A pastor's visit to another church
Pastors (myself included) are not good church visitors. We are critical. We think we could do it better. We have a hard time worshiping because we are so busy taking notes. I confess it. But when I'm not at International Church, I love to visit other churches. I do try to worship. But I don't shy away from taking notes either. Here are some of my thoughts from First Baptist Pasadena this morning.
* I should note upfront that I've visited this church off an on now since the early 2000s when I started my doctor of ministry degree at Fuller Seminary. It is a church in transition. I can remember the days when they were just beginning to introduce contemporary music. I've seen the church change a lot. It's now *mostly* contemporary with a smattering of organ based hymns. And it's average age has dropped substantially. It felt fuller this morning than in the past, but at least half (maybe more) of the sanctuary was roped off. So that might have been deceptive.
* Before the service there was upbeat contemporary pop music piped in the sound system. Coupled with a pretty cool ancient/future style graphic display it gave the service a pretty cool vibe. If they'd lowered the lights just a little it would have had a really cool vibe. (Note to self: we should lower our lighting in the morning. It's too bright.)
* Four different people said "hello" to me before the service while I sat in my pew. (I call it "my pew" because no one asked me to scoot over.) I think all four were making a genuine effort to be friendly, but I played a game. I decided beforehand not to engage in real conversation unless someone else initiated. Despite the efforts they made, I didn't feel welcome. I wanted someone to say, "I don't know that we've met. Do you attend here often?" Something simple like that would have initiated a very good conversation and I wouldn't have been sitting alone. (Note to self: train congregation in how to gently initiate these conversations.)
* There was a great amount of pre-service conversation going on around me. People were happy to be there. A great sign.
* There was this weird transition in the pre-service music. They were piping in this contemporary pop, and all of a sudden that stopped and the organ banged in. It sent a mixed message to me about who they were and what they were trying to do. On the other hand they were multigenerational which was not really the case when I went to Mosaic last weekend (which is fully contemporary).
* When I first came in, I realized that I really didn't want to sit anywhere other than the back row. I don't know how I could have been encouraged to do anything else. But it struck me as interesting. I forced myself to sit about midway.
* It's a church trying to shift to a more "missional" approach. In short "missional" means getting out of the pews and taking the gospel outside the church where the non Church goers are. It made me reflect a little. Is there a missional approach to our gatheredness? I think there is and this church is at the heart of it. There were some senior citizens who obviously would have preferred to hymns and organ for music. But they made a change. Attended service. Put a smile on their face. They were being missional. (Note to self - more thought on this would be helpful. My book title should be "Beyond the Coffee House, Missionalness INSIDE the walls of the church" Okay inside joke for those who know the conversation.)
* Passing of the peace was too long. It was uncomfortable for me as an outsider. (Note to self: this is an issue for our worship services.)
* The preaching had good energy, enthusiasm, humor. There was good joking between the pastor and congregation. Seemed like genuine love for one another. I'm not sure I agree with the message (that's not a criticism, just an observation and explanation for why I'm not including it here). One critical thought. The pastor often finished his thoughts by looking down at his notes. He lost a lot of impact doing that. (Note to self - strive to look at notes at the BEGINNING of thoughts. Finish thoughts with confidence.)
* Pastor also asked some great questions for reflection in the sermon. He should have left time for that in the midst of the sermon itself. Instead there was a reflection at the end (good) but if it had been throughout it would have been more powerful. As it was sometimes it felt nervous or rushed. (Note to self - I do this sometimes. Gotta kick the habit.)
* I was also reminded of the need to give some doable, practical application. Stuff I can do now. Stuff that I'll want to do if the sermon has touched me. I'm not sure what that might have been this morning. I felt the same thing last week with Erwin McManus. Emphasis on DOABLE. (Note to self - get this right from here on out)
All in all it was a great worship experience this morning. I was glad I went. Don't let the criticisms fool you. I'm a tough to please on these things. Would I come back and join if I lived here? I'd probably consider it. I'd visit around. But I'd be happy to get to know a few folks to see if it was a good fit.
* I should note upfront that I've visited this church off an on now since the early 2000s when I started my doctor of ministry degree at Fuller Seminary. It is a church in transition. I can remember the days when they were just beginning to introduce contemporary music. I've seen the church change a lot. It's now *mostly* contemporary with a smattering of organ based hymns. And it's average age has dropped substantially. It felt fuller this morning than in the past, but at least half (maybe more) of the sanctuary was roped off. So that might have been deceptive.
* Before the service there was upbeat contemporary pop music piped in the sound system. Coupled with a pretty cool ancient/future style graphic display it gave the service a pretty cool vibe. If they'd lowered the lights just a little it would have had a really cool vibe. (Note to self: we should lower our lighting in the morning. It's too bright.)
* Four different people said "hello" to me before the service while I sat in my pew. (I call it "my pew" because no one asked me to scoot over.) I think all four were making a genuine effort to be friendly, but I played a game. I decided beforehand not to engage in real conversation unless someone else initiated. Despite the efforts they made, I didn't feel welcome. I wanted someone to say, "I don't know that we've met. Do you attend here often?" Something simple like that would have initiated a very good conversation and I wouldn't have been sitting alone. (Note to self: train congregation in how to gently initiate these conversations.)
* There was a great amount of pre-service conversation going on around me. People were happy to be there. A great sign.
* There was this weird transition in the pre-service music. They were piping in this contemporary pop, and all of a sudden that stopped and the organ banged in. It sent a mixed message to me about who they were and what they were trying to do. On the other hand they were multigenerational which was not really the case when I went to Mosaic last weekend (which is fully contemporary).
* When I first came in, I realized that I really didn't want to sit anywhere other than the back row. I don't know how I could have been encouraged to do anything else. But it struck me as interesting. I forced myself to sit about midway.
* It's a church trying to shift to a more "missional" approach. In short "missional" means getting out of the pews and taking the gospel outside the church where the non Church goers are. It made me reflect a little. Is there a missional approach to our gatheredness? I think there is and this church is at the heart of it. There were some senior citizens who obviously would have preferred to hymns and organ for music. But they made a change. Attended service. Put a smile on their face. They were being missional. (Note to self - more thought on this would be helpful. My book title should be "Beyond the Coffee House, Missionalness INSIDE the walls of the church" Okay inside joke for those who know the conversation.)
* Passing of the peace was too long. It was uncomfortable for me as an outsider. (Note to self: this is an issue for our worship services.)
* The preaching had good energy, enthusiasm, humor. There was good joking between the pastor and congregation. Seemed like genuine love for one another. I'm not sure I agree with the message (that's not a criticism, just an observation and explanation for why I'm not including it here). One critical thought. The pastor often finished his thoughts by looking down at his notes. He lost a lot of impact doing that. (Note to self - strive to look at notes at the BEGINNING of thoughts. Finish thoughts with confidence.)
* Pastor also asked some great questions for reflection in the sermon. He should have left time for that in the midst of the sermon itself. Instead there was a reflection at the end (good) but if it had been throughout it would have been more powerful. As it was sometimes it felt nervous or rushed. (Note to self - I do this sometimes. Gotta kick the habit.)
* I was also reminded of the need to give some doable, practical application. Stuff I can do now. Stuff that I'll want to do if the sermon has touched me. I'm not sure what that might have been this morning. I felt the same thing last week with Erwin McManus. Emphasis on DOABLE. (Note to self - get this right from here on out)
All in all it was a great worship experience this morning. I was glad I went. Don't let the criticisms fool you. I'm a tough to please on these things. Would I come back and join if I lived here? I'd probably consider it. I'd visit around. But I'd be happy to get to know a few folks to see if it was a good fit.
