Over the past 18months or so i have been thinking about about the idea of 'Excellence in Ministry' and why in the church of the Nazarene we do not believe in it...well, at least we do not practice it.
I have attended many other churchs where they pay attention to every detail of ministry including the worship service, and how things look, feel, and 'communicate' to the people who are present.
Hillsong Conference is one example of many where excellence in ministry is something that is high on the agenda. They want to do everything they do the best they can with what they have. This means that timing, mood, feel, brand and 'presentation' is important in promoting the gospel. They also believe that when they 'do' ministry that they do it with excellence, excellence of attitude and spirit.
So why does the church of the Nazarene in Australia shy away from and in fact neglect this important aspect of ministry?
Why is it that we seek to do things 'on the cheap' every time?
Why do we not feel it is important to make sure we do everything with excellence?
Why do we feel that it is not important to do things right even if it cost us something?
my answers is this:
1. I think we continue to have an inward, brethren like mentlity where weare seeking to exclude ourselves from the reality fo a changing world and thus are in denial.
2. We shy away from things that cost money and thus alwasy skimp on prmoting the gospel with excellence.
3.We have never allowed ourselves to be 'taught' a better way, in reality we suffer from arrogance...thinking we really do have the best message and so the 'message' should be enough.
4. We are stuck in a time warp.
Maybe these are possible answers...no....maybe?
If we are to call ourselves a holiness people we must realise that a holy life is a deep life where we seek that Jesus be lifted high in all we do, where we want to do our best in all we do, where we want to shine the love of Christ and the good news in a way that glorifies God with our best not our second rate offerings.
It is time for us to evaluate the way we 'do' ministry and the way we use mediums such as the Web, facebook, twitter etc etc and get with the times.
I have passion for this and i pray we all would come to a place where we see excellence as more than a grade but a way of life for the church in service.
Peace
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I remember a number of years ago Glen Wilson and I attended Christian City Church at South Bank in Brisbane.
ReplyDeleteThe church had been attacked over the previous night and had been fire bombed. Glen and I had no idea about this when we turned up for church. There was a sign on the door and buses to take people to the Convention Center where the church had booked a room for their evening service.
Glen and I (rather skeptically) went to have a look. The service was a standard pentecostal worship service, and at the end the senior pastor came up on stage and prayed for the church and the people who had damaged their building. After this about 20 or so young adult appeared with boxes and boxes of chocolate bars that they handed out for free to everyone - and I even saw a few people with extras for their "friends".
I was so impressed that the church was able to get its act together enough to still put on a service, and the truth was that it was probably just as good as it would have been in their own building. More impressive was the chocolate thing... it cost the church a few hundred dollars at most, but it gave me such a positive vibe about that church community and now - over 5 years later - I still remember that church and their commitment to serving God and his people.
Thanks for the reminder Caine!
great story copland!
ReplyDeleteWhere and how do you think we can be more 'excellent'?
I agree. Although, excellence is not necessarily costly. One thing that I was told by my pastor when I was at college, was that first impressions count. Just like Andrew pointed out. People often make up their minds about coming back before the service even starts.
ReplyDeleteIt may seem insignificant, but just a clean, neat and tidy building is already a first impression. Old bulletins and papers lying around, unorganized worship and general tardiness is a sign of half-heartedness. People return because of the welcome, warmth, authentic friendliness, and because they can see that the people are serious about their worship, love and walk with God.
Their "first love" should be evident in every part of the service. It doesn't have to cost heaps, but at the same time, it's time to "chuck out" those things that are old, broken, un-used, and just taking up space.
Notice boards could be bright and "up-to-date". Announcements can be colourful and interesting. Door stewards can be "smiling", helpful and encouraging. Musicians can be "prepared and ready". (I personally feel that there is nothing worse than arriving for a service and the musicians are still practicing)
I have seen excellence that has an impact, but I've also seen excellence where everything is perfect but the "relational" aspect is lost in the "pride" of the "performance." As Christians, we need to do and show and be the best we can with what we have where we are, but as Paul says, do everything as if we were doing it for Christ.
If we do it to "please others" it becomes a performance. If we do it to "please God" it becomes part of our worship.
Trevor