dead churches

Posted by brock | Filed under Uncategorized

if you are easily offended then dont read this post.

i will be honest, many of the churches that i have been to are dead. often times i am booked at an event at some church and ministry is an afterthought. prayer is never a focus and the only needs that are dealt with is the need for more people to come to the youth group. i have walked away from many churches after doing an event burdened about the people who now have to figure out their faith walk in the hands of doofus youth pastors and pastors that dont care. in some places that i go i meet a youth pastor who is doing everything he can to make a difference but is overworked underpaid and under appreciated. recently i had one youth pastor say to me, “just once in the past 17 years, i wish my pastor would come and see what we do here in this youth building”. i am amazed at what we get away with nowadays. i am amazed at what we call church nowadays.

recently i was teaching some pastors and began to ask them “when is the last time you prayed in church?”. of course everyone had a good answer but the truth is most people cant remember a time they really had a genuine time of prayer where they seeked the face of God. prayer has become nothing more than a transition in worship services. prayer is what we do at the end of the worship set to give people time to get on or off stage. prayer is sometimes a great way to open or close a segment but is that what we think about prayer?

ok im ranting.

tonight i was blessed to see a group of people who get it. they had a strategy, they had a vision, and most of all they pray. they have had a group of students meeting on monday nights to pray for an hour every week. you heard that right. students getting on their face and praying every week. they are praying for their friends and they were praying for auny and i. we saw the results tonight. the place was packed out and 182 people made a decision to follow jesus for the first time.

we saw God do some big things. why is this such a rare thing? the reason is many churches are just plain dead. why are we so surprised that most teenagers dont go to church once they graduate high school? maybe its because they have never been shown how to pray and how to hear God. maybe they have never seen God work in their lives. maybe when we become more concerned about meeting with God and not having church services then maybe we will change. maybe when we realize that kids dont care about fancy youth buildings but they really want to experience God, then we will see change. i dont know about you but i am tired of going to dead churches. i want to see more of what i saw tonight in nebraska. i want to see God move in people.

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Permalink | March 5th, 2009

10 Responses to “dead churches”

  1. Katie W. Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 1:17 am

    I would just like to let you know you made a difference.
    you made me think. pray. and made me realize what I have.
    one day I wish to be a youth speaker. a messenger of god in a way.
    to tell of my story. to make a difference.
    thank you for coming. and making a difference in me and over 600 people.

  2. Angry fire57 Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 9:14 am

    I agree with you Brock. I’ve been at my current church since i was in sixth grade. when i first whent there we had a youth pastor that really cared about showing us God and how we could have a relationship with him. God had other plans. they moved away before anything really started and we went through two youth pastors that did nothing. we were so dead that was as if we weren’t even there. then this passed year we had another youth pastor come. He has been working his butt off and as you said hes underpaid. Just within the five months that he has been here our youth group has really opened up and woken up. He trully is a blessing from God.

  3. Trey Chandler Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 3:37 pm

    Speak the truth, brother!

  4. Cstreet Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 4:49 pm

    Not easily offended, especially when it is how i have felt for such a long time.. It is very very frustrating to be in a church and feel like you are among strangers cause the just DON’T get it. I don’t see how we as youth leaders can help students see the Hope, Excitement & Love Christ has to offer when so many parents, pastors and other congregation people seem to not even care.. It is my PRAYER that God will bring about many people to help those to understand and Brock I think you may just very well be one of those people.. I am always praying for you and your ministry!! God Bless & Keep Fighting the Good Fight..

  5. barbara Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 5:29 pm

    i think the same way. is really hard to find a good group and a good church. mostly are the same. they are dead.

  6. barbara Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 5:31 pm

    and the worse is that the dead churches, have dead people. that is the sadest thing.

  7. John M.H. Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 6:46 pm

    This was a good blog. I once asked one of my mission trip leaders of all his travels what was the coolest. and he said that he had been a lot of places, but the coolest place he could think of had nothing to do with the geography, but rather the people at a church. He said when they pray they expected God to show up, move, heal, respond. He said, “They believed God was listening!” That’s so good! Thanks for the post!

  8. Teresa (in GA) Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 8:38 pm

    The affirmation of my (our) Lord is amazing to me. Brock, if you only knew how I have struggled with this over the past year at my own place of worship. I wish churches could love people “where they are” and not be so caught up in “appearances” both physical and spiritual. If we don’t train up both our kids and youth our church of tomorrow will die out. And I want folks (here especially) to realize we can have fun as a christian. We are “free” to dance, “free” to sing and so on. This life is all about Him. It’s about accepting the greatest gift ever (Jesus) and then giving it back to Him (God) thru our life!

    Thank you for this post. I’ve been praying and struggling in a direction I needed to move. This post is the affirmation I needed.

  9. barbara Says:
    March 5th, 2009 at 11:53 pm

    is like you say. the church is not the building, is the people. and to be a religious person doesn’t mean you have to be on the church or praying all day. You have to live it. and practice it out doors.

  10. Seanny Boi Says:
    March 8th, 2009 at 12:44 pm

    Amen.

    It sucks even more for guys like me who WANT desperately to help and serve G-d, but because of all the spiritual death and distortion, serving G-d truthfully becomes the most difficult thing in the world, not because of non-believers and athiests, or satan, but Christians.

    It’s sad, and I’m super glad we agree on that Mr. Brock.

    || sean ||

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