Just wondering...

I am privileged to be part of a group of men from churches all over America who are in a coaching network with Tony Morgan. It's a great group, with only one small caveat; to paraphrase the famous philosopher Groucho Marx, "Any club that would have me as a member is suspect."

The main thing I observe about the guys in this group is that they are very, very bright and very, very dedicated. There are a wide range of roles represented, and a wide range of church types, sizes and denominations. The common factor is that we are all evangelicals and all passionately want our churches to bring the Gospel to people who are perishing without it, and deny hell a larger market share.

Pray for me as I participate, and pray for these other men.

An interview with Ed Stetzer...

Ed Stetzer is President of Lifeway Research and a well-respected author and observer of the church scene in North America. This is an interview with him reviewing some of his research findings in a new book, Lost and Found: The Younger Unchurched and the Churches That Reach Them.

This research supports something we see intuitively at The Church at Argyle about 20-somethings

• They are turned off by people or things things that are not genuine
• They highly value close personal ties
• They are spiritually open but skeptical
• They seek cross-generational relationships but resist being dominated or talked down to
• They seek truth but won't take things for granted- they want to explore their beliefs in depth

What does this mean? It means that we can't assume that the disconnection from the church of large numbers of our young people is a "phase" they will grow out of in their 30's and 40's. It means that we need to spend time and energy nurturing relationships with them, to model Christ for them, to earn their attention to the message of the Gospel. It means seeing them as equals, if not as peers, in our lives and communities.

Sometimes the truth hurts...

Listening to a podcast involving Dr. Ed Stetzer about 20-somethings in today's church, I heard something that is both true and disturbing. (Very close paraphrase- may not be an exact quote)

"Most churches, given the choice, will choose their traditions over their children."

I am so glad that my church isn't doing that- or at least not in an overt way. God help us to continue to make decisions based on reaching as many people as possible, most particularly our children, with the Gospel of Jesus. Please God, don't ever let us choose our tradition or our comfort zone over loving the people you put in our sphere of influence.

New beginning...

If you arrived here looking for The Church at Argyle Staff Blog- it has moved. Click here to go to the new location, and be sure to change your bookmark.

But always remember to come back here- this is now my personal site for random thoughts and observations. Some good, some not so good and some stinking on ice.