I often capture something I read online through one of these tools and it makes a quick look for ideas easier than trying to wade through lots of stored bookmarks.
Anyway it all made me think about the issue of church health, about how we measure that and how we develop it.
I did come across some Purpose Driven notes and I know that I have some more notes on questions to ask elsewhere. There was also a helpful article I downloaded from somewhere but my indexing system has let me down (I forgot to record the website!). I'm sure I can track it down if necessary.
Anyway, suffice it to say, I think it's time for some serious thinking about church health. Any suggestions? As I research my database of ideas (a posh term for all the accumulated papers and notes and bookmarks) I'll try and put a list together on the blog. If there's something you've found helpful, I'd like to hear about it.
3 comments:
Hi Richard, I came across your blog by random about a year ago and have kept reading it ever since!
Here is a question I put to another blog I read - Tim Chester. I dont know him but I like what he writes. I asked him a question about growing in Christ together and this was his response. It is a bit long but you may find it helpful.
Cheers, Wiggy
Self-examination questions for Christian community
4 December 2006 — Tim Chester
I recently received the following question: ‘I am involved in a housegroup and we are working hard at making it a place of genuine community and we have been doing so for a year. Early next year I want to examine our housegroup to see whether we feel we are being a genuine community to one another. I wondered in your experience what would be the five (or more) questions you would ask of our group to help us examine whether we are growing Christ-like in community together.’
It’s a good question. Here’s my attempt to put together some questions. Please feel free to leave comments and maybe we can refine the questions and make them more useful.
I’ve organised my questions around five top level questions, each with a batch of sub-questions that hopefully give some signs that the top level issue is actually being reflected in practice.
1. God: Are you God-centred?
Do people often extol the goodness and greatness of God to one another in normal conversation? Is prayer a regular feature of your life together? Do people pray as and when issues arise and not just in ‘prayer meetings’? When you pray, do most people in the community contribute? Is it sometimes difficult to contribute to times of community prayer because everyone wants to pray? Do your prayer requests focus on God and his glory rather than upon you and your comfort?
2. Love: Are you other-centred?
Are you sharing your lives together? Do people see one another between scheduled meetings? Do most people eat with other members of the community at least twice a week? Are people helping one another in practical ways like doing chores for one another? Do people feel a sense of responsibility to and for one another? Do people use the language of ‘we’ rather than ‘you’ (’We should …’ rather than ‘You should …’)? Do people share their time and money? Are people willing to discuss their time and money? Do people open their homes to one another? Do people make decisions with regard to the community and in consultation with the community?
3. The Bible: Are you word-centred?
Is there a hunger for God’s word and an excitement when it is taught? Is the word often discussed outside scheduled Bible studies? Are people meeting up to read the Bible together? Is there a process of learning together? Is there evidence of the word changing individual lives and the life of the community as a whole? Do people speak the truth in love when others face pastoral issues? Do people repent of their negative behaviour and emotions (like anxiety, complaining, fear of others, self-justification, bitterness, anger, selfishness) and look to the truth about God (that God is in control, God is good, God is gracious, God is to be feared more than people) rather than blaming their circumstances? Are people rebuking one another with the truth?
4. Grace: Are you grace-centred?
Are people open about their sin and struggles rather than there being a culture of pretending? Is community life messy rather than sanitised and respectable? Are broken people attracted to your community? Is conflict open rather than suppressed? Is forgiveness and reconciliation actively pursued? Do you constantly return to the cross in your conversation, prayers and praise?
5. Mission: Are you mission-centred?
Do you have regular contact with unbelievers? Are unbelievers involved in the life of the community? Do unbelievers see your love for one another? Does your community life raise questions in the minds of unbelievers? Are you having opportunities for gospel conversations? Are you taking those opportunities? Are evangelistic opportunities celebrated by the community and made a matter for prayer? Are you crossing cultural boundaries? Do you have relationships with marginalised people? Are you trusting in God’s sovereignty rather than trying to do his work of conversation or worrying about ‘results’?
The word ‘you’ above is normally plural - i.e. you as a community. But I think the questions could also be used to explore an individual’s participation in community by taking the ‘you’ as singular.
Thanks for the comment. I think there's a good correlation between this and some of the thoughts I've been having.
Rick Warren has consistently said over the years that the issue s not church growth but church health.
Thanks
Brother, I stumbled across this posting in a Google search of the blogosphere. I was thrilled to see you thinking in this direction.
I've been working in the "church health" field for a number of years as a full-time pastor, a writer and as a consultant. At this point in my life I've begun to re-examine the presuppositions that undergird the church growth movement. (e.g., a growing church is a healthy church)
I'm going to be developing my thinking further as I work through the exegesis of the Thessalonian epistles, Pastorals and the Letters to the Seven churches.
I wish I could offer you more at this point, but I can't. But I know from first hand experience that many of the important components of church health (e.g., fair compensation for staff, transparency at all levels, continuous innovation and change, a clear policy of church discipline/restoration that is actually implemented, a flat and simple organizational structure etc etc) are rarely addressed in the popular literature.
Best of providence and grace as you continue your thoughts.
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