Saturday, February 11, 2006

Invite & Tithe or SHUT UP

I just read a thought on another pastors blog. He has a 1000 member church in the DC area, they are reaching de-churched folks that are mostly in their 20's and early 30's. So in his post he spoke about those who complain a lot in church (church folks don't complain do they?) Anyhow, he tells people that if you don't invite people to church, you have no right to complain about the church...Because the church is in the "inviting" business, not the complaining business.

So, I'm going to take this further...If you don't tithe or invite then you don't have a right to complain...If your a complainer, but not a tither and inviter, then your complaints are more inward focused. Another words, it's about you and what you like and or dislike etc. It doesn't matter if you serve in the church in some other capacity; In reality, every member of the church has a responsibility to invite and to tithe. And every pastor should teach this principle and have certain expectations (especially from folks who have been followers of Jesus for awhile.) That's true ownership. In reality, I should have done a better job of teaching these values in my church, I was WAY TO NICE!

Also, the pastor that has the church in DC gives me much hope...Because he had to close down his first church plant. In the words of Winston Churchill, "Never Never Give Up."

Also, while I'm thinking about this, I received an email from a former member of Sacred. The point of the email was not to tell me how wrong I was, or how disappointed he was that Sacred closed down..Instead, he said he was sorry for not working harder, and tithing and inviting more folks...Now, I'm not a guilt tripper, and this guy did a lot for Sacred...So, he does not need to feel bad at all...But, I enjoyed the fact that he took responsibility on himself, he was not a "blamer." So, that email was a true blessing. Peace & Love, and guilt is not from God, but truth can make us all better. So please take these comments with that in mind.

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