There is great concern among sports fasn about the NFL lockout and its impact on the 2011 football season. Owners are using this tactic as part of the contract negotiation process. In dispute is the way a very large sum of money will be distributed. Negotiations have ended for the time being and the matter is in court.
Recently one of my young adult sons and I were talking about this. He is convinced that there will be a full schedule of games for the 2012 season. The pre-season may be effected, but the regular season will go on. The reason for his confidence is that he thinks Fans want to see the players play. They are not interested in watching the owners own or the coaches coach.
I have to wonder if this this is something that the NFL shares with a lot of churches in our nation. Folks who come to church want to see something. This is true regardless of denominational brand or identity label. As one who preaches, I’d like to think that they come to hear preaching. But I’ve been around long enough to know that while preaching has a role to attract, it is not the only reason people come. It may not even be the most important reason. Folks come to church to see the “game” – just like fans go to the Meadowlands or Lambeau or my own Georgia Dome. (And in my part of the world it also applies to places like Sanford Stadium or Death Valley – both of them – or Jordan Hare – but these are Saturday gatherings, not Sunday).
The “game” for a church means that folks come to see things: babies or believers baptized, classes taught, the choir sing, the youth group leave (or come back) from a mission trip or conference, communion shared, and fellowship experienced. These things are not “games” in the sense of manipulation. At their best these things are life giving experiences that nourish and challenge the soul. They are things that make people feel alive. Yet all too often those of us who handle these holy things fall into a routine. We move over to the “coaching” side. That is we are more concerned with the design of how we do things.
Design is important. Indeed it is critical. But the fans who gather to watch an NFL game on Sunday are concerned not with the design. They are concerned with how that design is implemented and executed. In short, they want to watch the plays. And it is in the “plays” that the power of the game comes alive.
At the church level, folks don’t come to watch the council govern or committees meet. (Well sometimes they do – but that’s pretty unusual). Yet the work of the council and committees is akin to matters that team ownership and coaches have to deal with. If they don’t design the team to be able to produce good “plays” (and to “win games”), then the fans will fall away. (Of course, there is the debate of being faithful or being successful – and that is a matter of importance, but for another time. Suffice it to say that regardless of outcome, I trust that God provides).
I’m convinced that people want to come – to churches as well as to football games. So what can the church do about this situation.
Well, the church shouldn’t lock people out. But that means something different in church than for the NFL. Pro football players are highly trained and focused on their game. Many people who would go to church have not been in a while. Church leadership needs to find ways to improve the “plays” that are offered and share the excitement of the “game.”
That may mean going to some places that are not natural for church leaders. The tag line from the Composers Datebook is a good bit of advice here: all music was once new. We need to listen to that and let it find ways of being expressed – not just with music but in so many areas, including the use of technology. All that has gone before need not be rejected. The challenge is to find ways that connect what has gone before with what is going on now.
In some ways, the questions never end. Rob Bell’s recent status as a “rock-star” comes from raising old questions. Sometimes the old questions are still the ones folks are seeking answers for. And sometimes there are questions which go beyond easy answers.
As we ask questions, form answers and ask different questions, those of us in church leadership roles need to find ways to renew ourselves so that we are still thrilled by the “plays” that bring folks to the field. We need to remember that time when we were filled with excitement to watch the “plays.” And we must connect that excitement to the place and privilege of leadership so that more people will also be drawn onto the field.
We do all of this trusting not just in our actions, but that through them God’s spirit will be known.
