Chapter 6: Communicating Your Purposes

Communicating your church's purposes can be tedious especially with all the distractions that can linger around in a church.  Communicating the purposes weighs on the use of Scripture and stories to revitalize the congregation every month. Jesus used parables to convey the kingdom of God and the Kingdom Principles that we are to have in churches today. Some pastors assume that everyone knows the purposes of the church right as they walk in from a coffee shop, welcome center, and other programs going on but the first impression is a person explaining what the ministry is about not what is going on.
I have seen many churches recently communicating what's happening instead of what the church is to do or about. I saw one church start in their video announcements with the purposes of the church but for the better part of the last few years, it was filtered out and there is not enough emphasis on informing the church of the purposes.  Core classes were pushed to Wednesday night because Sunday school was eliminated from the church in a sense.  The church focuses more on bringing in special speakers and holding concerts and programs instead of delving into the purposes of the church.
I also saw a church who in fact reiterate their 3 focal points of ministry every month on the same Sunday morning that they serve communion.  The only suggestion I would make to this church is to innovatively preach on the purposes of the church to give the parishioners a renewed passion, even if they currently do have it through the current method.
I feel that the purpose and the passion of the church go hand in hand and that it needs to be conveyed properly.

Chapter 5: Defining Your Purposes

Having (a) defined purpose(s) for a church is a major key in keeping the church active and alive instead of it being spiritually dead. I have seen many churches fall by the wayside because they do not keep their purposes fresh and true within their hearts.  It saddens me because many churches have a solidified foundation based on purpose, however, that same purpose is not being shown after the foundation has been laid.  In fact, some people involved in solidifying the foundation are not involved in more recent activity within the congregation because of leadership pushing people to the side instead of utilizing everyone's strengths.
Church leadership needs to involve the congregation in defining purposes for the church, especially if the congregation is just a core of people for a new church body and then it can be reiterated as the days and months continue on.
I have seen churches alter the substance of the message of the true church while trying to keep up with the styles. It hurts to see the "end" results of churches who lose sight of their purpose.  The four points Warren mentions to revitalize and rediscover a church's purpose are so important because churches are focused on programs so much that they forget the main reason is to minister to the congregation of what the church's purposes should be through the Scriptures, which are unfortunately pushed aside for flashy presentations of video and lighting. No offense to those who do such for a ministry because I have done that as well, however, the time spent on Scripture for some churches is lax because some pastors want their hands in everything and do not take the time out to go in-depth with their messages.
Next post, I will cover my viewpoint of churches who convey their purposes on a consistent basis and those who don't and you evidently see it in the numbers involved compared to numbers attending.