Over the Easter Period, our church hosted what we called 'The Easter Experience'. It was a chance for people to interact and engage with the Inexhaustible, Inclusive and Intentional Love of God. The idea was to look at breaking down what I call The Pew Platform Divide. You know what I'm talking about...the big wall that is erected between the Platform and the Pews.It is often unseen on Sundays but I think it's proof is evidenced in the lives of many during the week who dont interact or read the word of God; who don't pray; who find that the bible doesn't speak to them; and who wait for Sundays for the pastor or preacher to teach the scripture to them. Don't get me wrong, I think it is imperative that the pastor preachers, but I fear that in our consumerisitic, quick fix, microwave society, people are simply waiting and happy to be only taught from the pulpit on Sundays rather than engaging with God through conversation, community, prayer and scripture 24hours / 7days a week. And I think that the Pew Platform divide only encourages this. Let me explain. I think this Divide allows for people to simply attend, listen and spectate in church. Often the way we 'run' our church services allows people to simply disconnect from what is being said and ultimately God and simply be polite by listening quietly and not snoring or rustling the church newsletters. But my understanding is that our faith is one of action, one of participation, of engagement and interaction, of community and conversation. May we explore ways to encourage greater participation in church, greater interaction with God's love and truth and clearer ways for people to see that our faith is one that should always be done in community. Perhaps in all our attempts to encourage people to have a 'quiet' time or 'private' time with God each day (which I think is super important) we have forgotten to tell people that our faith is lived out in community and conversation. Our faith is not one confined to the fourwalls of our church buildings or an hour on Sunday morning, but one that should be experienced and shared around a good glass of wine; over Cibo's coffee (or the Coffee Barun); in the car on the way to school; around the dinner table at night; even on the internet!! I know I have jumped around alot in this post, but I wonder if people like being spectators in church; I wonder if they don't like to engage in conversation or interact with Scripture because maybe God will speak to them...and maybe they will be required to follow, obey and change their lifestyle!!!!
Follow this link to see one of the Blog stations that was part of the Easter Experience. Read the posts and make comments. Engage with the thoughts in the blog. http://easterexperience.blogspot.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
some good thoughts dan. i think its true often we don't engage with God privately because we afraid (or worse yet, know) what God will say. I too value quiet times and are committed to attempting to spend time with Jesus during the week, but i wonder what it was like for the early church. They didn't have their own bibles, they read the letters (what the NT was at the time) repeatedly as a group. Could that be one of our big differences? we don't grow in God together in the way they did? cheers scott berry
That could well be one of the key differences. good thoughts scotty. Maybe as good as the printing press and reformation was for putting the bible into peoples hands, we may have lost the powerful dynamic of sharing scripture in conversation and community. Growing in God Together. I like that!
Post a Comment