Something Every Congregation Needs to Consider
At Central, we are so excited about evangelism, and about having every member involved in various aspects of that wonderful work. A few weeks ago, we hosted a “School of Evangelism,” and, while we had been involved in some parts of that model already, the work since then has only grown and excitement is everywhere.
With that in mind, our sermons recently have also focused on evangelism. While writing the sermon I preached last Sunday morning (I wrote it a few weeks ago), I was doing some thinking about one particular aspect and wanted to share it on here, because it really is something that every congregation needs to consider.
I was talking about church events and programs; the ever-popular “church calendar.” Congregations do so many good things. Our calendar at Central is loaded with things. It is not uncommon at all for there to be weeks where there is something every single day.
But what is the purpose of all those things?
What I said in the sermon, and it was something I know I needed to think about, was this: “The devil doesn’t mind a bit if we are so busy doing good things that there isn’t time to do the ultimate things.”
In context of the sermon, what I meant was: are we so busy doing good things that are “for us” that there is not time to do things that are focused on reaching the lost?
We like things that serve ourselves. We like to be together. We love doing things that make us feel better.
And, let me quickly say: there is a place for that.
But just look at your church calendar. Is it filled with things that are for you (or even just “sub-groups” of your congregation) or that are likely to be attended only by members of other congregations?
Be honest.
You may not like the answer.
Instead, a congregation should be seeking to give people time to evangelize and the congregation should be seeking to make events and programs (as many as possible) truly evangelistic. After all, are we not wanting to win souls? That does not happen without intention and tremendous effort.
Yes, it may mean that some events or programs need to be killed off (or allowed to “die on the vine”). It may mean that others need to be repurposed or done a different way. It may mean your “pet” project has to go or doesn’t get the attention it used to.
But souls are at stake. Is it not worth it in order to do the ultimate thing of winning souls?
These are hard conversations and it is part of a larger conversation about changing the culture of a congregation. But it must be done. Don’t get so caught up doing “good” that you are failing to do the “ultimate.”
AUTHOR: Adam Faughn