Posted on 07/17/2006 7:47:35 AM PDT by SmithL
If you can't get the people to go to church, sometimes you have to bring the church to the people. Ken Shuman, an ordained Baptist minister in the Houston area, did just that several years ago.
After going through a midlife spiritual crisis in which he began questioning his role as a minister, Shuman left behind the comfort and security of his established congregation to create a different kind of church, a place were people could relax and be themselves, a place with minimal preaching but plenty of spiritual support.
He's now the general manager of Main Street Crossing, a popular coffee shop and live-music venue in Tomball, Texas, that has become a kind of Christian community center. By day, it's just a coffee house. But on nights and weekends several ministries, including Shuman's Wellspring Church, hold their worship services there. They also run a host of activities, including discussion groups and poker games three nights a week.
"The idea is mostly to provide a fun place to hang out," Shuman says. "We don't do heavy evangelism." Still, he adds, it's often easier to connect with the faithful over a round of Texas hold 'em than from behind a conventional pulpit.
It began with a personal transformation of sorts. I was busy growing a church but I never stopped to ask the hard question: Are we really doing what Jesus asked us to do in making disciples? I believe that most Christians in America believe Jesus is, if not the only way, then the best way to get to heaven.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Maybe he should take his methods to North Korea with another Baptist that doesn't do heavy evangelism.
Yeah there should be an opening now that his trip has been cancelled!
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