Many churches have a welcome wagon ministry…but is that enough?
Joe is a shy guy but has decided to give this church thing a try. So, one overcast Sunday in late September, he puts on his best pair of slacks and a faded blue button down shirt. He neatly combs his hair before procuring the KJV red-letter edition his grandfather gave to him many years ago. He grabs a few tissues and wipes the dust off the cover. He puts on his black dress shoes (which for some reason seem to get more uncomfortable with every use) and heads out the door.
He arrives at First Haven Church and is greeted by a man in a bright orange and yellow vest (and an even brighter smile) guiding him to the nearest parking space. He exits his car and within twenty steps is greeted by a nice elderly man handing out church bulletins and free words of praise. “Here ya go…so glad to have you with us today”. He then enters the narthex to find free coffee being served so he grabs a hot cup and sprinkles in two sugars along with a splash of half and half.
Joe is shown to an open seat by an usher and he settles in for the service. The music is to his liking and he is dazzled by the band and the breathtaking PowerPoint backgrounds during the musical worship session of the Sunday service. Later he listens to the pastor and finds himself taking notes in the nicely prepared bulletin outline. He finds the words to be encouraging, challenging, and comforting all at once.
Week after week Joe attends this church but finds that, after awhile, the “new car smell” begins to wear off. The once bright smile of the parking lot attendant begins to dim…the coffee starts to taste bitter and once breathtaking backgrounds now seem redundant and cliché. The once encouraging words of the preacher now are nothing more than pastoral pabulum on par with the political pandering he sees on the six ‘o’ clock news during election season. Joe becomes jaded and totally disenfranchised with the entire “church” concept and ceases attending. No one calls to check up on Joe and he slips through the cracks.
Sadly Joe’s story is in no way unique. Many people visit these types of churches and are dazzled by all of the wonderments within. The smiling faces, the fresh coffee, the free concert and the wonderful motivational speaking. Soon, however, the proverbial new car smell begins to reek of dull repetition and so they are off to the “next new thing”…so what is wrong…what is the solution?
…continued in part 2.
