"You're Doing It Wrong"

You're doing it wrong. 

It is a funny way people have been using to tell others that they are using a basic tool or doing a menial task incorrectly. As I reflect lately on the church, it's place in society, the effectiveness of it's programming, and its purpose I can't help but imagine God looking down from above chuckling and saying "You're doing it wrong"

I have become convinced that the church was never meant for the unbeliever.

At times we tend to glorify 'seeker services' or make it important that visitors feel comfortable and that they will return. Even leaders of our services say that Sunday morning (for most services) are meant to be a time of celebration of what God has done throughout the week and recharging and re energising before another week of serving Him.


Yet- do our services, our mindset about the church as a whole reflect that?

When I visited China the church was different than our North American churches (imagine that eh?). The people who attended these churches had heard about Jesus throughout the week- they had been told by a friend, had been attending small group gatherings for weeks or months. In China the church is persecuted. You only enter the church if you want to worship God- if you fully believe in Jesus and are willing to put your reputation, your freedom, your everything on the line.

The church meeting in China was a time of celebrating what God had done, a time of preparing for the coming week, a time of worship- the focus was not on those who were 'wishy washy.' The believers interacted with them throughout the week and challenged them in their beliefs and thoughts Monday-Saturday. Sunday is for the believers- Sunday is to worship, Sunday is to come together as a family. Churches need to stop caring about brining non-believers into their fellowship on Sunday morning and care more about helping people believe throughout the week.

"No Scooting in the Sanctuary"

Throughout my education (and even now as I continue it) I have been taught (all to many times, in nearly every youth ministry class) that we, as youth workers, need to keep culturally and socially aware of what our youth are dealing with. This means no only looking at media and music but at fads as well. I feel like this is the hardest thing to keep caught up on, like last week I found myself in shock by the latest fad....

Scooters!

Like, the nerdy thing that people who couldn't ride skateboards used to ride around on. The things that were silver with a handle. They are no longer just silver with a handle. Two of the youth showed up on Wednesday with scooters, they were 'tricked out' with the latest deck, the cool design, wheels, everything was custom. One of them even had pegs on the wheels!? That means they are doing tricks on these scooters!? Really!? This would have been unheard of 5 years ago.

Not only are these scooters custom but they are expensive! I just decided to do a quick google search and the first site I looked at had is $330 (I HOPE that is not the price my youth paid!)
http://www.jibsactionsports.com/index.php/pro-scooters/complete-scooters/lucky-strata-pro-scooter.html

I am opening myself to a whole new world here and it excites me, but it meant we had to implement a new rule at youth group: "No Scooting in the Sanctuary"

Now our church is not one to see the building as sacred or worry about the sanctuary or walls or care about such things. We haven't had rules at youth group (other than to show respect), but with such a 'cool' new toy with a limited supply for the number of youth, as well as the damage that tricks and flying metal pieces might do to the building but also the other youth we have told the youth..... "No Scooting in the Sanctuary". 

Imagine- I never would have thought.... what is next? I am excited to find out.