Thom Rainer Answers My Question (Part One)

I had the privilege of attending the 2008 Evangelism Conference of Southern Baptists in North Carolina this week. It was a singular experience in many ways. I hope that in the coming days that I can unpack my experiences for you here. For right now, however, let me give you a little teaser for what I want to talk about at length in tomorrows post.

One of the main plenary sessions of this conference was a presentation by Dr. Thom Rainer. Dr. Rainer is the president of Lifeway Christian Resources. He is a gifted speaker and teacher and we are blessed to have a man of his insight and wisdom at the helm of such an influential organization like Lifeway. In his session, Dr. Rainer presented 12 trends of modern churches and those who attend them. One of the trends that he presented was:

70% of young people between the ages of 18-22 drop out of church and many never return.

At the end of his presentation, Dr. Rainer took questions from the floor. As I sat there listening. I knew that this opportunity was too great to pass up, so I motioned to the man with the mic and asked Dr. Rainer my question.

In so many words my questions was: "Dr. Rainer would you not say that the main reason why these students are dropping out is because the church is not lovingly holding parents accountable to disciple their children and then equipping them to do so?" Dr. Rainer's answer was astute and timely...

I will share his answer to my question and some other observations about the conference in tomorrow's post.

Dad Is The Pastor

If there has been one consistent theme that I have been sensing among pastors and denominational leaders from all evangelical backgrounds is that we are weak on evangelism. The gospel is being proclaimed from the pulpit, but not from the pew. I think that there are many factors that have contributed to this but one of the greatest is the breakdown of Biblical Christian community in the home.

Billy Graham once said, "If your Christianity does not work at home, don't export it." In that regard, it may be to the credit of many families that they don't bother to evangelize the lost. I believe that one of the best means to improving our evangelistic efforts, however, is to strengthen Christian community in the home. This has to begin with male leadership. I don't know whether it was the dads abrogating their roles or pastors taking it from them that has led us to where we are but both are wrong and must be avoided. Dads need to be taught, encouraged, and held accountable by their fellow male believers that they are to be the pastors for their families first. Dads should be initiating regular family worship and prayer time with their families and discipling their children in Biblical wisdom. Its not a suggestion it is an imperative (Deut. 6). I'd be willing to bet that if our Christianity began to work at home we wouldn't be having discussions as pastors on how to improve our evangelism. But then what do I know, I'm just a modern day puritan.

A godly man promotes religion in his family; he sets up piety in his house as well as in his heart…. A godly man's house is a little church…. A good man makes known the oracles of God to those who are under his roof. He reads the Word and perfumes his house with prayer.
Thomas Watson—A Godly Man's Picture

Leaning A Little On The Side of the Reformed

Over the holidays, I have been getting good use of my iphone by listening to several good podcasts. One of my goals for this downtime was to listen and re-listen to the Building Bridges Conference Podcasts.

I was able to do this and to make some poignant observations:

1. Reformed theology and liberalism are totally incompatible.

2. The SBC, historically, has been its healthiest when our theological leadership was thoroughly Reformed

3. Some of the greatest SBC missionaries were decidedly Reformed and some of the greatest times of missionary endeavor in our convention came under their leadership.

4. We have reached an all time low in concern for the Gospel and missions by the average SBC church member.

5. The average SBC church member today has very little understanding of or appreciation for Reformed theology.

Now while these observations may betray a great coincidence in our denomination, I am skeptical. It is ironic that the theological bent that some decry as anti-missional and evangelistic may be the only hope for recovering the Gospel-centered, missional spirit that has been the lifeblood of this convention. If Ed Stetzer's research is right and young seminarians and pastors are breaking decidedly in the direction of the Reformed, then we may yet see revival.

Starbucks: Serving Up Coffee, Pastries, and Worldviews?

Let me begin this post by admitting it is a rare day that finds me inside a Starbucks. I have nothing against them per se its just I can't drink coffee and even if I could I wouldn't be paying $4.50 for it. Having said that, I love being greeted by the smell of their brewing concoctions, and icing coated pastries. Its a business model that has worked because it has raised the consumption of legally addictive substances to an art form. In that respect I applaud them in their success.

No too long ago, however, Starbucks began serving customers something that they didn't expect: world views. Apparently some think-tank in a board room in Seattle came up with the clever idea to market coffee by putting various worldview statements on their cups in statements beginning with the phrase, "The Way I See it." I say various because the messages that appeared on the cups were quite contradictory. Consider the following two statements that were printed on the java giants signature cups:

"Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure."

and this one:

You are not an accident. Your parents may not have planned you, but God did. He wanted you alive and created you for a purpose. Focusing on yourself will never reveal your purpose. You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense. Only in God do we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny. -- Dr. Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose-Driven Life."

According to the company website:

Starbucks has long been dedicated to creating a unique "third place" between home and work. We also draw on the centuries-old tradition of the coffeehouse as a place to gather, share ideas, and enjoy delicious beverages. We see this program as an extension of the coffeehouse culture – a way to promote open, respectful conversation among a wide variety of individuals.

Now while I am disgusted by the choice of some of the slogans that Starbucks has placed on their cups, I think they have unwittingly given Christians a golden opportunity to share the gospel. One of the biggest obstacles to sharing the Christian worldview is getting a dialog started; it can be awkward at best and impossible at worst. These slogans provide an excellent way for Starbucks going believers to sit down beside a stranger and ask he or she what they think about whats on their cup.

I am reminded of an excerpt from the Screwtape Letters written by C.S. Lewis where the older demon Screwtape warns his underling Wormwood of the dangers of allowing things of a philosophical nature to invade the ordinary routine of life:

You begin to see the point? Thanks to processes which we set at work in them centuries ago, they find it all but impossible to believe in the unfamiliar while the familiar is before their eyes. Keep pressing home on him the ordinariness of things. Above all, do not attempt to use science (I mean, the real sciences) as a defence against Christianity. They will positively encourage him to think about realities he can't touch and see.

If you are a believer and you are angry at the wickedness of some of these slogans that's good you should be angry, but don't miss the opportunity that they may provide. Use these slogans good and bad to engage in conversations that the Lord could use to bring those tall, caramel macchiato drinkers into the kingdom.

First and Goal: To Spread The Gospel

I love this time of year. The leaves are changing colors; the air is beginning to cool, and best of all: its time for football. I begin counting down the days, months before. I endure every hot, sweaty day eagerly awaiting those cool Friday and Saturday evenings when I don my game face and sweatshirt and head for the gridiron. Praise the Lord it’s finally here.

Now I’m sure that there are many of you guys and gals out there who can readily identify. I bet as you began to read this introduction your heart began to pound just like mine did as I was writing it. There is just something about that white-lined green field that excites and energizes people. It’s hard to explain it any other way than to say that Football is the last great American sport. It is a very powerful and integral part of our culture.

I am also reminded of a passage of scripture from the Apostle Paul that states:

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.”

- Ephesians 5:15-16 (ESV)

Now while watching football is arguably a wise use of our time, doing kingdom work while watching football is not. Think about all the many avenues that this sport opens for the spreading of the Gospel. Consider the following statistic provided by research done by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes:

“A study shows that 41 million youth ages 6-18 participated in organized youth sports and just over 7 million participated in high school sports.”

Multiply that number of students by two (Dad and Mom) and the figure of Americans that participate in weekly sports like football are staggering.

There are many creative ways to use the popularity of this sport to share your faith. Many churches sponsor 5^th Quarter events where players and families are invited to an after game event with music and testimonies from local athletes. Other ideas can include offering your services as team chaplain, volunteering to take care of team hospitality needs, or even something simple as inviting a non-Christian neighbor over to watch a game. When this season passes and spring is on the horizon, lets look back on this time and rejoice at the opportunities that we took advantage of to do Kingdom work.

For more ideas click on the following links:

Fellowship of Christian Athletes -FCA

North American Mission Board - NAMB

Athletes In Action - AIA