Gene’s message was about how to change your church without killing it, and without killing you. Like usual, he used his favorite vacation spot in Minnesota as an analogy for his main points. In order to get to the fishing sweet spot at the lake, Gene and his family have to go through the rough channel and some dangerous water to reach the beautiful fishing paradise. Not many boats are willing to do the work it takes to get to this spot, but the fish are worth it! Why change? What is the purpose? Jesus understood the reality of the human condition—that’s why he was so focused on every single person he came across. The truth of the matter is that if the church doesn’t change, it will die. And it can’t die because we need to reach lost people who matter to God!
The Gospel is all about change. Newness, new song, new birth, new heaven, new covenant, new relationship, all things new—the gospel is all about changing lives! Gene compared the steps for growing the church with growing crops: Prepare the soil, plant the seed, cultivate (weed, water), and harvest. Like fishing, to get the best harvest you must do the work required. Gene reminded us that between Egypt and paradise, there was a wilderness... Don't quit during step one or three and miss out on the rewarding harvest.
I was especially touched with the story about a young man who brought Gene a bullet after a sermon one Sunday. He told Gene that he was planning on killing himself that week- but after hearing the gospel he decided that there might be hope for him. This young man’s life was saved because that church changed. Gene’s main point was that it doesn’t matter if it’s one life, 10 lives, 100 or 1,000 lives…. It’s all God and they all matter! If we don't change, we will die.
I was also able to hear an expert on assimilation speak about moving guests into family members. Nicki Green, the pastor of involvement at Eastview Christian Church, said, "I could talk about this for days because it is what I am most passionate about and what God created me to do." Nicki is a gifted speaker with a lot of experience and success in guest services. Her message is desperately needed, which was evident when several more chairs had to be brought into her session, making it the largest one at the conference.
Recap from the session:
Nicki gripped the audience right from the start with her intro on grace. She shared a story about a mother who was prostituting her 2 year-old daughter out for money to support her drug habit. When the mother was asked if she ever considered going to church, she explained that that would only make her feel worse. It seems as though the people who flocked to jesus in the bible no longer feel accepted among his disciples—what has gone wrong? (Yancey, what's so amazing about grace)
The key to moving guests into family members is to create teams that love lost people. We need to recruit key volunteers that can model love. "If you can't love that mother who was prostituing her daugher, then you won't be able to love the people that are coming into your church."
The guests entering our church are not people that have their lives together.... they are needy, messy, sinful, lost people in need of a savior. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. It's crucial that we understand that we were once lost, too. And it is our calling and mission to be Jesus and be His church, meaning we too should love lost people, and love the sinners that come through our church doors. Not only should we love them, but we should welcome them into our family.
Nicki gripped the audience right from the start with her intro on grace. She shared a story about a mother who was prostituting her 2 year-old daughter out for money to support her drug habit. When the mother was asked if she ever considered going to church, she explained that that would only make her feel worse. It seems as though the people who flocked to jesus in the bible no longer feel accepted among his disciples—what has gone wrong? (Yancey, what's so amazing about grace)
The key to moving guests into family members is to create teams that love lost people. We need to recruit key volunteers that can model love. "If you can't love that mother who was prostituing her daugher, then you won't be able to love the people that are coming into your church."
The guests entering our church are not people that have their lives together.... they are needy, messy, sinful, lost people in need of a savior. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. It's crucial that we understand that we were once lost, too. And it is our calling and mission to be Jesus and be His church, meaning we too should love lost people, and love the sinners that come through our church doors. Not only should we love them, but we should welcome them into our family.
How do we do that? Good question. The answer will practically look different for every church, however the principles are the same for all.
Communicate vision: It's not about the task, it's about the mission. Nicki shared a story about how her church recently made a big change in the way that they do communion. This change resulted in giving her communion prep team more than double the work they were previously doing. However, this allowed their church to all take communion together, as a family, and to spend more time on remembering the body and blood of Jesus and less time on passing a tray. We must look at the why behind the what, the mission not the task! If we do this, than the ushers won't see their jobs as passing a bucket and handing out bulletins, rather they will understand that they are guests' first impressions and they have one of the most important roles in the church.
We also need to be intentional and celebrate victories! Nicki shared that she gave her parking team a vision of running out of bus drivers on sunday mornings because they are all attending church. As the parking team began thinking of creative ways to be intentional and share God's love with the drivers, seeds were planted and began to grow. A couple of the drivers joined a small group without even attending an Eastview service yet-- that was a victory to be celebrated! Left with just a task, our volunteers would lack vision and get burnt out. But if they understand the why behind the what, and what is at stake, then they will make a huge difference for the kingdom.
As church leaders, pastors, and christians, we are called to love others with the love we have received. Going along with the idea of "loving lost things," Nicki read the parable of the lost son. The father stood waiting on the porch for his son to come home for hours, for days, for months, maybe years. When the boy finally came, his dad was ready! He was so eager and expectant that he ran off the steps to kiss his son and lavish his love, that the son definitely didn't deserve. We should be the father at the door waiting in our churches. Our guests are lost, and we want to be that father when they come to church, when they come home-- even if they've never been and don't even know it is home.
We also need to be intentional and celebrate victories! Nicki shared that she gave her parking team a vision of running out of bus drivers on sunday mornings because they are all attending church. As the parking team began thinking of creative ways to be intentional and share God's love with the drivers, seeds were planted and began to grow. A couple of the drivers joined a small group without even attending an Eastview service yet-- that was a victory to be celebrated! Left with just a task, our volunteers would lack vision and get burnt out. But if they understand the why behind the what, and what is at stake, then they will make a huge difference for the kingdom.
As church leaders, pastors, and christians, we are called to love others with the love we have received. Going along with the idea of "loving lost things," Nicki read the parable of the lost son. The father stood waiting on the porch for his son to come home for hours, for days, for months, maybe years. When the boy finally came, his dad was ready! He was so eager and expectant that he ran off the steps to kiss his son and lavish his love, that the son definitely didn't deserve. We should be the father at the door waiting in our churches. Our guests are lost, and we want to be that father when they come to church, when they come home-- even if they've never been and don't even know it is home.
Expect guests! We need to wear a yes face! Nicki shared a story about Thomas Jefferson and his troops crossing a treacherous river. A stranger came across the group and asked Thomas for a ride across on his horse. When they reached the other side a man came up and asked the traveler why he would ask the president of the united states. The stranger stated that he didn’t know he was the president, he had just looked around and everyone else’s faces said no. Let's be approachable, let's wear a yes face!
We also need to be real, authentic, transparent... the people at church should be more loving than the people at the bar, or in AA, because we have God's love and grace. Let us not become proud in thinking that we have saved ourselves. When people come late to the recovery meetings, they are greeted with kisses and praises, there are so many other places they could have gone!
Often Christians expect God to clean the fish before we catch them! Our hearts were gripped yet again as we heard a story from the Brooklyn Tabernacle. By the end of the session, Nicki had inspired the numerous churches represented in the room to take steps forward to be more like Jesus, and change their churches to be more like Jesus so that the same people that flocked to Him in the bible would be drawn to our churches. It's all about grace and love, and accepting them right where they are, no matter how smelly, dark, or messy! This is what moves guests into family members! "If you have any purpose in my work-- it has to do with this odor. This is the smell of the world I died for." (Cymbala, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire)
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