Friday, January 05, 2018
Show up, Shut up, Pay up
Show up, shut up, pay up. That is a pretty harsh way to characterize what some churches seem to want from their members. But I know why it seems to be true. Even scarier, no matter how much they may complain ... some members really seem to like it that way.
Show up. We have to have people in the pews. After all, that is the measure of success for most churches. Growth is almost always tied to numbers. Preachers get raises -- or get fired -- depending on the numbers. Leaders get scared when the numbers decrease. Listen to the fear in our voices when we say things like "... but if do (or don't do) _______, then this or that group is going to leave. But here's the strange thing.
But let's be honest. Most numerical growth is not because we are growing the army of the Lord. It is troop transfer. Changing churches not out of conviction, but out of preference. Some of us like church our way. We'll show up. Just don't ask us to do anything else. Keep the focus on that one hour Sunday morning and don't really impact my life outside these walls. For all of our talk about how the Sunday morning hour is not the most important hour, our practice would indicate it really is. Pay someone to preach a sermon. Build a building to meet for an hour.
Shut up. Maybe that is a little harsh, but most churches really do not have a variety of voices. One man does most of the preaching. The same Bible class teachers do most of the teaching. And very little study is done outside of Sunday morning. There are churches afraid to do small groups because you cannot be sure what is said or studied during them. If your church is big enough, you may even have someone designated to develop material for your small group and/or your family study. In some churches it is almost as if no one but the "professional" can understand Scripture. But at least we have not resorted to chaining the Bible to the pulpit like they did in the dark ages. After all, they didn't trust the average person to really understand what God meant.
And some of us actually prefer it that way. Much easier for someone just to tell us what Scripture means than to actually learn it for ourselves. Let the "Church" teach our kids. And as a side benefit, we can blame the Church -- or the minister -- if our kids don't get it. I don't have to worry if my neighbor wants to know more about Jesus. I'll just call the professional. Someone challenges my belief about something, call the preacher to find out what to say. It takes a real commitment to learn Scripture and be able to use it in real life. Better to leave it to the pros to explain.
Pay up. You can't have a nice building unless someone is paying. You can't do mission work unless someone is giving. If your contribution is not sufficient, you might not even be able to hire a preacher. But if the contribution gets good enough, you can hire someone to teach your kids, maybe even hire someone to make the praise time sound better. You could even hire someone to keep the congregation informed about all the programs going on.
And some church members like it that way. I'll write a check for my part of the ministry. Feed the hungry? Write a check. Want the world to know about Jesus? Write a check. Need someone to lead our church? Write a check. And if you don't like the way things are going ... stop writing the check. That will change things.
Show up. Shut up. Pay up. Yes, sometimes leaders seem to want that. Easier to control. Keeps everyone on message. Clean, neat church. Organize the programs. Fund the programs. Explain to everyone what to think and do.
Show up. Shut up. Pay up. Not a bad deal for members either. Just hire someone to do the ministry. When things go bad, blame the leaders. Fire the preacher. Get a better one. It just takes showing up and paying up.
So church leaders -- stop it. Quit treating your members like second class citizens. Be with them, not over them. Equip them. Inspire them. Listen to them. Encourage ministry. Not ministry programs. Ministry. Stop sending. Start going.
And members. Stop looking for easy church. Quit thinking the only way to be active in serving Jesus is to organize and fund a ministry. Stop looking for the professionals. Jesus used some religious leaders who were very educated (Paul for example). And he used fishermen (Peter).
But I need these thoughts to be more than just a venting session for my opinions.
So...
Show up. Not just in church to observe. But show up and do life together. Real community is not formed just in a worship service, but in doing life together. Show up for your neighbors. Be there in their lives. Serve like Jesus.
Shut up and speak up. Stop complaining (note to self here). And start talking. Get in a small group Bible study. Read Scripture together as a family. Speak truth (Scripture) into the lives of your people. Tell the story of Jesus to your friends and neighbors.
Pay up. Not just to a church budget. Carry spare cash to give to those in need. Buy a meal to share with someone hungry. Pay your own way to go into the mission field. Don't wait for a program or a budget. Just be extravagant in sharing what God has given you.
That is the way I intend to show up. And shut up to speak up. And pay up.
Show up. We have to have people in the pews. After all, that is the measure of success for most churches. Growth is almost always tied to numbers. Preachers get raises -- or get fired -- depending on the numbers. Leaders get scared when the numbers decrease. Listen to the fear in our voices when we say things like "... but if do (or don't do) _______, then this or that group is going to leave. But here's the strange thing.
But let's be honest. Most numerical growth is not because we are growing the army of the Lord. It is troop transfer. Changing churches not out of conviction, but out of preference. Some of us like church our way. We'll show up. Just don't ask us to do anything else. Keep the focus on that one hour Sunday morning and don't really impact my life outside these walls. For all of our talk about how the Sunday morning hour is not the most important hour, our practice would indicate it really is. Pay someone to preach a sermon. Build a building to meet for an hour.
Shut up. Maybe that is a little harsh, but most churches really do not have a variety of voices. One man does most of the preaching. The same Bible class teachers do most of the teaching. And very little study is done outside of Sunday morning. There are churches afraid to do small groups because you cannot be sure what is said or studied during them. If your church is big enough, you may even have someone designated to develop material for your small group and/or your family study. In some churches it is almost as if no one but the "professional" can understand Scripture. But at least we have not resorted to chaining the Bible to the pulpit like they did in the dark ages. After all, they didn't trust the average person to really understand what God meant.
And some of us actually prefer it that way. Much easier for someone just to tell us what Scripture means than to actually learn it for ourselves. Let the "Church" teach our kids. And as a side benefit, we can blame the Church -- or the minister -- if our kids don't get it. I don't have to worry if my neighbor wants to know more about Jesus. I'll just call the professional. Someone challenges my belief about something, call the preacher to find out what to say. It takes a real commitment to learn Scripture and be able to use it in real life. Better to leave it to the pros to explain.
Pay up. You can't have a nice building unless someone is paying. You can't do mission work unless someone is giving. If your contribution is not sufficient, you might not even be able to hire a preacher. But if the contribution gets good enough, you can hire someone to teach your kids, maybe even hire someone to make the praise time sound better. You could even hire someone to keep the congregation informed about all the programs going on.
And some church members like it that way. I'll write a check for my part of the ministry. Feed the hungry? Write a check. Want the world to know about Jesus? Write a check. Need someone to lead our church? Write a check. And if you don't like the way things are going ... stop writing the check. That will change things.
Show up. Shut up. Pay up. Yes, sometimes leaders seem to want that. Easier to control. Keeps everyone on message. Clean, neat church. Organize the programs. Fund the programs. Explain to everyone what to think and do.
Show up. Shut up. Pay up. Not a bad deal for members either. Just hire someone to do the ministry. When things go bad, blame the leaders. Fire the preacher. Get a better one. It just takes showing up and paying up.
So church leaders -- stop it. Quit treating your members like second class citizens. Be with them, not over them. Equip them. Inspire them. Listen to them. Encourage ministry. Not ministry programs. Ministry. Stop sending. Start going.
And members. Stop looking for easy church. Quit thinking the only way to be active in serving Jesus is to organize and fund a ministry. Stop looking for the professionals. Jesus used some religious leaders who were very educated (Paul for example). And he used fishermen (Peter).
But I need these thoughts to be more than just a venting session for my opinions.
So...
Show up. Not just in church to observe. But show up and do life together. Real community is not formed just in a worship service, but in doing life together. Show up for your neighbors. Be there in their lives. Serve like Jesus.
Shut up and speak up. Stop complaining (note to self here). And start talking. Get in a small group Bible study. Read Scripture together as a family. Speak truth (Scripture) into the lives of your people. Tell the story of Jesus to your friends and neighbors.
Pay up. Not just to a church budget. Carry spare cash to give to those in need. Buy a meal to share with someone hungry. Pay your own way to go into the mission field. Don't wait for a program or a budget. Just be extravagant in sharing what God has given you.
That is the way I intend to show up. And shut up to speak up. And pay up.
