Saddleback Presidential Forum

17 08 2008

I only got to catch parts of the forum between Obama and McCain last night (darn Olympics will suck you in!), but I was impressed with the format and questions. I liked the fact that each candidate got an individual slot to answer questions with Rick Warren. That cut down on the typical forum backbiting where a large component of many answers is simply criticizing your opponent. For a change, I learned more about why I should vote for someone versus vote against someone else. That was refreshing.

I also liked the fact that the questions weren’t prefaced with a whole lot of hullabaloo on the church’s official position on a matter. Typically, we are so well known for what we’re against and a closed-mindedness for discussion/debate that repeatedly hurts the Church. There are serious issues and 300 million people in this country. We are NOT going to agree on everything. And Christians shouldn’t expect non-Christians to arrive at the same conclusions we do, but if you come to the table realizing that we share 80-90% of life in common, well, that’s a whole different mindset that allows for a lot of agreement and progress.

Good job Saddleback! You did us proud and helped the country in this process.





Follow up to “What will make them care?” post

6 08 2008

Ran across this link on Tony Morgan’s site, which details some reasons the unchurched may stick once they attend a church - http://churchrelevance.com/qa-top-reasons-for-church-attendance/

Which led me to ask, “Yes, but what will get them there in the first place?”. We’re spending a lot of time examining assumptions these days at NP. I love it. I stuck in ‘98 because I found two elements that had previously never mixed in my life up to that point: relevance and ministry. We’ve become known for the environments we create, but we know it’s relationships (genuine “I respect and care about you” ones, not “I just need to get you saved” ones) that are the main factor in determining whether someone will give you a chance. My roommates at the time convinced me to attend North Point with them.

We, the Church, can work on a lot of things, but being a better friend will have the greatest impact. Relationship sure seemed to matter to God. Hmm… :-)

Here were some other interesting links on church attendance: (Thanks to Kent Shaffer at churchrelevance.com for these)

http://churchrelevance.com/why-young-adults-stop-continue-and-restart-attending-church/

http://churchrelevance.com/why-go-to-church-and-why-people-dont/





What I’m thinking about these days…

3 08 2008
  • Even though I’m at a great church and Sundays rock, I know several hundred thousand people in the area are either unaware, could care less or are flat out hostile to what we do. How do we intersect with their lives?
  • If people gave to the Church like they really believe God existed, everything they have comes from Him and He asked them to give a portion back, what kind of generosity could be unleashed in each community? Read recently that most churchgoers give about $600/year to their church. And that’s the people who are actually going!
  • Why don’t churches work better with each other? It’s not “you win, I lose”. It really is “you win, I win, we win, the Kingdom wins”. It’s clear we don’t really operate that way. I wonder how many people have avoided God because of the pettiness they see among churches?
  • Will we (North Point) make our 5/50/10 goal (5,000 groups/50,000 people/2010)? I’m not celebrating the numbers. I just know firsthand what God can do when people share life together and encourage each other to pursue Him. Latest I heard we’re edging into the high 20,000s in groups among the 3 campuses and 15 strategic partners.
  • Will my Cubbies win the World Series for the first time since 1908? I started watching them as a 10-year old, and am now 37. I wonder how many other 10-yr olds over the last century have said, “Surely they’ll win it in my lifetime”, and those folks are no longer with us. Come on Cubs! I’m just asking for 1 championship to view with my own eyes.