Monthly Archives: July 2014

Try something different for church this weekend – 7/26/14

We’re having a great Alaska summer in Anchorage and the vicinity. Anchorage and many other Alaska communities are hosting tens of thousands of tourists and returning snowbirds. Our glorious environment, incredible weather and many natural wonders are spectacular. Despite potential distractions, I urge visitors to seriously look at churching differently while here. Locals, take an opportunity to breathe deeply and become better acquainted with our church community. The following suggestions are offered as ways to step outside your religion box, while honoring the concept of a rest day.

Try a different church

No matter your faith tradition, there’s value in worshiping elsewhere from time to time. Mainline church members express amazement in seeing the dynamism offered by some of the evangelicals. Pentecostals can gain new insights from participating in a slower liturgically based service. In my church consulting, I frequently suggest churches have teams of visitors who go out regularly observing the conduct of worship in other churches, especially in denominations other than theirs. Often they discover practices to bring back to their home church, or find they already do a great job but are still improvable.

Review ADN’s Matters of Faith listings

For years, ADN has been providing listings in Saturday’s paper of notable religious events. Often, I find notifications of religious events that may have escaped my notice otherwise. Many of my blog posts or columns have started from spotting something out of the ordinary here. Concerts, special lectures or unique events have caught my eye. Years ago, an insert by St John United Methodist Church of a free performance by a chamber orchestra and choir of Vivaldi’s “Gloria” caught my eye. It was a wonderful evening of music. My review of this event led to an introduction to Karen Horton, St John’s organist and choir director at the time, and her invitation to join their choir. I sang with them off and on for years as my church visiting schedule allowed. The saying is true, “Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.”

Think topical church visits

Stained glass aficionados have a feast of churches to select from with wonderful displays of stained glass. We can’t begin to compare with the East Coast but are blessed nonetheless. Here are several impressive examples. St. Patrick’s Parish and Amazing Grace Lutheran have inspiring round cross church windows. First Presbyterian has a huge stained slab glass wall with various motifs embedded therein. All Saints Episcopal is a panoply of stained glass with many themes. Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish has beautifully themed displays of huge floor-to-ceiling panels behind the altar, as does Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish.

Icons are a hallmark of Orthodox Christianity. St. John Orthodox in Eagle River has a wonderful display of them. If you are lucky you might find their iconographer, Robin, is present at the service when you attend. St. Innocent Russian Orthodox also has an impressive display of icons.

Totems, anyone? St. John UMC has a large carved wood totem, Tsimshian style, in their sanctuary. Depicting the passion story, it is a marvel to behold. Rev. David Frison, pastor emeritus, carved this and a Christmas totem. (You can see fiberglass replicas of these totems outside, if you visit when the church is closed, along with plaques telling their story.)

Churches with views? Three Anchorage churches offer spectacular natural views not to be missed. St. Mary’s Episcopal offers a wraparound view of our beautiful Chugach Mountains. Resurrection Chapel at Holy Spirit Retreat Center renders a 180-degree view of the Knik Arm leading up to Sleeping Lady and then to Mount McKinley. It takes one’s breath away. Finally, Chugiak UMC has a window wall looking out on Denali.

Megachurches here too

Megachurches are defined by a generally accepted term of consistent weekly attendance of 2,000, and by that definition Alaska has two of America’s approximately 1,700 megachurches. It you would like a taste of this in our huge state, give one of these a try. ChangePoint, at 3,300 average attendees, is our largest, offering four services each Sunday. They have great messages and good music, but bring some ear protection if 105 decibels bothers you. Anchorage Baptist Temple is independent Baptist, averaging about 2,200 attendees, with a main and an evening service.

Look outside of Anchorage

One to 1 1/2 hours outside of Anchorage are the towns of Girdwood, Moose Pass, Palmer, Wasilla, Willow and Sutton. All have churches worthy of visiting. Check the Internet or call the church for the smaller towns just to make sure they’re there when you’ll be. Who knows, you might even be invited to lunch.

If you’re visiting, we’re glad you’re here. If you’re local, try some of these ideas. Remember the Apostle Paul’s advice to not forsake assembling ourselves together. God bless.

Original ADN Article
http://www.adn.com/article/20140726/chris-thompson-try-something-different-church-weekend

Men’s retreat offered more than fishing – 7/19/14

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Recently, I accompanied a group of men, mostly members of Baxter Road Bible Church, a popular East Anchorage church, on a float and fishing trip down the Gulkana River. Actually, I first heard about the trip when I attended the Beast Feast at BRBC, which I chronicled on my ADN Church Visits blog. The cost was minimal, I was free and so I signed up.

The trip is offered by Copper River Float Ministry of Glennallen. Started by Dave Lemaire more than 12 years ago, it was a major factor in his personal recovery from the kidnapping, rape and murder of his daughter in 1991. Dave’s wife, Michelle, is his onshore facilitator of food, facilities and scheduling. The ministry is staffed by an awesome group of men volunteers, trained yearly to gain or maintain cataraft or rubber raft skills. Ages of the ministry’s volunteers range from the 20s to the 70s.

Lemaire limits the trip to four churches each summer. To take advantage of this experience, churches must book their trips up to two years in advance. Offering three men’s trips and one women’s trip each summer, CRFM also has women volunteers accompanying women participants on their trip.

Originally, more than 30 men from BRBC signed up for the trip but it conflicted with the Luis Palau appearance that weekend and half the men decided not to go. Departing early morning June 6, we carpooled or used the church van to drive to the Gulkana River bridge north of Glennallen. Transferring gear to a bus, it was north to Poplar Grove and a hike downhill to the river where the boats were moored. The ministry volunteers had floated them downstream from Sourdough the previous evening. At riverside, Lemaire introduced his crew, giving us a thorough safety lecture ending with prayer. Pastor Jason Severs of Old Paths Baptist Church in Glennallen presented each trip participant with a Bible printed on waterproof paper, a missionary initiative of his members.

Floating downriver for about six hours, we covered about half of the 36 miles we would float on the water. We pulled into a rocky, sandy beach area and the volunteers made camp, erecting several large tents, a canopy-covered cooking area, laying campfires and preparing for dinner. Guys went fishing along the shore. Some of us fished on the float down, as the kings were just beginning to appear. One of our party caught a nice, bright king but the rest did not score any fish on the trip. A few men were unsettled by sets of extremely large grizzly paw prints while setting up camp. Lemaire guessed they had been there a week or two prior to our arrival.

Dinner and breakfast, overseen and cooked by Lemaire, were tasty. Grace was said before each meal, not an unordinary practice for many Christians today. After dinner, Josh Heffner, a layman from Wasilla, talked briefly with us around the campfire. Using an example of building a house, he detailed clearing the building site and bulldozing to a suitable level before laying foundations. He invited the men present to “take time on the beach to examine your foundation.” He similarly talked before breakfast and after lunch the next day, using related themes. Encouraging the men to create good foundations, he reminded us of Christ’s parable of “The House on the Rock,” so they were secure. These brief talks were not pushy, were by nature reflective and appreciated.

BRBC’s associate pastor John Carpenter took a low-key role on the trip, which I liked as he works with these men regularly. He shared: “It’s always been more difficult, for whatever reason, to get men to connect and plug in at church. Men are more willing to let down their guard on the float trip, responding more readily and deeply to the message of the Gospel, taking a more active role upon return.”

Several men shared thoughts.

Adrian Ortiz said: “The Lord is involved in this ministry. I had a great opportunity to draw nearer to God.”

Paul Thiel enjoyed “time on the river with some great guys,” further noting, “I needed a break and would invite others to experience it. The food? I’ve never eaten such good food in the wilderness. The chili and cornbread lunch was totally worth going!”

Carlton Rice really liked Lemaire’s initial statement that “This was not a fishing trip to talk about God but a trip to commune with God and also have a chance to do some fishing.”

Over the course of the trip, Don Hennessey and I established an acquaintance. He enjoyed the trip, liking the solitude of the forest, the sounds of the animals and the river, further sharing: “The closeness of nature helped me draw closer to the Lord. I especially liked the waterproof Bible we were all given at the beginning of the trip.”

Dave Lemaire has experienced more pain than many of us will ever have to endure. Clearly he has a heart for men and an ability to attract volunteers. If you ever have a chance to experience this trip, do so. He recently became a part-time director of men’s ministries at The Crossing in Birchwood, a rapidly growing suburban Anchorage area church. Either way you meet him, it will be worthwhile.

My experience was delightful, drawing me closer to God and nature, much more than any other men’s retreat I’ve done.

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog, Church Visits, at adn.com/churchvisits.

Original ADN Article
http://www.adn.com/article/20140719/chris-thompson-men-s-retreat-offered-more-fishing

Does the length of the sermon matter? – 7/12/14

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Christian churches, as a rule, have a long and glorious history of lengthy sermons, often an hour or two long. My suggestion last week that a 20-minute sermon might be an appropriate length drew the ire of some readers. Let’s face it: Our current communications paradigm is one of talking heads and sound bites. Too many Anchorage pastors squander precious sermon minutes with long stories or illustrations, full of emotional appeal, and narcissistic “I” statements with few ties to the chosen subject.

Consider Abraham Lincoln’s ‘Gettysburg Address’. Five variants of his powerful speech exist, with word counts running from 267 to 272. In the brevity of 10 sentences Lincoln brought the nation together. Lincoln’s address takes only two minutes to recite, but the images burned into one’s mind form a lasting impression. Preceding Lincoln that day, famous orator, politician, diplomat, and pastor, Edwin Everett gave a two-hour oration numbering 13,607 words. Everett is now a historical footnote, but every schoolchild in our country is exposed to the ‘Gettysburg Address’.

Dan Bollerud, Julia Seymour, and Martin Eldred, a group of courageous ELCA Lutheran pastors in our community, release a weekly online 10-minute liturgy, true to Lutheran liturgical format, presenting the basic elements of a worship service. (Called 10W, it is available on the Internet at www.10worship.blogspot.com/ or you can have it automatically sent to you weekly by texting 10W to 22828.)

Many famous preachers and theologians consistently deliver excellent, Bible-based sermons in a 20-minute timeframe. Noted pastor, author, and religion educator Barbara Brown Taylor consistently delivers her sermons in 20 minutes or less. She’s delivered many Duke University Chapel sermons in under 20 minutes. Her powerful Feb. 9 sermon this year at Duke Chapel, “The Grace of Good Works,” is inspiring and motivational, and at only 14 minutes in length, a marvel of brevity. (You can find it on YouTube using Google search terms ‘barbara brown taylor duke chapel 2014’.)

Highly sought-after theologian Walter Brueggemann’s sermons often last less than 20 minutes. His Duke Chapel sermons are similarly brief as are Barbara Brown Taylor’s. His December 5, 2010 sermon at Duke Chapel, ‘Continuing Through The Disruptive Conjunction’ is under 20 minutes, and full of Christian power. (You can find it on YouTube using Google search terms ‘walter brueggemann duke chapel 2010’.)

The length of a sermon is not the sole focus of this article, but it’s an element. A sermon should deliver quality content but also depends on whether or not a hearer is open to receive it. Clearly we as hearers bring something to the table. But there are limits. Mark Beeson, Senior Pastor of Granger Community Church, a 5,500-member United Methodist Church in Granger, Indiana quoting his mom says, “The mind can only absorb what the seat can endure.”

However, sermons are the documented reason many attend church. Today’s sermon practice has morphed significantly from Old Testament and apostolic times. In the book “Pagan Christianity”, Frank Viola and George Barna comment on key features of Old Testament preaching and teaching.

• It was participative, accepted interruptions, and addressed current concerns.
• Prophets and priests spoke extemporaneously not delivering regular speeches.
• Preaching was sporadic but allowed audience participation.

Documenting Jesus’ style they note, He didn’t give regular speeches, preached and taught in many different ways considering audience, time, and place. Dialogue was often used.

They further observed New Testament apostolic style embraced many of these same characteristics. Preaching was sporadic, used special occasions to deal with problems, was extemporaneous, and used dialogue. Adherents worshiped in leaderless house churches. Today’s preaching style was basically unknown in early church days.

So what is the purpose of preaching? Basically, it is to explain and apply scripture. 1 Timothy 3:16 says “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (NIV). When is the last time you had a dialogue during a pastoral sermon applying these principles in a New Testament manner? Probably never, because the format of today’s preaching does not allow it. Some pastors are televised and it would interrupt the flow of the process. Some may be recording it for replay so that’s clearly not an option. Mostly today’s preaching is a monologue. A few churches offer texting questions to the pastor. In my personal experience, the tough questions are screened out by screeners.

The Barbara Brown Taylor and Walter Brueggemann sermon examples, while not dialogical, explain and apply scripture in a way that’s clear and understandable, in less than 20 minutes. In the vernacular of our culture, they are “sticky” thoughts. I sincerely desire that readers exercise discernment about preaching, regardless of length, which appeals to a broad spectrum of hearers looking for essential truth. I’m most concerned the millennial demographic has access to preaching that engages. Great Land Christian Church is a church with many millennials and fosters an encouraging format of interaction between hearer and preacher. I like the interactive format between congregant and preacher at Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church. There are others offering congregant engagement in Anchorage, but they are definitely in the minority.

But what I’m hearing in many local churches may not satisfy them.

Four steps to a visitor-friendly church service – 7/5/14

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Blogging and writing about Anchorage area churches has occupied my time for more than six years. I was looking for four things in my mystery church visits, and they still suffice:

• Genuine welcome, true Christian hospitality
• Friendliness and warmth
• Effective, well-delivered, Bible-based, main teaching
• Music deepening the worship, not just entertainment

This list covers the basics. In this article, I’ll give examples of how these four points work in actual practice. It’s simple for churches to provide them, creating a welcoming environment. During this time, many seekers have found churches meeting their needs.

My blogging has focused on giving brief reviews of churches as seen by their guests. Over the past six years I’ve received many emails and blog comments from church guests affirming my observations. Often, readers have joined churches due to these observations, or occasionally, despite them.

Genuine welcome, true Christian hospitality

As a church prepares to host prospective guests, there are many ways to roll out the welcome mat. Is your church website up to date? Does it prominently display location and service times at the top of the homepage screen? Location and service times are what most church website visitors are looking for. Or does the website display the church name over beautiful pictures of mountains, rivers, lakes, and streams? Unfortunately these beautiful pictures are a big fail for every church that makes this poor website design mistake, and hundreds of Alaska churches do it. Alaska tourism spends tens of million dollars attracting visitors to our beautiful state. Churches are not in the business of tourism!

When a guest shows up at a church is the signage readable at the posted speed limit? Are there visitor parking signs in sufficient quantity, and are they reserved for your guests? As the guests enter, open the door, greet them with a smile, and welcome them to your church. As you greet them, make an inclusive statement like “We’re pleased you’ve chosen to worship with us today. My name is Fred. If I can help you in any way, please let me know. Our senior pastor is sharing a wonderful sermon on redemption today. We’re having a potluck after the service, and you’re invited. Please join us. There’s tasty coffee and donuts in the fellowship area on the right.”

Genesis 18 provides the best Bible lesson on hospitality, portraying an extravagant example of Abram’s kindness to strangers.

Friendliness and warmth

Churches can convey the warmth of their church by individually greeting guests, even at their seats, and making them feel recognized and welcome. Do not ask their names; rather, say, “I’m Freda and so happy to welcome you. My husband Bill and I sit over there. Let us know if we can answer your questions.” These simple statements convey a sense of friendliness and warmth.

Pastors often fail to welcome guests from the pulpit, an egregious omission. Guests don’t need to be welcomed by name, but should be made to feel welcome. Most churches play the “Meet n’ Greet” routine ensuring you will not be met or greeted. Before the church receives its offering, the pastor should say, “I realize we have guests today. As our guests, don’t feel compelled to give. Just let the offering plate pass you by. We’re so pleased you’ve chosen to worship with us.”

Effective, well-delivered, Bible-based, main teaching

Most studies of why people visit churches indicate they come for the preaching. Effectively, they are interested in knowing what you believe. Guests don’t come to hear book reviews by pastors, traveling music groups, or returned missionaries who’re weary, battle-fatigued, and fighting depression. If you’ve never heard a well-delivered biblical sermon, you’re in for a treat. (Email me to obtain several links to excellent ones.) An articulate sermon should happen in less than 20 minutes; in fact, with the younger generation, it’s essential.

Music deepening the worship, not just entertainment

Huge cultural clashes occur over music in today’s churches. The conservative hymn, organ, and choir crowd does not appreciate the contemporary music scene, while the younger set enjoys rock n’ roll music so prominent in many megachurches. Some churches provide a buffet of all the musical flavors, trying to please everyone. I look for several factors in church music. Regardless of the type of music, can I actually hear the lyrics? Is the sound level appropriate for my hearing? Does the music actually increase the depth of the worship, the sermon, and tie to the themes of the day? What doctrine or theology does the music express? Many local churches have musical sets lasting a half-hour to 45 minutes. A band member commands people to stand, and standing the entire time, sing mostly unrecognizable music. That’s unacceptable. 115-120 decibel sound levels are disrespectful and damaging, but flourish in many churches. Finally, music people should invite people to stand instead of commanding. A good example is, “I’d like to invite all who can stand to do so and join us in singing ‘Beneath the Cross of Jesus.’”

Visiting a guest-friendly church can be wonderful. Otherwise, be prepared for a painful experience.

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith.

Original ADN Article
http://www.adn.com/article/20140710/chris-thompson-four-steps-visitor-friendly-church-service

What’s it like visiting a church with a guest-friendly service? – 7/5/14

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Blogging and writing about Anchorage-area churches through the Anchorage Daily News has occupied my time for more than six years. I was looking for four things in my mystery church visits, and they still suffice:

• Genuine welcome, true Christian hospitality;

• Friendliness and warmth;

• Effective, well-delivered, Bible-based, main teaching;

• Music deepening the worship, not just entertainment.

This list covers the basics. In this column, I’ll give examples of how these four points work in actual practice. It’s simple for churches to provide them, creating a welcoming environment. During this time, many seekers have found churches meeting their needs.

Genuine welcome, true Christian hospitality

As a church prepares to host prospective guests, there are many ways to roll out the welcome mat. Is your church website up to date? Does it prominently display location and service times at the top of the home page? Location and service times are what most church website visitors are looking for. Or does the website display the church name over beautiful pictures of mountains, rivers, lakes, and streams? Unfortunately these beautiful pictures are a big fail for every church that makes this poor website design mistake, and hundreds of Alaska churches do it. Alaska tourism spends tens of million dollars attracting visitors to our beautiful state. Churches are not in the business of tourism!

When a guest shows up at a church are the signs readable at the posted speed limit? Are there visitor parking signs in sufficient quantity, and are they reserved for your guests? As the guests enter, open the door, greet them with a smile, and welcome them to your church. As you greet them, make an inclusive statement like “We’re pleased you’ve chosen to worship with us today. My name is Fred. If I can help you in any way, please let me know. Our senior pastor is sharing a wonderful sermon on redemption today. We’re having a potluck after the service, and you’re invited. Please join us. There’s tasty coffee and doughnuts in the fellowship area on the right.”

Genesis 18 provides the best Bible lesson on hospitality, portraying an extravagant example of Abraham’s kindness to strangers.

Friendliness and Warmth

Churches can convey the warmth of their church by individually greeting guests, even at their seats, and making them feel recognized and welcome. Do not ask their names, rather say, “I’m Freda and so happy to welcome you. My husband Bill and I sit over there. Let us know if we can answer your questions.” These simple statements convey a sense of friendliness and warmth.

Well-delivered, Bible-based teaching

Music deepening the worship

Huge cultural clashes occur over music in today’s churches. The conservative hymn, organ, and choir crowd does not appreciate the contemporary music scene, while the younger set enjoys rock n’ roll music so prominent in many megachurches. Some churches provide a buffet of all the musical flavors, trying to please everyone. I look for several factors in church music. Regardless of the type of music, can I actually hear the lyrics? Is the sound level appropriate for my hearing? Does the music actually increase the depth of the worship, the sermon, and tie to the themes of the day? What doctrine or theology does the music express? Many local churches have musical sets lasting a half-hour to 45 minutes. A band member commands people to stand, and standing the entire time, sing mostly unrecognizable music. That’s unacceptable. Sound levels in the 115 to 120 decibel range are disrespectful and damaging, but flourish in many churches. Finally, music people should invite people to stand instead of commanding. A good example is, “I’d like to invite all who can stand to do so and join us in singing ‘Beneath the Cross of Jesus’.”

Visiting a guest-friendly church can be wonderful; otherwise be prepared for a painful experience.

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog, Church Visits, at adn.com/churchvisits.

Original ADN Article
http://www.adn.com/article/20140704/chris-thompson-whats-it-visiting-church-guest-friendly-service

By Chris Thompson
Anchorage