Another church that just wasn't for me

Have you ever seen Norman Rockwell's painting, The Connoisseur? You can see it here. The scene shows a well-dressed man, possibly a businessman, staring at a large abstract painting. I imagine him saying to himself, "I don't get it." If I am standing in his shoes, that is what I am thinking. It is the same with poetry. I don't get it-unless it rhymes. I prefer clear, precise sentences. I tried writing songs- I can't do it. I am too concrete (which, in the world of art, translates to boring. My conclusion: I am not an artist- I am more of an engineer. I am not a poet- I'm so bad with words I can't even think of one right to to contrast poet.

Last Sunday Erica and I visited another thriving church near Westport. (If you are not familiar with Kansas City, Westport features night clubs, artists, and young people who prefer urban bungalows and lofts over suburban split-levels.) This church is not a Nazarene church, but there are tons of Nazarenes who attend. I have heard so much about it I just had to check it out. It is regarded by many as a model emergent/postmodern church. My conclusion? I didn't like it. I know that worship is not about me, and I wrote about that in my last post, but I just couldn't do it this time. I just couldn't connect with God in worship. I loved the architecture of the old building. The candles were cool. The worship band was good. But I didn't know any of the songs and the melodies were impossible to pick up. Erica mentioned that it had the feel of a coffeehouse alt-rock band. It was also a special Sunday for the church- one of their bi-yearly "all-worship" Sunday featuring lots of music and a devotional lead by the worship pastor, so I didn't have the opportunity to experience their preaching.

But still, I just didn't get it. And I think it is because it is a church by and for artists and poets-those who appreciate artistic expression in all forms. And the church is doing a spectacular job reaching this community which is largely ignored by many churches. I applaud their ministry. It is just not me.

Unfortunately, I haven't heard many leaders in the emergent/postmodern discussion address this. Could it be that the artists and poets are comfortable with and even prefer the abstract, the conceptual, diversity of opinion, and paradox. But there is still a large portion of the supposedly postmodern generation who prefer the concrete and practical? I think so.

And if that is so, ministry to Generations X and Y is a lot like ministry to Baby Boomers: It takes different kinds of churches to reach different kinds of people.