Other
"Thinking Drafts" and writing by Keith Drury -- http://www.indwes.edu/tuesday .
Last Sunday, while stuck on the coast of
As I arrived the parking lot was full, with cars jammed in all sorts of ways. I
parked on the grass. Organized 149 years ago, this historic church gave off the
aroma of 'permanence' as if to say, 'We've been through the civil war, both
world wars, the depression,
I wasn't sure where this was going when the music started. Singing was led by a
thirty-fiveish woman sprouting spiked jet black hair
leaping from her head like an erupting volcano. I figured she probably belonged
to the Sierra club, ate granola and her Volvo displayed a 'Save the
Whales" bumper sticker. I groaned. But, she got the people singing. It
sounded like a thousand voices filling the church. She scolded the people a bit
for 'wanting only familiar Christmas songs,' warning that they'd be singing
mostly old songs, not 'the popular songs of the last 100 years.' (?!)
Speaking of hymns, we sang five full hymns, two before preaching and three
afterward, none of them back to back. People sang heartily, accompanied by what
looked like a 100 year old organ (played by a lady only a bit younger). The
music 'filled' the room encouraging me to sing louder myself.
The boomerish pastor was shinny bald on top, but
compensated with a bonus crop of hair around the edges and over his ears. He
had earned a doctorate from some university in
Right before the offering, the pastor came down among the people and asked for
prayer requests, which turned out to be sort of like 'testimonies' covering the
physical needs of the people plus the homeless shelter the church sponsored 'in
town.' He then prayed at a leisurely pace -- for several minutes -- with great
pauses between sentences as if he expected us to fill in the dead space with
our own prayers. The sacrament of holy communion was
served with four women distributing the elements.
The service lasted exactly one hour, which amazed me -- they seemed to do so
much in an hour, yet were not rushed. Following the service we were all invited
to the back of the sanctuary for coffee and heaps of home made cookies and tiny
little sandwiches.
I liked the service. I liked the people. There was a thriving
atmosphere, as if they knew what they were about and where they were going. If
I were moving into the community and didn't have a church, I'd sure consider
this one.
But what is most shocking about my visit is their size. About half way through
the service I counted (I confess, I'm a recovering
Boomer!). How many were there? Fifty-two. I counted
again. Sure enough, fifty-two. The actual church building only measured 24' X
24' with an 'addition' of about the same size (I checked the drywall seams).
They had only twelve pews. Each looked crammed if it boasted five people. More
than twenty people sat in chairs set up along the edges, which gave an
'overflow crowd' feel to the service. The cream painted walls were set off with
sparkling white wood trim. There was a single window facing South
-- a simple stained glass one.
What haunted me as I left... no, it outright irritated me.. is how this little church of 52
seemed so successful... so thriving. Didn't they know they were considered a
failure among the church growth gurus? What right did they have to act so
happy, so joyful, so satisfied with their little dinky
church of 52? A church of 52 isn't viable -- haven't they read the same books I
have? And another thing, why would a guy with an earned doctorate from a
prestigious German university act so happy pastoring
52 people? Where'd he get his notions of success from? Doesn't he know that
he'll never be invited to speak at a ministers' conference to tell others how
he did it? Why waste his life away in a church of 52? What was going on here?
I left church last Sunday wondering what these people had that most evangelical
churches have lost. Evangelicals are always reaching forward for success. Always striving, never thriving. This sense of thriving
always seems just around the corner... when we reach 100, or 300, or 1,000, or
after we get our new building. But it is seldom a present-tense experience.
Like drinking seawater, we can't get enough, and the more we drink, the
thirstier we get. Yet, this little Presbyterian church of fifty-two seemed to
focus more on being the church, than growing the church. I can't
get that little congregation out of my mind. They have something to teach us
all.
What do you think? What gives this sense of thriving to a church? What
can we learn from them?
So what do you think?
To contribute to the thinking on this issue
e-mail your response to Tuesday@indwes.edu
By Keith Drury, 1995. You are free to transmit, duplicate or distribute
this article for non-profit use without permission.