A Friend By Any Other Name...

Surrounded by “friends,” around the age of 13, George Krebs found himself poised for embarrassment.  The Sunday school teacher had just asked each of the students to recite his or her favorite Scripture verse.  One by one, the passages began to come; each student taking turns down the line.  Everything would have been just fine except for one small problem; George had no idea what a Scripture verse was.  When the class realized George’s ignorance, laughter broke out amongst his peers.  George failed to find true friendship within that church context.

George accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior in 1974, watching Billy Graham on Christmas Eve.  Christmas Day George began to read his Bible.  Thirty-six years after accepting Jesus as his Savior, George Krebs finds himself being the friend he struggled to find growing up, the kind of friend that would walk him closer to Jesus.  Through what some might call unusual discipleship, George has attempted to build significant relationships through various means.  George is an avid fly fisherman.  Living in Central Pennsylvania, George is in close proximity to some of best trout fishing in the United States.  After gaining the respect of fellow anglers and writing an article on the sport, George has had the opportunity to begin the discipleship process with many non-believers that share his fishing interests.

George’s mindset, unlike many within the Church, is to meet the people where they are.  This often means taking valuable time out of his schedule just to “be” where people are as their friend.  Time is the operative term here; this is often a long discipleship process.  George prescribes to the idea that often people will be likely to eat with you than to talk church with you.  “People do not go to your church because of theology; it is usually a social barrier.”

Still remembering that Sunday school class he attended when he was thirteen, George notes that it is the way in which people treat one another that gets remembered, and not the content of the messages.  Although George works directly for the church fellowship that he belongs to, George is committed to disciple making with individuals outside the parameters of his job description.

Today’s culture longs for connections, whether it be through internet social gatherings, or through meeting people at bars; all are looking for some level of friendship.  What would the Church look like if it offered itself up for friendships, if people could be themselves without the threat of ridicule?  It is in friendships where people can be challenged and grow.  This is not a quick fix for humanity, but a lifelong commitment of investment.  Lacking obvious excitement and "flashy-ness" it is doubtful this lifestyle will sell many books…that said, though it should, it will probably not catch on!

Bigger?

So here is the question that I would like to pose to all of the Christians in the Pleasure Boat Sinker audience.  Is bigger better and if so when?

Amanda Anderson works for one of the biggest churches in the PennDel Ministry Network.  Christian Life Assembly, affectionately known as CLA, is one of the great churches in the greater Harrisburg, Pennsylvania area.  This mega-church began with a small group of Spirit-filled believers, who had a real passion for reaching people for Jesus Christ in Central Pennsylvania.  Today, CLA’s attendance runs into the thousands; the two big holidays, Christmas and Easter, seem to be continually breaking the previous year’s records.

Quality and excellence permeates from everything CLA does.  Whether it is the elaborate Christmas and Easter productions, Patriotic Celebrations, or just the “regular” Sunday morning worship experience, CLA strives to exceed the typical expectations one might have for a church.  All guests are met at the doors by warm friendly faces, first time guests are directed to the welcome desk where they are given an information bag containing various information concerning the church.  Also, in the bag, guests will receive a coupon to receive a free beverage from the “coffee-shop.”

Amanda’s role at CLA is one of coordination and assimilation; she coordinates various marketing aspects of the church, and works to facilitate the assimilation of new attendees into the current body of believers.  On the marketing side of the coin, Christian Life puts our quite a spread of literature and, for lack of a better term, propaganda.  Beautiful, full-color pamphlets describe the small group programs, which one can become involved.  The weekly bulletin, a staple many expect to receive in a typical American church, is packed with information, which is geared mostly toward the first time guest.  Reoccurring “tag lines” and formats are predominate in the CLA literature; a marketing tactic that helps drive home the message to the intended audience.  Amanda explained that part of the assimilation process CLA uses is to help the new person “get plugged in”; this plugging in happens through the small group process and/or through serving.  A person will be offered the opportunity to serve after only three consecutive weeks of attendance.

Christian Life Assembly is an amazing church.  The people truly have a heart for God, and a heart for the lost.  Those two loves drive the big productions, the excellence, the marketing, and the small groups.  One might ask whether a person can become truly discipled in such a setting, whether the busyness of excellence allows one opportunities to truly become more like Jesus, or just more busy.  Perhaps the question is not about whether bigger is better, but if busier is better.  Discipleship does happen at Christian Life Assembly, it may not always be a deliberate, well executed, well documented program, but people’s lives are being changed and growing in Christ.

Please Step Forward

Knowing the hectic lives of the people that volunteer at Glad Tidings, Deb Bube, offers up some practical advice when working with volunteers in an organization.  Deb’s official role places her as the one who oversees leadership development and creative arts at the Reading church.  Deb, and the entire team at Glad Tidings (GT), have effectively utilized their resources and released people into ministry through the implementation of the following leadership principles:

Start with the end in mind – without a defined destination, you never know when you get there

Identify the Big Rocks – referring to the illustration of fitting a bunch of different things into a jar, GT calls the important things or the non-negotiable things big rocks; once the big rocks are in, the little stuff can then fit in around

Know who you’ve got – GT does personality profiles on all their volunteers for the purpose of placing them into the ministry position that best suits them

Train for customer service – GT actually looked to the Starbucks’ customers service model

Understand that people are busy – with all that there is to do in the world, make it worth their while

Food and Fun – Food and Fun keep them coming back

In reality, churches cannot function without the volunteer force.  Let’s start treating them that way.

What is Church?

So what is church?

The now cliché response to that question is “it’s the people, not the building,” but what if we actually eliminated the building? 

BOOM!  It’s gone!  Now what?  Can church exist without it?

Many would still concur, and admit church can be accomplished without a specially designated structure.  After all, many congregations in the United States meet in various locations throughout the community; movie theaters, schools, and golf course facilities are some of the venues being utilized successfully.

Could that model be BLOWN UP to another level?  What if church would not meet in a large corporate fashion at all?  What if church only happened in small groups; small groups, which NEVER come together?  Is it still a church?

BOOM!  It’s done!  Meet Dave Barnett.

Dave Barnett grew up in a conservative traditional church setting.  Growing up as the son of a missionary, Dave wanted no part of being a pastor.  After securing his counseling degree from Messiah College in Grantham, PA, Dave and his wife became involved with a Brethren in Christ Church in the area. Eventually, the pastor of the church came to Dave and invited him to join the pastoral staff.  The church, looking beyond its own walls, sent Dave and another pastor into a neighboring community to plant a new congregation.  Dave and the team immediately got to work, and Dave began really to seek God through this whole process.  Then Dave realized, through God’s prompting, that in the process of executing this well laid plan, they had missed something.  Jesus, speaking to the disciples, commanded them to wait for the Holy Spirit and then go.  This revelation caused Dave to begin the journey of seeking the Holy Spirit for His empowerment.

Before long, after waiting expectantly like the disciples did in Acts 1 and 2, Dave did receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.  Dave also sensed God was directing the church to head in a different direction than the one they had initially mapped out.  Unfortunately, the vision God had placed on Dave’s heart for the church did not correspond with the direction the denomination believed it should go.  Dave and his congregants left the denomination.

Currently, Dave’s congregation consists of seven to ten small groups, which meet throughout the week, and at various locations; mainly in homes.  Dave’s church believes they are called to a specific county in Central Pennsylvania, and that they will reach that county one development at a time.  Initially, they attempted to meet corporately, but believed that God was calling them to a completely small group structure where friends intimately care for people.

The particulars concerning logistics are foggy, to say the least.  Obviously, the small group church eliminates almost all overhead costs, and Dave occasionally receives remuneration for his pastoral services.  Can church work without a building?  Definitely!  Can church work without a corporate atmosphere?  Certainly places where it is necessary (e.g. China) it works fabulously, but whether it works in the States where there is an absence of the fear of persecution is yet to be seen.

Journey of Lifting

What would church look like if you crossed a pastor’s kid with a “train wreck?”  The small town of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania is soon to find out.

Steve DeFrain is not your typical pastor in many senses.  Although he is a pastor’s kid (PK), the current community of believers, and their worship services, do not fit the shapes many have branded into their minds as to what church should look like.  Journey Church, a name that seems to be “borrowed” more and more every day (DeFrain also being a borrower), is located in Limerick, PA, which is west of Philadelphia.

Steve realized people did not really understand who Jesus was; many have a preconceived idea, an idea that has been skewed by improper teaching or poor Christian modeling.  DeFrain believed he needed to “rebrand” Jesus for his generation and community.  The result is Journey Church.  The music is loud, with “driving base,” and the people are youthful, not necessarily saved individuals.  Steve has essentially attempted (successfully) to empty the church of all its busyness, doing only Sunday morning worship “in” the church building.  Small groups are “organic” and in the homes of those willing to host them.  When they grow, the split and grow some more.  Steve makes his “brand” pretty clear up front, noting that if one is not in a small group, they will not be connected to the church; “probably not going to get a call when the [stop showing up on Sundays].  The one thing, the important thing is that Steve DeFrain continues in “lifting up Jesus.”  One of the interesting facts of Journey Church is that this hard church draws a lot of men in, and keeps them.

January 9, 2011 marks a new day for Journey Church and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.  Under the guidance and leadership of Steve DeFrain, Don Heller will become the campus pastor of Journey’s second location.  This new addition to Journey Church will be located in the historic Colonial Theater.

Don Heller described his life prior to coming to Christ as a “train wreck.”  Noting his troubles with alcohol, marital issues that brought him to the brink of divorce, and other personal struggles, Don’s personal testimony of the redemptive saving power of Jesus Christ is inspiring.  Now, under Steve’s discipleship, Don will become the hands and feet of Christ to the city of Phoenixville.

 Exciting days are ahead for the Phoenixville area.  Journey Church will not be a great fit for all peoples, but for those it does fit, may they soon, like their leadership, begin a journey of lifting up Jesus.