Refusing to be part of a dying church
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
After six weeks of studying, reading and learning together, the group has learned some significant things and we want to share some of them with you.
We decided early on in reading the book that we do indeed Refuse To Lead A Dying Church! The Oasis on West Elm United Church of Christ has a bright, mission filled future ahead of it, IF, we chose to live out this unique calling.
So, what did we agree to?
- We refuse to lead a dying church.
- We agreed to draw a line in the sand and refuse.
- We refuse to simply go thru the motions and play church.
- We refuse to help our church gracefully into the grave.
- We refuse to channel our best ministry energy into community or justice endeavors that are detached from our congregation's life and ministry.
- We refuse, ever again, to lead a dying church.
There are six critical choices:
- Choosing Life over Death
- Choosing Community over Isolation
- Choosing Fun over Drudgery
- Choosing Bold over Mild
- Choosing Frontier over Fortress
- Choosing Now Rather than Later
Over the next six weeks, I will be sharing some of the significant learnings and how they impact the future of our church and the direction we choose to go in the future. Check back for updates and feel free to make comments and ask questions.
Together, may we REFUSE TO LEAD A DYING CHURCH!
This website seems like an almost constant onslaught of negativity. While it is true that the UCC (like every denomination) isn't perfect, it also does some wonderful ministry. Perhaps you could focus on ministries such as Back Bay Mission.
The constant negativity makes this website seem more hypercritical than convincing. I regret that you are unable to find joy, goodness, and gifts in your research. Perhaps you'd be served well by a more balanced and grace-filled approach.