Ramblings
Here are some of my ramblings as we think about starting a fourth experience in the fall.
Questions
I think a huge part of church is deprogramming or deconstructing what we've done and rethinking or revising our experiences. This blog is an attempt to rethink what we're doing by "thinking out loud." The ultimate goal is life change. We want to see people take the "next step" in their spiritual journey. For some of them that is one step closer to Christ, for some it's crossing the line, for other's it is leaving something behind or taking something away, for other's it's breaking a bad habit, for other's it is putting a principle into practice.
I think it's easy to create "co-dependent" Christians--they need their weekly fix. Church is something that is "done to us" rather than something we do. I'm concerned about that. I want us to help people "discover things for themselves." I think deep change rarely happens while "listening." I think it happens in prayer or reflection or service or confession.
As we plan our services I think there are some key questions that need to guide us:
What is the big idea? Can we express it in a single sentence? What does God want to do in people's lives this week? How can we creatively help people put this message into practice? Is there a creative way to help them "cross the line"? Is there a creative way to help them make some kind of commitment?
I think we ought to do a Journey Sunday at some point during the ID series--maybe to end the series. I think the "Rain" video from Nooma would be a cool closing segment on helping people understand God's heart for his children. If we do a message on our identity as "Children" that would be a cool closing segment."
Reconaissance
I'd like to do reconaissance in a few places:
Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan does something called "Doubt Night." I like the idea of a service where the agenda is determined by the questions of people attending. I've always wanted to try some kind of Q and A or dialogue after a message, but the theater isn't as conducive to that. I think too many churches are answering questions people aren't asking. Questions insure relevancy!
I'd like to check out Solomon's Porch in Minnesota. From what I've read it seems like a very "open" participatory experience that may give us some ideas for our Saturday night service @ Ebenezers (our coffeehouse on Capitol Hill).
I'd like to Check out a prayer service at Brooklyn Tabernacle.
I'd like to check out H2O in Orlando--both their Thursday night deal and their weekend service.
And I'd like to check out one of Westwind's monthly worship gatherings.
Next
Here are some "questions" I'm wrestling with as we prepare to launch another service in the fall. What should our next "experience" or "gathering" look like?
I like the idea of a more "open worship" format that allows for selahs--reflective pauses--and possibly "what the Spirit saying to us" moments--allow room for a word of knowledge or prophetic word. We allow the Spirit to amend the agenda! I've always wanted to experiment with a Q & A that allows for dialogue. I like worship experiences that take me where I've never been instead of a "been there and done that" kind of linear approach to church. One way to do that is to allow more participation because different people will take the meeting in different directions. Of course, sometimes they'll take it where you don't want it to go! But even that can be a learning experience.
Possibilities
Church in the round--I like the idea of setting up a very different seating arrangement. I can see doing some kind of setup that is much more personal or interpersonal. It removes the "moat" between the pastor and people. I think "mixing it up" has a positive effect--new begets new. New places beget new perspectives. New expereinces beget new insights.
Stations--I like Stations because they are "best of both worlds" approach. You can stay where you are and worship (and feel comfortable doing that) or go to one of the stations and pray or confess or take communion. I think we definitely want to design Ebenezers so this works in that environment.
Names
If we go back to different experiences at different times I think we need new names that give identity.
I like the idea of doing a more creative bible reading via video--Frontline does a good job of this. They use moving backgrounds to help people visualize Scripture. I like the idea of doing more "Scripture videos." This would be a new genre of video. I think the "Forgiveness" video (Micah 7:19) and Reagan video (Romans 5:6-8) are examples of "Scripture videos." For the ID series I could see doing a video at the cow pasture in Alexandria where I was "called to ministry" and God really re-routed my calling/destiny. It is my damascus road. I think we need to bring Scripture to life via moving images--it turns a two-dimensional text into three-dimensional images. I think the "Bring me to Life" video selah was an exposition of Ezekiel 37.
I think our laptop gives us creative license to do more "on sight" stuff. For example, I think we can capture some video clips of people on the way in, edit them during the service, and actually show a video at the end. It's not real-time, but it's getting close. We could have an "interview station" or "story station" on the way in where we pull people aside who are willing to be interviewed or we do some "candid camera" questions based on a message topic. An example would be turning our "group share" time at Inward Bound into a video. We'd ask people--what was your most embarassing moment? Then we turn that around and show it at the end of the service. "On the way in this morning we asked some of you about your most embarassing moment." Here are a few of the answers! I think it'd create a participatory or family feel.
I like the ideo of a "video recap" from week to week." I'm envisioning a 90-second recap during the offertory of what we talk about the previous week. This could be part of our "preview" (towards the end of the loop) or during the offertory. Or possibly as part of "video announcements" if we move that direction.
I really like the idea of being more intentional about candles in the theaters--they create a sense of sacred space. I think we need lower house lights and more candle light to help create a sacred feel. I think there is tremendous potential at Ballston for this kind of setup--stations, candles, etc. because of stage space. It's a little tougher at Union Station.
I like the idea of a "reflection question" to begin and end some Club events or Coffeehouse services. It's tougher to begin services at the theater with a subdued or reflective feel. We tend to start more upbeat there which is great. I think a coffeehouse or club is more conducive to reflective worship.
I think we want to continue to be creative with props and artwork and symbols. For the ID series, for example, possibly "fingerprinting" people on the way in one morning. It'd have to be optional, but it'd be a cool way to making it a unique morning.
I think we could use "parchment" paper or butcher paper or play dough or clay or any other number of props to help people think about themselves. If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be and why? If Pastor Mark was an animal, what kind of animal would he be? We could turn Jeremiah 18 into a "hands on" message. Anything to help people participate. Give everybody some play dough and have some fun!
Just as we have "physical comedy" I think we need "physical messages." The Old Testament prophets used their bodies to communicate. They spoke in "word pictures."
There are such powerful images in Scripture. We need to help people picture them. How do we do it with "the bottle of tears" or "bowl of prayers" or "book of remembrance" or "blotting out our transgressions." How do we communicate those images in a five-senses/three-dimensional ways?
Rhythm
I think we need to be more sensitive to the church calendar. There is a rhythm to the Old Testament that is missing in the postmodern church. Next year I'm going to use the forty days of Lent as a season of prayer and fasting. There were three feasts in the Old Testament built around important historical events like Passover and rhythmic events like the harvest.
I think the seasons in our culture are "New Years"--people are ready to make changes. Love is in the air around Valentine's Day. I think Lent is an important spiritual season that the Prostetant church has largely overlooked. We also overlook Pentecost. Summer is a unique season for churches. And then "Back to School" is a momenum building season. And of course the "holiday season" between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The Missing Pieces
Here is part of what I think our current services are missing:
More informal dismissals where people can tarry--we have time constraints in the theater. We don't have very many "selahs" where people can reflect or meditate. I like the idea of "reflection questions" or "confession times" or "Scripture meditations" via video. The goal is to get people to actually think and feel a message--to get a message from their head to their heart. I think an example was the Inward Bound reflection question--am I building altars to God or monuments to myself? I think gaps in a service allow the Spirit of God to alter the tone or agenda of a service. I want to allow for Spirit-led "amendments." This also allows for spontaneous expressions of praise or prophecy. I like people doing "different things"--stations. The value of Journey Sundays is not allowing people to "go through the motions." They got out what they put in. I like pushing people this way every once in a while. I don't want to make guests feel awkward, but I want to get people out their "Sunday morning Routine." I also love the idea of "honest talk about tough issues." I like the give and take of a Q and A. I think it'd make for some interesting Sundays.
William Dryness says, "We must listen carefully to this generation and reread Scripture in the light of their dreams and fears. Then perhaps we will present the gospel and plan our worship in ways that respond to their quest and reintegrate words and images. It is possible that we might actually win the battle of words but lose the battle of images. And losing that battle could well cost us this generation."
I think one role of the preacher is taking the pulse of a particular generation or geography. Charles Spurgeon said preaching was like a doctor choosing medicine for a patient--you can't randomly choose. Spending time with people and finding out where and how they're hurting is critical. I think the prayer wall we did gave me more insight into the needs of the congregation that anything we've ever done. You discover where people are at.
I think we need a service that is more "raw." Our service are "well done" right now. And that is fine. But we need some "rare" or "raw" experiences that are a little more edgy.
I'd like to redefine announcements as "connection points."
I think we need to do a "Connection" after each service where people can meet the Lead Pastor or Point Pastor or someone on staff who will tell them about NCC. I think we need a "ten minute" kind of gathering just to help people get connected quicker.
End Goals
I think we need to do more thinking about end goals or end results:
We want to help people take the "next step" in their spiritual journey. We want to help people become more like Christ--more committed followers. We want people to live in "daily dependence" upon God. We want to glorify God in creative ways. We want people to "live in awe" of God. We want people to walk the talk Monday to Friday. We want to challenge people to "cross the line" and commit their lives to Christ.
Questions
I think a huge part of church is deprogramming or deconstructing what we've done and rethinking or revising our experiences. This blog is an attempt to rethink what we're doing by "thinking out loud." The ultimate goal is life change. We want to see people take the "next step" in their spiritual journey. For some of them that is one step closer to Christ, for some it's crossing the line, for other's it is leaving something behind or taking something away, for other's it's breaking a bad habit, for other's it is putting a principle into practice.
I think it's easy to create "co-dependent" Christians--they need their weekly fix. Church is something that is "done to us" rather than something we do. I'm concerned about that. I want us to help people "discover things for themselves." I think deep change rarely happens while "listening." I think it happens in prayer or reflection or service or confession.
As we plan our services I think there are some key questions that need to guide us:
What is the big idea? Can we express it in a single sentence? What does God want to do in people's lives this week? How can we creatively help people put this message into practice? Is there a creative way to help them "cross the line"? Is there a creative way to help them make some kind of commitment?
I think we ought to do a Journey Sunday at some point during the ID series--maybe to end the series. I think the "Rain" video from Nooma would be a cool closing segment on helping people understand God's heart for his children. If we do a message on our identity as "Children" that would be a cool closing segment."
Reconaissance
I'd like to do reconaissance in a few places:
Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan does something called "Doubt Night." I like the idea of a service where the agenda is determined by the questions of people attending. I've always wanted to try some kind of Q and A or dialogue after a message, but the theater isn't as conducive to that. I think too many churches are answering questions people aren't asking. Questions insure relevancy!
I'd like to check out Solomon's Porch in Minnesota. From what I've read it seems like a very "open" participatory experience that may give us some ideas for our Saturday night service @ Ebenezers (our coffeehouse on Capitol Hill).
I'd like to Check out a prayer service at Brooklyn Tabernacle.
I'd like to check out H2O in Orlando--both their Thursday night deal and their weekend service.
And I'd like to check out one of Westwind's monthly worship gatherings.
Next
Here are some "questions" I'm wrestling with as we prepare to launch another service in the fall. What should our next "experience" or "gathering" look like?
I like the idea of a more "open worship" format that allows for selahs--reflective pauses--and possibly "what the Spirit saying to us" moments--allow room for a word of knowledge or prophetic word. We allow the Spirit to amend the agenda! I've always wanted to experiment with a Q & A that allows for dialogue. I like worship experiences that take me where I've never been instead of a "been there and done that" kind of linear approach to church. One way to do that is to allow more participation because different people will take the meeting in different directions. Of course, sometimes they'll take it where you don't want it to go! But even that can be a learning experience.
Possibilities
Church in the round--I like the idea of setting up a very different seating arrangement. I can see doing some kind of setup that is much more personal or interpersonal. It removes the "moat" between the pastor and people. I think "mixing it up" has a positive effect--new begets new. New places beget new perspectives. New expereinces beget new insights.
Stations--I like Stations because they are "best of both worlds" approach. You can stay where you are and worship (and feel comfortable doing that) or go to one of the stations and pray or confess or take communion. I think we definitely want to design Ebenezers so this works in that environment.
Names
If we go back to different experiences at different times I think we need new names that give identity.
I like the idea of doing a more creative bible reading via video--Frontline does a good job of this. They use moving backgrounds to help people visualize Scripture. I like the idea of doing more "Scripture videos." This would be a new genre of video. I think the "Forgiveness" video (Micah 7:19) and Reagan video (Romans 5:6-8) are examples of "Scripture videos." For the ID series I could see doing a video at the cow pasture in Alexandria where I was "called to ministry" and God really re-routed my calling/destiny. It is my damascus road. I think we need to bring Scripture to life via moving images--it turns a two-dimensional text into three-dimensional images. I think the "Bring me to Life" video selah was an exposition of Ezekiel 37.
I think our laptop gives us creative license to do more "on sight" stuff. For example, I think we can capture some video clips of people on the way in, edit them during the service, and actually show a video at the end. It's not real-time, but it's getting close. We could have an "interview station" or "story station" on the way in where we pull people aside who are willing to be interviewed or we do some "candid camera" questions based on a message topic. An example would be turning our "group share" time at Inward Bound into a video. We'd ask people--what was your most embarassing moment? Then we turn that around and show it at the end of the service. "On the way in this morning we asked some of you about your most embarassing moment." Here are a few of the answers! I think it'd create a participatory or family feel.
I like the ideo of a "video recap" from week to week." I'm envisioning a 90-second recap during the offertory of what we talk about the previous week. This could be part of our "preview" (towards the end of the loop) or during the offertory. Or possibly as part of "video announcements" if we move that direction.
I really like the idea of being more intentional about candles in the theaters--they create a sense of sacred space. I think we need lower house lights and more candle light to help create a sacred feel. I think there is tremendous potential at Ballston for this kind of setup--stations, candles, etc. because of stage space. It's a little tougher at Union Station.
I like the idea of a "reflection question" to begin and end some Club events or Coffeehouse services. It's tougher to begin services at the theater with a subdued or reflective feel. We tend to start more upbeat there which is great. I think a coffeehouse or club is more conducive to reflective worship.
I think we want to continue to be creative with props and artwork and symbols. For the ID series, for example, possibly "fingerprinting" people on the way in one morning. It'd have to be optional, but it'd be a cool way to making it a unique morning.
I think we could use "parchment" paper or butcher paper or play dough or clay or any other number of props to help people think about themselves. If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be and why? If Pastor Mark was an animal, what kind of animal would he be? We could turn Jeremiah 18 into a "hands on" message. Anything to help people participate. Give everybody some play dough and have some fun!
Just as we have "physical comedy" I think we need "physical messages." The Old Testament prophets used their bodies to communicate. They spoke in "word pictures."
There are such powerful images in Scripture. We need to help people picture them. How do we do it with "the bottle of tears" or "bowl of prayers" or "book of remembrance" or "blotting out our transgressions." How do we communicate those images in a five-senses/three-dimensional ways?
Rhythm
I think we need to be more sensitive to the church calendar. There is a rhythm to the Old Testament that is missing in the postmodern church. Next year I'm going to use the forty days of Lent as a season of prayer and fasting. There were three feasts in the Old Testament built around important historical events like Passover and rhythmic events like the harvest.
I think the seasons in our culture are "New Years"--people are ready to make changes. Love is in the air around Valentine's Day. I think Lent is an important spiritual season that the Prostetant church has largely overlooked. We also overlook Pentecost. Summer is a unique season for churches. And then "Back to School" is a momenum building season. And of course the "holiday season" between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The Missing Pieces
Here is part of what I think our current services are missing:
More informal dismissals where people can tarry--we have time constraints in the theater. We don't have very many "selahs" where people can reflect or meditate. I like the idea of "reflection questions" or "confession times" or "Scripture meditations" via video. The goal is to get people to actually think and feel a message--to get a message from their head to their heart. I think an example was the Inward Bound reflection question--am I building altars to God or monuments to myself? I think gaps in a service allow the Spirit of God to alter the tone or agenda of a service. I want to allow for Spirit-led "amendments." This also allows for spontaneous expressions of praise or prophecy. I like people doing "different things"--stations. The value of Journey Sundays is not allowing people to "go through the motions." They got out what they put in. I like pushing people this way every once in a while. I don't want to make guests feel awkward, but I want to get people out their "Sunday morning Routine." I also love the idea of "honest talk about tough issues." I like the give and take of a Q and A. I think it'd make for some interesting Sundays.
William Dryness says, "We must listen carefully to this generation and reread Scripture in the light of their dreams and fears. Then perhaps we will present the gospel and plan our worship in ways that respond to their quest and reintegrate words and images. It is possible that we might actually win the battle of words but lose the battle of images. And losing that battle could well cost us this generation."
I think one role of the preacher is taking the pulse of a particular generation or geography. Charles Spurgeon said preaching was like a doctor choosing medicine for a patient--you can't randomly choose. Spending time with people and finding out where and how they're hurting is critical. I think the prayer wall we did gave me more insight into the needs of the congregation that anything we've ever done. You discover where people are at.
I think we need a service that is more "raw." Our service are "well done" right now. And that is fine. But we need some "rare" or "raw" experiences that are a little more edgy.
I'd like to redefine announcements as "connection points."
I think we need to do a "Connection" after each service where people can meet the Lead Pastor or Point Pastor or someone on staff who will tell them about NCC. I think we need a "ten minute" kind of gathering just to help people get connected quicker.
End Goals
I think we need to do more thinking about end goals or end results:
We want to help people take the "next step" in their spiritual journey. We want to help people become more like Christ--more committed followers. We want people to live in "daily dependence" upon God. We want to glorify God in creative ways. We want people to "live in awe" of God. We want people to walk the talk Monday to Friday. We want to challenge people to "cross the line" and commit their lives to Christ.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home