But he appears to walk on water!
Posted on 03/09/2007 3:53:04 PM PST by Terriergal
I can honestly say that my church building is the ugliest, most worn-out, most dilapidated edifice in my city.
But we are one of the largest, probably the fastest growing church as well.
Why?
Because the pastors preach the Word.
Church growth is not our goal. Uplifting Jesus is our goal.
That's encouraging to hear. Too many these days are more focused on where to build the cafe or what really cool name they can use for the concert hall. Uplifting Christ is what it's all about.
Do you think goppachyderm and I are sticking up for loud churches? I don't get the cats and cement trucks reference otherwise.
The entertainment orientation of the Purpose Driven Church is what is 'distracting' for me. (and goppachyderm too I would wager). Distracting -- distracting from the message, which is often totally fudged or plain old not heard.
If you read anything there, where exactly did you see anyone say Rick Warren is the antichrist? I've read all that stuff already on that page and I don't recall anyone saying "Rick Warren is the antichrist." He's far too much of a doofus to be the antichrist anyway.
I have said or at least implied many times he's a useful idiot for the antichrist, that he is 'making straight the way' of the antichrist. So I guess you could say he's to antichrist what John the baptist was for the real Christ.
Praise God that is wonderful to hear!
Yeah I went to one in high school that was infested with flies. It was really small, and hot in the summer. We had to vacuum up flies before the service (for me sometimes it was nauseating there were SO many on the floor!) and by the time we were done there were a ton more buzzing around the windows.
I was janitor for a while in my teens. I made $50 a month.
I figure if there's something you don't like but the church is worth it, you bless the church by doing something to fix it. (if it's a 'fixing' issue, not a personal preference/remodel issue). If the bathrooms were bad and I couldn't stand it, I would volunteer to come scrub them myself if it meant keeping a good church going and preaching the truth.
In my old (purpose driven) church I wrote a note and asked for trash cans in the womens' stalls because women don't want to have to carry their... used feminine products out of the stall to the big garbage can by the door! No one EVER did anything about it. So I went out and bought some three dollar cans and put them in there myself. This didn't even faze me until all the crap started happening there and I realized what 'seeker sensitive' was supposed to mean and then I realized they had just blown me off.
For a seeker sensitive church they sure didn't respond to people's legitimate needs. And frankly, my 'need' or sensitivity in this case was an extremely minor example. In fact I wasn't even so worried about it myself (I never have been that modest) but I imagined other women might be. So anyway.. fwiw...
In contrast, pastor would not do anything about gross sin like cohabitation or family abandonment. It was bizarre. So in that church it wasn't important that you offend someone, it mattered WHO you offended. I offended the pastor. That was the cardinal sin. Wouldn't have mattered if I'd been running around with some other guy or drinking myself silly or cheated on the building codes for the church. (yes those are REAL things that happened among leaders at this seeker-sensitive church, and no one did anything...)
Amen and Amen!!
While I don't claim that Rick Warren is 'the Antichrist", he is certainly a good example of how people can be fooled.
Wish I would have been in your church when you brought this up, I would have been there right with you.
It's repentance and faith! It's not a financial plan!!
Yeah, but is he a Doofus?!! The hawaiin shirts, the goatee, the extra pounds. I can see it.... but in some respects he is a really savvy marketer, ain't he? Of course, when you have a good product ... study your culture and you package it right, well then you too can expect to be invited to speak to the United Nations.
This guy is a nut case!!
You said it so well. My we are a self indulged generation aren't we?
Actually I think he's probably a very nice man. But sadly mistaken, and unwilling to listen.
ergh. In some respects I suppose, but I have seen a lot of salesmen who are very 'successful' who are still doofuses. If you listen to Chris Rosebrough's analysis on Issues Etc. he talks about this method used in the business world and as I recall it's losing credibility fast because of the machiavellian tactics involved. Apparently Rick's behind the wave.
Check out the denomination website and see what kind of goodies you can find: The Evangelical Covenant Church of America
Thank you, that really meant a lot to me. Men in that denomination are bred to be passive, at least against things that are really wrong. It's very unbecoming. They're learning to be aggressive in routing opposition though. (rolling eyes). I guess they have to start somewhere (smirk) hey?
Anything I can do to help out my sister in Christ! You're right tho, many "men" are pretty spineless these days.
“3. Seating
Both the comfort and the arrangement of your seating dramatically affect the mood of any service. The mind can only absorb what the seat can endure! Uncomfortable seating is a distraction that the Devil loves to use.
If you can get away replacing the pews, I’d advise it. In today’s culture the only places people are forced to sit on benches are in church and the cheap bleacher section at ball games. People expect to have their own, individual chairs.
Personal space is highly valued in our society. This is why box seats are prized at stadiums. If people are forced to sit too close to each other, they get very uncomfortable. There should be at least 18 inches between people if you’re using chairs and 21 inches between people if you’re using pews.”
Hey Rick, since church is all about my comfort and felt needs and God wanting me happy 24/7/365 and everything, why not just cut out the middleman? What say we all stay home and watch our favorite worship service on television from the comfort of our beds? Pajamas are even more comfortable and less “itchy” than Hawaiian shirts and loose chinos too.
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