The picture above depicts the very serene and gorgeous landscape of the Smokey Mountains in mid-February on a late Sunday afternoon. I snapped this photograph on my camera a year ago as I was maneuvering myself down a trail. This photo wasn’t taken just to be a random shot to sit idle on my digital camera roll, as so many of our photos tend to do. This picture was taken for me to remember what I knew had to be a turning point in my life and my faith journey - if I made it back down the mountain.
Scott, I think you made a wise decision to leave that church. My family is about to leave our current church in a few months, once my son's leadership commitment in the youth group has concluded. There are many reasons why, but to sum it up I'd say our current church is man-centered, and I want my family to attend a God-centered church. Man-centered theology dominates American Christianity, so much that I didn't realize for nearly 25 years that was the water I was swimming in. As husbands and fathers it is our responsibility to lead & disciple our family, and if we find ourselves at a church where the leadership is less sound doctrinally than we are, I think it is important to leave & find a new home that disciples us effectively, so that we can properly lead our family. We visited a Reformed Baptist Church about 30 minutes away last Sunday, and it was a beautiful experience. I've never been built up & edified on the Lord's Day like that before. When I see people get excited about the Lord's Day, I now understand why. 2020 taught me the hard lesson that just because someone professes to be a Christian, I can not assume we have genuine brotherhood in Christ. Doctrines like Sola Scriptura, God's sovereignty & omniscience, and Substitutionary Atonement are not held to by many people who call themselves Christian. Like R.C. Sproul said- we are saved by a possession of faith, not a profession of faith. Sadly, many people have their theology informed by the culture's worldview, rather than their theology shaping their view of culture. Thanks for sharing your blog post, may God bless your family, brother.
I appreciate your openness in sharing such a lowly moment. Your story sheds light on common problems that I suspect plague assemblies. Chiefly, an infatuation with artificially created "spiritual experiences". The spirit of a concert-experience isn't limited to contemporary mega churches. Sadly, youth work is notorious for this - the bible camp high that implodes after a week of being back in the real world. Retreats, camp, Sunday school, etc., are great opportunities that are unfortunately too often wasted by how they're run. They can also leave leadership feeling exhausted in time. After all, who organizes the retreats for the spiritual high of the leaders? (I ask that question having seen at least one answer: leadership using the organization of events to overinflate their sense of effectiveness. You can organize the body to run laps on the court. That doesn't mean you're leading it in a race.) Established congregations, by the very nature in which they assemble and operate, can easily slip into this type of "event-growth" approach. A body engrained in a rigid, formulaic, scheduled approach to worship, fellowship, and discipleship tends to die because of the same.
Scott, I think you made a wise decision to leave that church. My family is about to leave our current church in a few months, once my son's leadership commitment in the youth group has concluded. There are many reasons why, but to sum it up I'd say our current church is man-centered, and I want my family to attend a God-centered church. Man-centered theology dominates American Christianity, so much that I didn't realize for nearly 25 years that was the water I was swimming in. As husbands and fathers it is our responsibility to lead & disciple our family, and if we find ourselves at a church where the leadership is less sound doctrinally than we are, I think it is important to leave & find a new home that disciples us effectively, so that we can properly lead our family. We visited a Reformed Baptist Church about 30 minutes away last Sunday, and it was a beautiful experience. I've never been built up & edified on the Lord's Day like that before. When I see people get excited about the Lord's Day, I now understand why. 2020 taught me the hard lesson that just because someone professes to be a Christian, I can not assume we have genuine brotherhood in Christ. Doctrines like Sola Scriptura, God's sovereignty & omniscience, and Substitutionary Atonement are not held to by many people who call themselves Christian. Like R.C. Sproul said- we are saved by a possession of faith, not a profession of faith. Sadly, many people have their theology informed by the culture's worldview, rather than their theology shaping their view of culture. Thanks for sharing your blog post, may God bless your family, brother.
I appreciate your openness in sharing such a lowly moment. Your story sheds light on common problems that I suspect plague assemblies. Chiefly, an infatuation with artificially created "spiritual experiences". The spirit of a concert-experience isn't limited to contemporary mega churches. Sadly, youth work is notorious for this - the bible camp high that implodes after a week of being back in the real world. Retreats, camp, Sunday school, etc., are great opportunities that are unfortunately too often wasted by how they're run. They can also leave leadership feeling exhausted in time. After all, who organizes the retreats for the spiritual high of the leaders? (I ask that question having seen at least one answer: leadership using the organization of events to overinflate their sense of effectiveness. You can organize the body to run laps on the court. That doesn't mean you're leading it in a race.) Established congregations, by the very nature in which they assemble and operate, can easily slip into this type of "event-growth" approach. A body engrained in a rigid, formulaic, scheduled approach to worship, fellowship, and discipleship tends to die because of the same.