Yesterday, I spent several hours meeting with pastors and denominational leaders from our region talking about how to create an environment where our churches raise up future church planters. The RCA has an ambitious goal to plant 1,000 new churches in the next 20 years. Many of these churches will be in ethnic communities, many will be outside the United States, and many will not look like traditional churches, but they will also be formed to help people far from God draw near to him, communities experience the Shalom of God, and people glorify God in all their lives. Church will not look like it does now in 20 years.

For the last 20 years, I have been reading church futurists predict the need for radical change in churches as our culture becomes more secular, younger generations drift away from institutions in general and the church in particular, technology both connects and alienates us, and the middle class shrinks and church budgets with it. Writers like Leonard Sweet and Alan Hirsch have written of the need to return to the less programmatic and more relational models of the early church, to the less professional and more gift based ministry, to both smaller and bigger forms of community and connection. We have wrestled through these changes over the years at Zion and have both started and ended various ministries when needed and made changes when necessary in many different ways.

One of the most influential church studies in the last 20 years came out of Willow Creek Community Church called Reveal. Reveal looked at the spiritual lives of regular church attenders and found something both challenging and very much in line with the futurists mentioned above. This is the big conclusion: more involvement in church activities (i.e., serving in the church, attending a Sunday school class or small group, going to church multiple times a week or a Sunday) had very little impact on someone’s spiritual maturity beyond the initial decision to believe and the first few steps of faith. Simply increasing time in church or serving did not impact their growth beyond those first steps of faith, but, personal spiritual practices of prayer and reading the Bible individually and then reflecting on it in a small community of spiritual friends are by far the most important activities to grow in our walk with God as we mature in the faith.

For years, many churches like Willow Creek (a huge mega-church in Chicago) believed that simply getting people more involved in church through programmatic activities (think Sunday school, mid-week worship, Small groups, etc.) would help people grow spiritually. But, they found beyond those initial steps of faith, adding more and more spiritual activities did not impact the continued spiritual growth of most people. In fact, for many people it burned therm out spiritually and led some to drift away from the church entirely.

Church busyness does not equal spiritual growth. In fact, they found for the most mature believers their busyness at church hindered their spiritual growth. For the most mature believers, who had a clear sense of call, they needed the time and support to engage in ministries beyond the walls of their church. I see that in many of our spiritually mature members who volunteer in organizations like Forgotten Man Ministries or the refugee resettlement ministries of Bethany Christian Services and supporting our church plants and others who have been instrumental in starting new mission agencies outside of a particular church structure.

What does all this mean? I’m not sure. But I suspect it means over time we will continue to be pushed to minimize programs, shrink structure, and raise up relationships, organic models of ministry, and will need to learn to constantly adapt to change and innovation in the church.

I recently came across a great study by Pinetops Foundation called The Great Opportunity that looks at the future of the church and recommends several steps including planting new churches, enraging youth in mission, and justice issues as part of the way forward for our churches. You can check it out here.

Connect to God

At a time when the first-century church had been invaded by false teachers, John knew Christians who are not sure of God’s truth could wander away, never to return. He wrote 1 John to help these early believers not only to know the real truth, but to be confident of it, and to rest upon it. If then, why not today? We all urgently need to hear and obey God’s loving message in 1 John and let God’s love shape how we live in this world as light in the darkness bringing hope to the hopeless. In the first chapter of 1 John, we consider the call of fellowship with God and the reality of sin at work in us all.

As our nation celebrate Memorial Day on Monday, we will take a few moments to remember those who have died defending our country and all those who have served in the armed forces and their families at the very beginning of our worship service this Sunday.

If you would like a copy of the worship service, you can receive a complete copy by contacting Tom Verbrugge or you can find the weekly messages on our website.

Grow in Community

Summer is just around the corner, so it’s time to start scheduling volunteers for our summer videos! This year, our K-3rd kids are going to watch the kids Bible study series, “Night Owls and Early Birds.” Our preschoolers will get to watch “Boz.” Everyone will get snacks and have some free playtime too.

This is the way that we give our regular teachers a break from prepping lessons over the summer, while still having something worthwhile for the kids during church. To make this possible, we need your help! We’re asking that all parents with children attending during the summer volunteer once or twice.

You must have gone through Keeping Kids Safe training and a background check in order to volunteer. If not, I can meet with you to go over our policy.

Please consider volunteering! It’s a great way to get to know some of the awesome children in our church! You can sign up via the link below, or there’s a sign-up sheet outside of Room 205. I will meet with volunteers each Sunday before church so they know how to run the video. You sign-up through the link below:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e044cafad2ca2ff2-summer1

We also have a more flexible schedule for our First Impressions Team (ushers, greeters, and others) who so graciously welcome us every week, If you would like to try serving on one of these teams over the summer, you can sign up through the link below.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/409054AAEAE23A6FD0-summer

On Saturday, June 29, Grandville will hold its annual Visser Family YMCA Buck Creek Run. If you are interested in running with people from church, please contact Pastor Rick. For more information check out www.visserfamilybuckcreekrun.com.

Serve the World

Camp Zion is an amazing, fun-filled, summer time adventure.  Anyone is welcome to be a part of serving at camp, from teenagers to retirees. Camp runs for seven weeks: June 17 – Aug 1, Monday through Thursday each week, 9am-3pm each day. You can serve one day a week or every day or anything in between. In particular, we are always open to adults who are willing to drive students to and from lunch and field trips. If you would like to know more, please contact Rachel Verbrugge.

Administrative Details

There will be a Town Hall meeting on Sunday, June 2 following worship to share the reasons and rational behind Consistory’s decision to move Sunday School to during church beginning next fall. After the meeting there will be an e-mail survey sent out that to which we encourage you to respond. A paper copy of the survey will be available for those who don’t have internet access. To ensure you receive the survey please include your email on the Connection Card or email Connie this week at cstegeman@zionreformed.org.

We continue to thank God for his provision of all of our needs and for the generous support of our congregation with their time, talent, and treasures.

Fiscal Year to date budget:  $554,635.20

Fiscal Year to date contributions: $541,419.12