In The Divine Commodity, Skye Jethani writes: These pastors [who encourage church leaders to "embrace entertainment"], representative of so many contemporary Christians, believe that God changes lives through the commodification and consumption of experiences. If our worship gatherings are energetic, stimulating, and exciting enough then people will attend, receive what’s being communicated, and be spiritually [...]
Skye Jethani’s recent book, The Divine Commodity, has been a welcome read concerning the stranglehold that consumer christianity has over most of us in the American church, even (and especially) those of us who disavow it. Over the next week, I’ll be posting a few quotes from the book that helped me to think through [...]
Carlos Whitaker asked the question on his blog, Ragamuffin Soul, 1. What is the next sound that will dominate Sunday mornings across America? 2. If your church has a “sound”, will you be willing to change or become “that church” whose pipe organ and ties has simply been replaced with an electric guitars and v-necks. [...]
This post continues the wonderful lecture by Robby Bell called Lament for a Wounded Faith. 2 Areas where our theology needs refinement: Theology of worship and the church Why is our worship so antiseptic? Is the purpose of worship to forget our problems and sing happy songs? Lamenting is about honesty in our worship. We [...]
The final session of the Where Are the Psalms? Conference was presented by Robby Bell, professor of counseling at Erskine Seminary. I took so many notes during this session that I’ve divided them into two posts. In a conference that was rich on every front, this session probably impacted me the most, especially considering what [...]
Sally Morganthaler’s article is too thought-provoking to only read once. I ran across it again this week and am still blown away by her assessment of the situation that we are in. As negative attitudes toward conservative Christianity among the unchurched increased in the late ’90s and early 2000s, most large-congregation growth efforts became more [...]
