Attorney and Christian Author Challenges Churches to Self-Evaluate
Contact: Beth Srygley, 615-371-8455
NASHVILLE, Dec. 16, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- The chances are good that at this time of the year that your church is overflowing with attendance. People who never otherwise go to church somehow gravitate to it at Christmastime. It's hard to resist Christmas songs, lights and the Christmas spirit.
But what about the rest of the year? Is your church vibrant, and more importantly welcoming to people seeking God? Or, have you inadvertently created barriers that cause new Christians or non-Christians to feel unwelcome?
Whether they realize it or not, many churches are not welcoming places. Their memberships are incredibly homogenous. To outsiders, they appear to be happy and carefree people, who lead perfect lives. Further, some are perceived as being hypocritical- they profess to embrace the love of Christ, but that love isn't offered to those outside their church.
It's one of the reasons mainstream America views organized Christianity with disdain.
Worse, the members have become so deeply embedded in the status quo that they cannot see the spiritual "forest for the trees." They get so caught up in the organization that they lose sight of the church's purpose. They become isolated and spiritually dead. Their worship and teaching is repetitive, rote and uninspired.
Sedberry speaks out of his own experience. In his new book, The Reasonable Person- Due Process of Law, Logic and Faith, Author Steven R. Sedberry describes what it means to be a "wrong side of the tracks Christian." Sedberry, a corporate attorney, explains that to many, "Christianity is a country club, and you aren't a member." The same holds true for non-Christians who may view your church as an unwelcoming place.
Sedberry says, "Some large churches are victims of their own success. These 'mega-churches' have become so large that visitors and others who are hurting or with spiritual needs fall through the organizational cracks. Hurting people visit for a while and then simply fade away. They may even become so disillusioned with the process that they walk away from the faith forever."
How can you decide whether your church is truly a welcoming place?
Sedberry offers a free questionnaire designed to help churches assess how they encourage and welcome visitors and new Christians, and feed them spiritually. This questionnaire includes a key, with explanations and examples. The questionnaire may be obtained by emailing thereasonableperson@hotmail.com, or through "The Reasonable Person" website; www.reasonable-person.com.
