April 2001

CONTEMPORARY OR TRADITIONAL

            Sunday, March 18 was a wonderful Sunday for us.  We took in nineteen new members.  They are a wonderful group that you can learn more about on another page in this Messenger.  It is interesting that the majority of them came into membership during the first service — the one they attend.  The first service is  growing rapidly.  The style of worship is energetic and contemporary.  Joanna has done such a marvelous job of leading us into a new era, and the growth is evidence of its effectiveness. 

            A recent survey by Hartford Seminary has found that churches that embrace contemporary worship styles are the most likely to add to their membership rolls.  Their findings showed that many churches are trying to attract non-churchgoers by modifying their worship style.  Half of the churches with 1,000 or more regular attenders have changed their worship style to include musical instruments such as keyboards, drums and guitars.  One research director said that “The bottom line is that those churches that changed their worship style . . . were more likely to have grown.” 

            The motivation for this is the charge of Jesus who said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).  Our passion is to reach the lost, and this is the driving motivation behind trying to develop a worship experience which will attract those who are outside the church at this point in their lives. 

            However, there are inherent dangers.  The Hartford study also showed that these transitions are not without struggle.  Troubling undercurrents are experienced by congregations trying to meet the needs of those inside and outside the church.  Often the long-time constituents “feel at odds with the younger worshipers,” according to the Dallas Morning News story.  One researcher said, “the findings present tough choices for churches whose members are aging, but still want to attract new worshipers.”

            These findings are nothing new to us, are they?  We are not alone in experiencing the “troubling undercurrents,” and the struggle this challenge presents to the congregation.  Sometimes it seems like we have two different congregations who live in two different worlds.  However, I have to say that we have gone through this struggle and come out better than most churches.  Many have realized that the choice is between growing or dying.  We have begun to understand that it is not just about meeting our needs, but our responsibility to reach those who have never heard.

            Will you pray for our church as we continue to struggle to meet the needs of people in the church as well as reaching out to a lost and needy world?  We need God’s wisdom and strength.

Leaning on Him,

Rod Buchanan