What if Your Church Had No Building? by Jacob Armstrong
On the weekend of my first Easter as a church planter in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, I made the drive from my house to a local city park. It was Saturday, and I noticed church after church hosting their annual Easter egg hunts. The parking lots were packed, and children filled church lawns covered in pastel covered eggs. A part of me longed to join them. I remembered taking my own children to the church Easter egg hunt.
This year, however, I was driving to the city park for an event hosted by our community center called Spring Jam. It was an event for children and families with games, activities, and, of course, an Easter egg hunt. The Spring Jam was sponsored by the city and local businesses. Our new church, which had yet to have its first worship service, was one of the sponsoring entities, and we had a booth with face painting, balloons, and candy. Over 5,000 people attended the Spring Jam that day.
Presumably these were people who did not have a church Easter egg hunt of their own to attend. We shook their hands, painted their kids’ faces, and invited them to Providence Church. We left the Spring Jam that day and headed to a local apartment complex where we hosted, on their grounds, a similar Easter celebration with games and activities for the 50 or so children who lived there.
We didn’t go out into the community because we believed there to be anything wrong with events on the church grounds. We did it because we had to do it. We had no land or church building to host our own event, and for that matter, not many children of our own. So we joined with our community and went into the community to encounter people for Christ. We pledged that day, though, to be a church that would not be bound by the walls of a building.
In a time when those who don’t already come to church won’t just come to church on their own, we have to be creative in the ways we go to them. It does not mean an abandonment of church buildings or that we should not build new buildings. It does mean that the buildings are used and seen in different ways than they were before and that we must be committed to our communities in ways we weren’t before.
We begin by listening to and learning from our communities (even if we have lived there a long time!). Next we commit or recommit ourselves to the people outside the walls of our church. To reach new people, we have to have a visible presence in our community. Look for ways to engage the community where church members and attendees get the opportunity to live their faith by serving others. There are many ways to leverage the land and building you have to serve the community, but for a couple of events a year, pretend you don’t have those things. How would you reach out and encounter new people if you did not have a building or land?
Often the only events churches hold for their communities are fundraisers for things such as a new playground or sending youth to camp. While these are worthy ventures, consider what message your fundraisers send to those outside of the church: “Come help us do something for us.” Instead, do things for the community that are not fundraisers but instead require your funds, energy, and prayers.
On the first day of summer in our first year as a church, we had a cookout with free food and snow cones for a local trailer park. On Armed Forces Day our community invited all military families and veterans to an event. We were there with a prayer wall on which people could write the names of those close to their hearts who have served or were currently serving in the military. The next day in worship we carried the prayer wall into our sanctuary (a movie theater at the time) and prayed for those on the wall. We partnered with a public school to build a Math Garden on their campus to assist in teaching basic math skills to children.
You may ask, “What do these events have to do with the good news of Jesus Christ?” They are ways that we can go into our community, walk the streets as Jesus did, and become acquainted with our mission field. We often see needs that we didn’t know existed. We can invite others to join us in worship. How can we share the gospel if we never encounter those in need of the gospel?
Find out what existing community events you can join. You may be surprised how willing community organizers are to work with a church on these events. You will establish relationships that will be of value for years to come. If your community does not offer such events, maybe your church should plan them. Be creative and have fun doing things that your church can uniquely do and offer to others! These events will not always equate to new people in your church, but they will create a culture within your church that you are open to new people and are outwardly focused, which will lead to new people. What spaces outside of your church building are available for you to reach new people?
Jacob Armstrong is the founding pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. This article is adapted from his new book, The New Adapters: Shaping Ideas to Fit Your Congregation, published by and used with permission of Abingdon Press and available at Cokesbury and Amazon.
Tying Facility Needs to Mission by Johnsie W. Cogman
Churches that have been around for many years often face numerous property challenges. With aging buildings, there are frequent unplanned property issues that arise and insufficient funds in the operating budget for these repairs. Just when we seem to make some progress, something else has to be fixed. This can be frustrating for everyone.
For example, I was dispirited to learn recently that the roof on one of the churches has to be replaced. Guided more by frustration than faith, the following Sunday I included this announcement in the worship bulletin.
Roof Replacement. We have learned that our church needs a total roof replacement. If you have any creative ideas for a fundraiser, please contact ….
Reflecting on this over the next week, I regretted that I had tried to engage the congregation on this significant issue in such an uninspiring way. I consulted with others about a more helpful way to begin the conversation about the roof replacement. The next week, a different announcement was used.
Roof Replacement. We have been part of this community for over 200 years, providing a beautiful place to gather to worship God, and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. Our building has served as a gathering place for our fellowship time as well as for neighborhood groups. We have an opportunity to continue serving our community as we improve our facility with a new roof. Thank you for showing God’s love to God’s people.
What a difference that made in our worship experience. The worship leader that Sunday even read the new announcement with pride and expression. This caused the attendees to take more notice and give more funds toward the roof. This was the beginning of a conversation about an issue critical to our mission, not just a plea for fundraising ideas. People were asked to think and pray about this need and to talk with others about their ideas so together we could discern how to continue to be the church in mission we had been for so many years.
We tied the facilities to our mission, which in turn reignited the excitement and pride of the congregants. Once people see the connection to the mission, they give more generously. My first announcement made it sound like our church wanted a new roof. The roof is not the issue. Our mission is what matters, and that is what is at stake if we do not replace the roofing.
Johnsie W. Cogman is pastor of Mount Zion United Methodist Church in Washington, DC, and Bells United Methodist Church in Camp Springs, Maryland.
Connect
Sometimes really good practitioners become really good because of the company they keep.[Barbara J. Blodgett]
The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
An acquaintance said to pastor Rick Rusaw, “When I first became a Christian, I had a really small house but a really big heart. Now I have a really big house but a really small heart. I want a bigger heart.” The question that led to this acknowledgement was:
How has your heart grown in the past twelve months?[from Leading Ideas of the Lewis Center for Church Leadership]
Want more Right Questions? Check out “Right Questions for Church Leaders, Volumes 1–3.”
Editors: Lovett H. Weems, Jr., and Ann A. Michel. Production: Carol Follett
Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary.
4500 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20016 United States
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20016 United States
___________________________________
___________________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment