random musings

i usually wouldn’t re-post like this, but i saw a comment on church culture today that points to the trend of, in the words of seth godin, “marketing AT” people rather than providing solutions to a need. i couldn’t resist popping comments in here as well. check out jeff taylor as well…

“eternal life: smoking or non?”
“don’t wait for a hearse to take you to church”
“a worn-out bible usually belongs to someone who’s not”
“no God, no peace, know God, know peace”

i drive past countless churches everyday who seem to follow the mass-marketing ideology with a roadside marquee. but i don’t see many people slamming on their brakes, squealing the tires, and pulling into the parking lot.

we position ourselves like a dentist! nobody likes to go, but we don’t want our teeth to fall out, so a couple times a year, we grit our teeth and schedule an appointment. then, if we don’t particularly care for the way that dentist office made us feel, or the way he smelled, or if he was a little rough and makes us bleed, we go to the yellow pages, or talk to our friends: “do you know of any good dentists in the area? i just don’t like mine as much as i used to…” etc.

we would never admit out loud that we think that way, but our actions speak louder. we’re remiss in thinking that our church is a gathering of christians in a four-walled room. we’re off base when we buy into an us vs. them mentality, whether christians vs. believers, or my church vs. yours. we’re dead wrong in thinking that church in itself is the answer to a dying world.

we’ve become entirely self-focused. we’ve erected walls around ourselves, incorporated our religious organization, and turned church into a social club that is more about us, our preferences, our needs and our desires than it is anything else.

God help us!

geez, i just realized that i must come across as a really negative person… most of my posts are a little more light-hearted, really! :)