Just Thinking Aloud

At our last leadership meeting our pastor brought up a very interesting theory on the generational connectivity needs of Christians. For example, the older generation looks to the intellectual aspects, the baby boomers started the movement in search of an experience with God, and so on and so on. So potentially, you can have a single congregation looking for an encounter that meets the needs of the intellectual, experiential, those who want something real, something that changes them, and something to act upon. Wow! What a challenge for leadership!

I am a self proclaimed arty-farty, so anything that appeals to the senses, anything I can experience is great for me. However, that doesn't cut it. I want to know God and understand more about him.

I read blogs that discuss this kind of thing, and there are basically three major categories.

First, you have the traditional church, that has been around for eons. Some claim it's broke, I don't know about that. Most of us over 25, as well as countless others throughout the ages, met Jesus Christ to the sweet old tune of "Just as I am". That being said, people are looking for something different, and many of those churches are struggling and closing their doors.

Then you have the experiential charismatic churches founded on the "Jesus Movement" as I have heard it said. They have experienced AWESOME movements of the Holy Spirit. They have changed the face of worship forever. I gather that they gave birth to the mega-church that has seeker services for the lost in which a rock show performance is given and the gospel is presented in a non-threatening fashion. And it works, thousands are being saving!


Now I am hearing more and more about this third group. They are somewhere in the middle, I guess. They are tired of the huge performance based services because they lack the meat of traditional service. They want to be connected with other members of the body of Christ and feel that 36,000 members in a church are a few too many (ya think?). They feel like it is too manufactured and superficial. But they are not necessarily on board with the traditional church either, they want to experience God in a tangible way. They want the manifest Holy presence that they found in the charismatic church. Tricky!

And this group is growing like crazy.

I am reading more and more material all the time that God's people want a real encounter with him in all of these areas. Which makes since, considering Christ told us to love him with our minds, bodies, and our hearts. I think that's the key, the heart.

I just think about these things in perspective to my home church. How do we meet the needs of all of these people? How do we reach the lost, stay connected to the saved, keep everyone well fed on the word, and in the tangible presence of the Almighty?

We serve an awesome, sovereign God. Let's just pray that he will make us the glorified body of Christ that we are meant to be.