Having been in ministry most of my life.... as a Pastor I am not afforded the opportunity to visit churches on a Sunday unless I am a guest speaker. I recently closed my church in Shreveport as our team is preparing to relocate. With me I have asked my team to visit other churches of all kinds as we do not have a church home and are in between assignments.
I realize we need to be open to the way others worship or conduct their services. As long as Jesus is glorified and the Word is foundation I can pretty much handle it. I want my team to know first hand what is "out" there for two reasons. If they are gonna continue to labor with me, I want them to know that they know this is what they want and can walk in agreement with me. There's a job to do. Secondly, I want to gain insight of a better way to build for the Kingdom ..... or how not to build.
To be real....honestly, false doctrine, ignorant and lazy Christianity, misrepresentation of Christ make me angry. Yet in this season I am willing to look at a variety of places called "church" just in case I am missing something or need to know something.
I guess if anything I realize why I am CALLED to the ministry! LOL!
Yesterday in my city we visited a new "church." Without desire to be critical. We tought they might have a "god" idea of some sort. Service is held in a new theater.....it's a come as you are type church, be comfortable in dress and you carry in your drinks...(possibly snacks too i guess.)
Church began at 10:15 there was some music but not one praise or worship song. In fact one song was a secular love song that is aired on the radio now.
The message began with two clips from The Devil Wears Prada! and included another clip from a TV movie. The message was motivational on choosing your friends wisely. "You become like those you hang around." One scripture from Proverbs was used.
Prov 13:20
0 He who walks with wise men will be wise,
But the companion of fools will be destroyed. NKJV
However they used a more comfortable version of the Bible. Destroyed is too strong of a word fo r this generation.
Honestly I endured this 30 minutes message and gave them the benefit of the doubt that it was wise to
teach this .
My team and I met for lunch and discussed the pros and cons of this service. Mostly cons......not many pros.
The theater seats were filled and they even had an overflow theater broadcasting the service on screen.
I couldn't recall hearing the name of Jesus. Not one worship song, no invitation to receive Christ. The only prayer prayed was to close the service. Needless to say......my team was a bit more then unsettled about this. We know what we DON'T WANT and what we WILL NOT DO in our new territory as we pioneer.
I was fine till I awoke this morning and am enraged as I recall the only name(or title) that stuck in my mind from yesterdays message is WIZARD! The word was comically used in a special verbal illustration.
The word wizard was used at least THREE times in thirty minutes. Jesus was NEVER SPOKEN AT ALL not even once!
I want to give eveyone a chance who desires to fufill the call of God and wants to create a place for lives to be changed but.....
May I kindly speak here....in my humble opinion (ventingly lol).......I call this ......STUPID CHURCH!
Just what Shreveport/Bossier needs, another POWERLESS CHURCH!
2 Tim 3:5-7
5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth NKJV
I knew this kind of church existed....everywhere...
Wonder how many people left there still on the way to hell? what if one of them died last night.....what if they thought they were ready for eternity?
The new ad should be.....
"COME TO _____ CHURCH......WE DON'T EXPECT CHANGE!"
Any thoughts on the "new" American church?
