What we don't assume on Sunday Morning…

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I had a couple of really good conversations with people last week about what makes an actionchurch Sunday morning “what it is”. What I ended up taking away from the conversations was that what makes us “different” than what many people have experienced is what we don’t assume.
On Sunday Mornings we don’t assume:
  1. That people “have to” go to church: We don’t live in the 1950’s- there’s no social stigma against people who don’t attend church. There are lots of entertainment and relaxation options available on Sunday mornings. Our job and our goal is to create an environment “worth showing up for” on Sunday mornings.
  2. That people are interested in “studying the Bible”: Instead we assume that most people are ambivalent at best about learning what ancient scripture has to say about life. Our goal is to present the principles and message of the Bible in an interesting and exciting way so that even the most sceptical listener is at least motivated to consider the possibility that the Bible is still relevant to life in 2008 America.
  3. That people will come back… Since people are not motivated by guilt or obligation to attend church, our goal is to make each meeting a “sticky” experience that will motivate people to return.
  4. That we are the “only” church: The phone book is full of literally hundreds of churches… churches with “better programs”, quieter churches, less controversial churches, churches with nicer buildings (although personally I think Fat Daddy’s rocks as a venue), churches with more educated pastors, churches with “better dressed” pastors…you get the idea. We think there are lots of great options for people to attend. Our goal is to be exactly what God has given us the vision to be… and let people decide if they want to be part of our “revolution”. We will not be sidetracked by trying to respond to every “suggestion” about what “other churches do”.

2 thoughts on “What we don't assume on Sunday Morning…”

  1. I agree with point two if you’re speaking about the unsaved, but if someone is saved, they’re gonna be interested in the inspired words of the God they serve. I think they’d want to know if you are reasonably extrapolating the principles and messages of the Bible. The only way to that is to go to the source.

  2. Sorry, Not sure I can add “interested in studying the Bible” as a requirement for salvation…However,My goal on Sunday morning is to point people to a life of following Jesus. As a side benefit, they may well become more interested in Scripture. That is certainly my desire.

    The day actionchurch is unanamously made up of Christians just “itchin to dig into the word” I will know we are failing as a church…