Many churches today seem to have chronic Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). They jump from program to program, spread themselves way too thin and have an inability to focus on the few important things. It is a combination of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity.
To meet the diagnostic criteria according to the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and statistical Manual of psychiatric disorders) a couple of aspects have to be considered to meet a diagnosis of ADHD: "Six (or more) of either 1) Inattention, or 2) Hyperactivity/Impulsivity Symptoms must have persisted for at least 6 months to a degree that is maladaptive and inconsistent with developmental level." (Click here to review the specific symptoms.)
Many of our churches focus on lots of activities versus taking a step back and focus on the specific calling God has given to them. Our efforts are scattered and ineffective because we do not provide enough people, resources and dollars on the few important things to make a difference.
A lesson from Netflix.
I love Netflix. It changed my life. Netflix delivers entertainment direct to your doorstep. No more late fees. No more wondering what to watch on TV. I just go into my on-line queue, select what I want to watch and it is delivered to my house.
We have been Netflix subscribers for years. We don't have cable TV (since it has a lot of junk on it), so Netflix provided us what we wanted with the level of control of what entertainment is being shown in the house. It started out as DVD delivered via US Post Office, but now has evolved to on-line streaming to my PC and now even to our Wii. We can select what we want to watch and BAM! It is delivered in seconds in a high quality way to our living room.
The strength of Netflix is that is never forgot its calling. It was to "deliver entertainment directly to our doorstep." It started from mail, evolved to the PC and now comes through game systems (XBox, Wii, PS3) in our living room. At every step, they focused on how to improve the selection process, making recommendations and updating my queue.
Netflix has destroyed its the competition (Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, etc.) and went from a small fish in a big pond to being the biggest fish in the market. Why? It stayed radically focused on its "calling."
Why can't churches focus on their distinct calling?
I think many churches get caught up in one of two things: 1) chasing the "flavor of the month" programming or 2) getting hijacked by individual special interests.
The flavor of the month crowd chase after the latest and greatest programs used by other churches to grow. It takes all forms, from "Purpose-Driven Church" to the "Fruitful practices." Flavor of the month churches are constantly introducing the latest initiative to "fix" what is wrong and then they attempt to integrate it with everything else.
The United Methodist Church is especially guilty of this lack of focus. They even have a table tent card trying to keep it all straight. It is called the 1-2-3-4 About United Methodist Table Tent that is being sold by Cokesbury. It covers what we believe, what the two types of holiness are, what are 3 simple rules and the four areas of focus. No wonder everyone doesn't quite know what United methodists stand for. I know I can't rattle them off. As a result, people either ignore it or pick and choose what they want.
The other issue is having a church get hijacked by special interests. I won't even say that these special interests are bad per se. It is just that people focus so much on their "key interest" that they may not see that its time is over or it may not meet the needs of the community any more. There were many programs and structures that were highly successful in the 1950s and 1960s that may not have relevance today. On the other hand, they are still structured in the Book of Discipline (the United Methodist "Rulebook") and required to be part of a church. Any challenge to the status quo results in pretty hot debates and strife in the church, even though it may be worth discussing.
As a result of both of these issues, the church efforts remain fragmented, scattered and ineffective. Our lack of focus is the opposite of Netflix. Instead of focusing on a calling and constantly improving on the ways we deliver against it, we remain stuck in the morass of current situation.
A people without vision are lost…
Nehemiah rallied the people to rebuild the wall in 52 days despite fierce opposition. Why? He articulated a clear vision and calling from God. Proverbs 29:18 states, ‘Where There is No Vision the People Perish.’ Time and again, the Bible shows us stories of how we as a people go astray anytime we lack a clear vision of what we are to be doing for God. Look at Exodus, the Exiles or even the New Testament churches, and we can see how we need vision to stay on the right path.
Having a clearly articulated call for your church is essential to growth. It needs to be so simple that everyone in your church can recite it from memory (from the 8 year old child to the 80-year old grandmother.) It needs to be used as the measuring stick for all decisions. It needs to be ingrained into every aspect of your church and provides a focus for everything.
Visions can take all sorts of forms. I'll write more on creating a vision for your church and provide some examples in future blog posts. The first step it to realize that you are stuck without a vision statement. It needs to be clear, meaningful and relevant to the community you serve. Without it, you are just a blur of activity and not a focus point for God to act.
Are you willing to review your church's call? Is it focused, meaningful and relevant to your situation? If not, are you willing to engage in a conversation with your church to discover it?
