style, or the major demographic of the church. It seems to me that most churches are a loose connection of attenders that work together on certain projects but then go back to their individualness (I think I made up that word) for the rest of their week. I really sat and asked myself: Is this ok? Is there a problem with this pattern? Does this really affect the health of the church?

In terms of institutional health- numerical growth, financial growth, #’s of ministries (Pilates classes to food pantrys), etc… I don’t think this pattern of individualness makes much of a difference. I think this list can be measured on opposite ends of the healthy church spectrum with the same missing ingredient of community. But, in terms of real SPIRITUAL health, I really believe community is vital. The Body of Christ (The Church) is all about community: Deep meaningful relationships that transcend musical preference (disguised as worship style), age, career field, skin color, etc… The Apostle Paul spoke over and over about this. Read what he said to the Ephesians, and to the Corinthians.

So, should we work hard to create excellent environments on Sundays? Absolutely! I believe that is a key component of reaching our unchurched friends and I believe it honors God. However, we can’t use those environments as a gauge for success. Success within Christ’s Church is much more difficult to measure than that. So, just maybe, a great starting point for determining success is looking at the depth of the relationships that are being formed within the church. Maybe it’s through these relationships that we begin to love each other as we would love ourselves. And maybe, just maybe, that love is attractive to unbelievers.

Are you working to intentionally build strong relationships with the people God has put before you? I know I have a lot of work to do, but my deepest desire is that we would see our local church become a body of believers that genuinely loves each other and loves those around us. Love isn’t what we feel, it’s what we do.

I don’t know how to measure it, but somehow I think we’ll know if we achieve it.

Shaun

Middle School Cheerleading and Church

September 11, 2009

This past week I found myself at another middle school football game. Cali is a cheerleader, and even though she has a broken leg, she’s pretty involved. She still cheers and dances, but she no longer “flies” during stunts. Since this was the first game of the season, we were all excited to see her. As a matter of fact, my mom, sister, and niece all came down to watch. This wasn’t easy for them since all middle school games are on Thursday nights, and my family lives 6 hours away. They had to take off work and/or skip school to come down. So, what does this have to do with church? Read more

1 + 1 + 1 = 3

June 6, 2009

I know what you’re thinking. No, it doesn’t take a math whiz to figure this out. 1+1+1=3 is simple arithmetic. Did I insult you by giving you this information? Hang with me for a minute, and if I didn’t insult you already, I’ll run the risk of doing so with my explanation for this illustration. Not on purpose, but it’s really pretty simple. Read more

What do young non-Christians really want from us?

May 17, 2009

This past week I listened to David Kinnaman answer this question. Kinnaman is the President of Barna Research, and he has spent the past 12 years researching this topic. So, what was his answer to the question, “What do young non-Christians really want from us?” Nothing. That’s right. Kinnaman stated a somewhat hard to swallow truth- young non-Christians don’t really want anything from us Christians. However, what he asked next was crucial: “What do young non-Christians need from us?” They need Jesus. So, how do we help them understand what they need but don’t want? If young non-Christians see Christians as mostly hypocritical and judgmental, then how can we have any influence on them at all? What does this mean for the Church and specifically for Beachside? Read more

Compassion Trip to Peru

March 3, 2009

This coming Monday I have the privilege of travelling with several other NP Partner lead pastors to Lima, Peru. We’re travelling with Compassion International to learn more about their efforts to provide for disadvantaged children around the world, and I can’t tell you how excited I am about this trip.

Compassion has ministry centers all over the globe, and they are most well known for their child sponsorship program. Tami, the girls, and I have been Read more

Sunday Service Launch Date

February 28, 2009

Most of you probably know by now that we have an official date for the start of our Sunday services: August 30th, 2009! You may think this sounds like it’s an eternity away, but for those of you who have been tracking with us since the beginning, it probably looks like the end is almost here. Finally, the completion of a lot of hard work and effort, a lot of sacrifice, and the fulfillment of a dream. Although I guess it wouldn’t be totally incorrect to say that this “interim” or “preparation” period will be coming to an end, I think it is much more appropriate to say that this whole thing is really just beginning. Read more