MondayMorningInsight - Leadership & Encouragement for Church Leaders

A Letter to Leaders of Established Churches

Posted by: Todd
Posted on: Mon, October 10, 2005
Viewed 203
(6) comments so far

"Cape manana - Seize Tomorrow. Somehow this mindset needs to sink in to every leader of every church in America. Pastors and leaders of established churches (churches more than one generation old) often have property assetts and paradigm liabilities. The paradigm liability has to do with the predisposition to favor history and preservation of form over emerging life. This new life always brings with it the cultural values of a new generation, and with it, new values and priorities for the church. If I, as a 49 year old, insist on preserving the values and priorities of my generation, I will miss the chance to offer input into the church of tomorrow. That's why every leader of established churches should be a student of youth culture at some level. What are the songs of emerging generations and leader? What are the films? What are the values and priorities.

New churches are too often the result of new leaders feeling disenfranchised by established leaders, who hold the strings of power, and too often insist that the emerging generation replicate the forms of previous generations as a precondition for sharing resources. Such a mindset is one of several easy ways to alienate emerging leaders. And so, I humbly offer what I consider to be important priorities if we who lead existing churches are to pass the torch of leadership to a new generation in any meaningful way:

1. Be a learner first, a teacher second. I love to learn what young people listen to, what they watch, what they value. They are my teachers. It's vital to see that the motivation for such learning has nothing to do with some superficial attempt to be relevant. To the contrary, the learning comes from the acknowledgement that the emerging generation has strengths where my generation has been weak. This is particularly true with respect to their commitment to authenticity, relationship, and the elevation of image as a means of communication.

2. Lay worship forms on the altar. What constitutes worship? That question should be asked, and answered anew, with each generation. My younger friends have values with respect to worship that are often different than those of my chronological peers. When such is the case, the burden of flexibility should rest with the older folks (though there are some conditions to that, which I'll address in another letter later next week). An older man in our congregation visted our evening worship a while back and said, "This certainly isn't the way I worship... but don't even think about stopping this" as he looked around at the 20-somethings gathered together. That's the attitude that's needed if the resources of established churches are to be effectively transferred in the coming years.

3. Work together - People in their 20's are serving as our church leaders alongside people in their 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's. Such a context provides the mutuality of ministry that is absolutely vital to passing the torch effectively.

I count it an incredible privilege to shepherd a community that is intergenerationally engaged. We could do better than we do. But there aren't many effective models around, and I, for one, am grateful that our leaders practice these principles. The fruit of that includes a diversity of generations, and music, and ways of relating and doing ministry, all working together for Christ's purposes. Lacking these practices, countless established churches are graying and dying."

FOR DISCUSSION: What are your thoughts? Will the churches 20 years from now be established churches or new churches started because established churches are unwilling to bend on style and tradition?

Richard Dahlstrom has an interesting post over at his blog about the need for leaders of existing churches to be flexible. Cape manana, as he calls it…

Comments

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Beggers on Mon, October 10, 2005

Maybe “progressive” would be the appropriate term. Biblically based and Christ centered progress! Keeping the tried and true and adding something new.

He is the same yesterday, today and forever yet His joys are new every morning! Shouldn’t His church be likewise?

Shiloh Christian Fellowship in Oakland, CA could serve as somewhat of a role model. It is no longer our home church as we have moved a few hours away and wanted our family plugged into our local community.

We are now in a church heading in that direction. We have seen a lot of recent growth, not just in numbers but in a diverse body of believers spanning all ages and races. We celebrate, and morn, work, learn and play together.

Wisdom and tradition from our elders, new insights and methods from the youth, contemporary balance by those of us “in between?” Sounds like a family…
MAK on Mon, October 10, 2005

I think the sentiment expressed overall is important and correct, but I am a little concerned about the first point.

Whenever I go to one of my children’s open house nights and hear a teacher say: “I’ve learned more from your children than I’ve taught them.” I wonder why I bothered to send them to school. Sure we are not supposed become so entrenchend in our ‘forms’ that we can not see and learn where God might be leading us. And some of the things we need to learn from will come from people of all ages. But we are not to be a reed in the wind either are we?

MAK
BeHim on Tue, October 11, 2005

The best student should always be the teacher. What can we learn from children?

The ways of simplicity.

What can we learn from teenagers?

The ways of influence.

What can we learn from experience?

Keep things simple and influence their minds with the Grace and Knowledge of Jesus Christ.

What have I learned? They (children and teenagers) WANT to learn, you just need to show them you care… care about them, their future and their ability to stand on The Faith you’ve told them about since they were babies. Don’t send them to the wolves (University and College and the world) ill-equipped.
Peter Hamm on Wed, October 12, 2005

BeHim,

AMEN! We need to equip our young people to be dangerous in the world instead of having the world be dangerous to them!

Also, the author states… “3. Work together - People in their 20’s are serving as our church leaders alongside people in their 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s. “ Where are the young leaders in our churches. When we don’t let them lead alongside us, we don’t allow ourselves to learn alongside them, and from them. My pastor often says that if we’re doing church the same way in 5 years as we are today, then we are missing the boat. How can we know what we should be doing in 5 years if we only have 40-somethings and 50-somethings leading us?
Charlie Abbate on Thu, October 13, 2005

The form may vary and the tempo may change but the fruit is either good or bad.

If you have been seduced by the hip-Christian movement, stop.

If you have been pressured to turn away from historic Christianity simply because it is not easily understood in 15 minute micro-sermons, stop.

If you aspire to be the next big thing with the most young families and the best worship band in town, stop.

You need to apeal to your youth, you need to honor the past, you need to open your doors to the under-served and the marginalized. But if you loose sight of your first love, stop.

If those comming to your church are having their lives changed by the power of the Holy Spirit, if your member’s hearts beat to the beat of Jesus Christ and not to the pounding of the world around them, if God - in His power - is using your local body to be the salt and the light it is called to be, if you are the City on the Hill that shines the light of God Almighty into the darkness of modern post-modern America, then may God be with you.

If you are not, stop.
Peter Hamm on Fri, October 14, 2005

What if people coming to our church ARE having their lives changed, and yet we DO aspire to have the best worship bands in town. Can we have both? Or am I only allowed to pursue mediocrity for the sake of the Gospel?

I don’t mean to attack Charlie, because he brings up excellent points, but I’m afraid what so many people seem to miss is that it is VERY possible to pursue cultural relevancy without watering down the Gospel of Jesus. LOTS of churches do it. Jesus did it! He told parables, because that was the culturally relevant way to communicate to people!