Posted in Ministry

Are we enabling a consumer mentality in the church?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

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From time to time I have lamented the consumer mentality with which many people approach the church. This is the attitude that a spiritual service or product can be obtained from a pastor or church without having to actually connect with that church or its ministry. Families drop by the church for a baptism, confirmation, wedding or funeral, but do not engage beyond that event or milestone. I use the supermarket analogy, where savvy shoppers stop by for spiritual supplies as needed. If there is a sale or special at another church, they will not hesitate to switch.

Today I read a short but insightful article by Bobby Gruenewald in the May/June 2013 issue of Outreach Magazine about “Pastoring the Community.” He says that “The church has become a consumer good — something people shop for and evaluate based on what they and their family get out of it.” But then he adds this true and convicting observation: “In well-intentioned efforts to attract and reach people, churches start viewing people as customers. We wonder what we can teach that will resonate with them. What programs can we offer to keep them coming back?” (p. 26)

I believe it’s an accurate observation. We enable their behavior. And there’s a price to pay for that. We bring out that attitude as our sinful nature makes it all about us rather than about God or our neighbor.

It is very challenging to maintain an outward focus. We so quickly and easily slip into the “how can we grow” mode of thinking rather than a “how can we serve” approach. We want what we do to benefit us in some way, whether it’s increased membership, participation or contribution. But is that what following Christ looks like? Is that where the Gospel leads us?

How do we shift from serving ourselves to really serving those outside the church, those who need hope, light and grace?

Posted in Life, Ministry

Celebrating Administrative Professional Day!

Posted on by William Douthwaite

So when in the world did this observance begin? It began as National Secretaries Day in 1952, but evolved into Administrative Professionals Day by 2000. A great day to remember the great front office people who hold it all together.

We celebrated today, with a really cool vase of almost-ready-to-bloom tulips, a card and lunch out for Marcy (not her real name), our office administrator. Truth be told, she’s worth a monthly celebration. As gatekeeper for phone calls, mail, email and walk-ins, purchaser of just about everything we need, facilities coordinator and editor and publisher of a number of publications each week, she makes the church office happen. When she’s not there, I might as well stay home. I never get anything done, because of the constant interruptions. She is definitely a special blessing for me and the church!

Posted in Uncategorized

Logs and specks

Posted on by William Douthwaite

 

One Bible verse that a lot of people seem to know and like to quote is, “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged” (Matthew 7:1 NLT). If you express disapproval of a certain behavior, dislike someone's attitude or speak unkindly of another person, you can almost be sure that someone will start throwing these words at you.

Does that mean Christians not allowed to express disapproval, point out obvious sin or even have an opinion? Many people would “judge” us for doing so. But Jesus was judgmental at times, especially when it came to someone who flaunted their piety, showed no mercy, and refused to believe He was the Messiah. Old Testament prophets like Ezekiel were told it was their job to warn people about sin.

So what did Jesus mean when He spoke those words?

Here are those words in context from Matthew's gospel:

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.” (Matthew 7:1-5 NLT).

If you're going to point out someone's sin, be prepared to have your sin addressed, too. Don't be a hypocrite and pretend you're better than someone else. Come clean about your own “log” (sin) and need for God's grace and forgiveness. Then you can talk about the “speck” that someone else needs to deal with.

The law of God, which does specify right and wrong behavior, shows us our sin and condemns us. It makes us aware of our need for a Savior, and drives us to Him for forgiveness. That's why we point out sin. Not to condemn, but to proclaim the gospel.

The important question is, “What's your motivation?” Are you expressing disapproval to make someone look bad? To make yourself look good? Or to proclaim Christ?

 

Posted in Life

Earth Day

Posted on by William Douthwaite

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I got to be a part of the first Earth Day in 1970. (Sheesh, I’m old!) I don’t remember much about it. My best recollection is getting out of class to go and clean up the lake by our junior high school. Old tires, furniture, and junk dumped there. In 1970 we really didn’t think much about recycling, gas mileage or global warming. What a different world it was.

Now I recycle more than I throw away, I drive a hybrid car, I have higher efficiency appliances in my house and I pick up litter in my neighborhood. I am constantly aware of the environment, climate, ecosystem and conservation. It’s a part of my everyday life.

From the very beginning, God charged his creation, male and female, to consume, enjoy and also care for the creation. It’s a part of everyday life for God’s people. In other words, every day is Earth Day for Christians.

Posted in Uncategorized

How to do the BBQ fundraiser dinner

Posted on by William Douthwaite

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Today our high school youth group serve up a barbecue dinner for the congregation to raise money for out trip to the National Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod Youth Gathering in San Antonio this July. Pulled pork, chicken, slaw, baked beans and strawberry shortcake. We got a ton of support from the congregation and are well on our way to covering all our expenses.

How did we put on a successful event? Here are a few helpful tips.

A very visible and hard-working youth group. While the parents did the cooking, it was the youth who handled the ticket sales, handled publicity, set up the event, served the food and provided the entertainment. I am very thankful for the efforts of young and old alike, as well as the support of our congregation.

A simple, inexpensive and appealing menu. Everyone here likes barbecue chicken and pork. We prepared the pork in crock pots the night before, marinated the chicken night before, cooked it the day of, and added some last minute clam chowder from a native Bostonian who knew how to do it right.

Youth talent. Magic, music and balloon animals, all done by our youth. They’ve got so much to offer!

Lots of prayer. I had my doubts, but it turned out to be a great day. God was good (as He always is).

We’re going to make it after all!

Posted in Ministry

Caring for the Church

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28 ESV)

I'm preaching on this text tomorrow and in my preparation this past week the words spoke powerfully to me about my role as a pastor. That's a good thing, because I've learned that I generally don't preach very well until the word have touched my heart. This week's verses served as a great reminder of the blessing and necessity of spiritual oversight.

The Boston bombings this past week were a reminder of the threats to life that are always out there in our world. For a while, at least, we'll be a little more vigilant and observant. But what about spiritual danger? Who's keeping an eye on that threat? It's the overseers or pastors who have been entrusted with a flock or congregation. Just as you put youself under a doctor's care, follow your lawyer's counsel or an accountant's advice, God has given his church the gift of pastors, and we place ourselves under their spiritual care. I've often fallen into the pattern of simply providing spiritual goods and services rather than paying careful attention to those influences and ideas that draw people away from God's grace to self-righteousness, a path that leads away from God and eventually straight to hell.

If I forget my role as overseer, it quickly becomes about me, the people who come to hear me and those who join my church. But if this defines my task, it's all about Christ, who builds and gathers his church, pays the ultimate price to save it, and then protects it from danger through the word and sacrament ministry of pastors like me.

 

Posted in Ministry

How we started a “puppet ministry”

Posted on by William Douthwaite

One night I was spending the night at church for Family Promise and some of the kids needed something to do. Now, I have a drawer full of toys in my office, so I knew I could find something to play with. I I have some rubber snakes, plastic army men, a couple of Nerf guns, a box of Turkish Delight, Marchbox cars, a big button that says “That was easy” when pushed and…a box full of finger puppets. Finger puppets! That's what we can do! Sea creatures, people, various animals and birds. Success. The kids sat and played with them until bedtime.

Now, here's the fun part. Weeks later, someone asked our volunteer coordinator about our “puppet ministry.” <blush> Um, yeah, well, you see…our pastor is really just a big kid and has these toys and…that's how we started a “puppet ministry.”

 

Posted in Grace, Life, Ministry

What Family Promise did for our church

Posted on by William Douthwaite

family promiseFamily Promise is a fairly new resource in our area that provides temporary shelter for families experiencing homelessness. It involves local churches who provide a place to stay, meals and other support, enabling families to stay together as they take steps towards obtaining employment, transportation and a home. Churches provide a week’s worth of hospitality four times a year. 

Our church was literally dragged into this program by a family who insisted we be a part of our county’s effort to establish a chapter of Family Promise. While that family is no longer connected with our congregation, we found ourselves unable to find any reason why we shouldn’t or couldn’t do this. We had the space, the volunteers, the resources and the heart to minister to these families, so we became a host church.

A year later, after five different weeks of hosting, I find that for us, it’s not so much what we did for Family Promise, but what Family Promise did for us.

First, Family Promise exposed us to the name and faces of families experiencing homeless. Most of the time, when we talk about the homeless, we know they are out there, but we have no idea who they are. We may have seen someone in that situation, but we never met them. Now, we’ve broken bread with them, heard their stories, played with their children, worshiped with them and prayed for them. And we still do.

Family Promise blew up our capacity for compassion. We thought we were a compassionate, caring and loving congregation. Our guests took us to the next level, sharing their lives with us, caring about our families and gratefully accepting whatever we could offer them. In a way they took us under their wing and helped us rediscover the importance of family, of hope and commitment.

Family Promise brought people in our church together. Some of our volunteers had never met each other before. Our guests enabled new friendships to be forged.

Family Promise made us work hard and do things we didn’t want to do. We had to recruit volunteers, move furniture, buy food, prepare meals, clean, do laundry, spend the night, get up early and make our church home a safe home for the families. We actually had to do something rather than simply make a donation. We had to live the reality these families faced every day.

Family Promise showed us a different side of ourselves. You don’t get to know someone very well when you are sitting in worship on a Sunday morning. We got to see each other talking with the parents, playing with the kids, taking out the trash, and drinking coffee first thing in the morning. No better no worse, just real people doing real stuff in the name of a real God.

Finally, Family Promise opened our eyes to what’s possible when you drag yourself away from the TV, a comfy bed and the Internet for a while. You don’t need a ton of resources to make a difference. Just a little love.

Posted in Ministry, Rant

“Why I quit my church.”

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I quitThat’s the title of a book, article, blog post or email you will rarely if ever read. And that’s just a reality pill I sometimes have to swallow.

I began thinking about this just a few months ago when I got a one line email from members of our church reading, “We will not be attending anymore.” That’s it. No explanations. No conversations. No warning. And I had just seen them in worship a few Sundays before.

Earlier in ministry I would have gone into panic mode, thinking, “What did I say? What didn’t I say? What did someone else say? What if all the families start leaving?” But with a few years experience under my belt and a calmer spirit, I simply picked up the phone, called them, and left a message, saying that I’d like to talk to them. Their response? They resent the email, thinking that I hadn’t gotten it. I guess there wouldn’t be a conversation.

Hmm. Just like that. As I mentioned above it happens from time to time. Sometimes there is a little more information, like, “Well, we wanted to try something different.” Or “We really feel led to look for another church.” Once I got a “I’m not ready to talk about it yet.” But usually all you get is silence.

So to get some perspective, I thought about some of the members we’ve gotten from other churches. One family came because they wanted a later worship time. Another needed a cooler room. Another had friends at the church. And I know that none of them had a conversation with their pastor. They just started shopping at a different store…I mean, worshiping at a different church.

I also had some good friends tell me that sometimes, God wants or needs that family at a different church. They were being prepared at your church to be a much-needed blessing elsewhere. I kind of like that.

If I weren’t a pastor and attended a church, what would I do in their shoes? I might want to explain my decision. I might avoid a conversation. I might hide behind a generic email. I might want the freedom to walk away, to try something new, or make a change.

In any event, I’ve learned not to take it too personally. The church is fluid around the edges, with people coming and going all the time for all sorts of reasons. If I miss them, then they will be a blessing to someone else, and that is a good thing.

What’s the best way to quit your church?