Finding Our Tribe

On Sunday morning, we sang the hymn “Heaven Came Down and Glory Filled My Soul” in worship. My wife Rita and I glanced at each other and exchanged smiles. When I was a student pastor in Texas, the church where we worshipped on weekends loved this song. We were not familiar with it when we first went there and Rita, who was the pianist (of course), had to get the hang of it. Once she did, they wanted to sing it every Sunday.

Sunday afternoon Rita asked, “I wonder if that church is still there?” I went to the Baptist General Convention of Texas website and did a search, but the name of the church did not come up. I began to speculate about what might have happened.

Perhaps the church just closed its doors. They were small 50 years ago and only had a few families. Maybe they could no longer support the church.

Another possibility is that they had gone independent or joined a more conservative Baptist group and no longer identified with the BGCT. It happens.

Of course, it could be that no one wants to fill out all that information for the denomination any longer. It hardly seems worth the effort to a busy church member.

What might have happened to that church on a micro-scale is happening on a macro-scale. Denominations have splintered with new offshoots and permutations. Many churches still carry the denominational name but don’t really participate in local, state, and national bodies any longer. Others have dropped the denominational name for public relations purposes and have weakened their tribal ties in the process.

This is not necessarily a generational thing. I know a number of millennials who have moved to religious tribes with much stronger connectional ties than those of Baptists. Their choice was often motivated by a desire to find opportunities to serve that were denied to them in the denomination that nurtured them.

This is not an argument that denominations are dead, but they are evolving as churches as well as individuals exercise the freedom of choice about which tribe they choose for fellowship and ministry. In all honesty, this may be another sign that the Spirit of God is moving in a unique way to further the Kingdom. Perhaps this diaspora is enriching the church as a whole.

Comments

Check these out

Confessions of a Recovering Southern Baptist

I am grateful for my heritage as a Southern Baptist. I was exposed to the Bible and worship from a very young age. I grew up in a church in south Alabama that supported the Cooperative Program of missions giving. This meant that our church had the benefit of being part of a supportive group of local churches and the educational opportunities that afforded. Our state convention provided varied and effective ministries with groups like orphans, ethnic groups, and college students. We supported missionaries at home and abroad. We had good Bible study and training literature (which we paid for, of course). I went to an accredited seminary and paid a remarkably low tuition. Wherever you went on a Sunday morning (in the Southeast and Southwest, at least), you could find a church that sang the familiar hymns and studied the same Bible lesson. In hindsight, I realize that this Southern Baptist utopia was imperfect. There were significant...

The Bible Tells Me So

As I read the story of the Good Samaritan during my devotional today, I was reminded of the times that I have heard the story in the Christian education setting of the local church--as a youngster in primary and intermediate classes (old terminology), as a young adult in college classes, and then as an adult, often teaching the passage myself. The characters and story line are very familiar due to these experiences of Christian education. These are challenging times for Christian education in the church. Like so much of what is happening in the church today, the old forms do not seem to support present needs. What once worked no longer seems to be effective. Christian education or the formation of believers is in a state of flux. In an article on ethicsdaily.com , retired professor Colin Harris addresses this issue. He points out that the period of the 60’s and 70’s “saw the beginnings of a loss of vitality within the educa...

Metaphors of the Kingdom of God

In a recent blog , consultant Seth Godin addresses the power of metaphor. He points out, “The best way to learn a complex idea is to find it living inside something else you already understand.” In other words, “this” is like “that.” “When you see a story, an example, a wonderment,” says Godin, “take a moment to look for the metaphor inside.” Jesus turned this around. In the use of parables, he told a story or provided a metaphor and challenged his hearers to see the truth within. For example, in his teaching on the Kingdom (or Reign) of God in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus compares the Kingdom to such things as a mustard seed, yeast, a hidden treasure, a net, a king, and a landowner. His hearers are encouraged to use their imaginations to understand something that they had never experienced. He also attempted to shift their perspective so that they might see signs of the Kingdom breaking into their present reality. These are metapho...

The Tragedy of Willow Creek Community Church

File photo of Steve Carter, Heather Larson, and Bill Hybels As Christian brothers and sisters, we need to pray for Willow Creek Community Church. On the eve of the Global Leadership Summit, a worldwide conference sponsored by the church in cooperation with the Willow Creek Association, church leadership imploded as a result of further allegations against former pastor Bill Hybels. Last year, Hybels introduced the team who would assume church leadership upon his retirement--lead pastor Heather Larson and teaching pastor Steve Carter. Although the founding pastor planned to stay on to assist in a time of transition, reports of sexual impropriety involving Hybels surfaced early this year. He accelerated his departure from the church and left the board of the Willow Creek Association. When other charges emerged last week, teaching pastor Carter resigned. On Wednesday evening, Larson and the entire elder board--lay leaders who provide accountability ...

A Future for the Global Leadership Summit?

Craig Groeschel, the founder and senior pastor of Life.Church. The Global Leadership Summit which began as a project of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois, and its founding pastor, Bill Hybels, over 25 years ago was held this week without Hybels. For several years, the GLS has been now produced by the Willow Creek Association, a spin-off organization and a loose network of churches but Hybels has been its driving force. Attended by thousands at the church facility in South Barrington and broadcast to thousands more at satellite locations, the annual meeting brings together not only evangelical leaders but outstanding speakers from business, charitable organizations, politics, and business. For the first time, Hybels did not appear due to allegations of sexual impropriety brought against him over the past year by former employees, staff members, and business associates. He has already left the church and resigned from the board of t...

Barnabas File

Search This Blog