Environmental design for churches has changed drastically over the last two decades (at least on the fringes). It has become much more than church interior design. It has evolved into creating entire worlds and environments.

For example, when Cornerstone Harvest Church (Lima, OH) recently revamped their Heir Force youth ministry, they hired Little Mountain Productions to develop the environmental design. The result was a youth ministry design that featured a lifesize M-1 Abrams tank and 40 foot wing span plane coming out of the walls.

To complement these installations, Little Mountain Productions also added acoustic panel military graphics to the room.

In case you are wondering how they did it, here are some production shots.

OooRah!

Sometimes blunt, crude words are the only things that can shock a person out of a rut and motivate him to improve to the next level. This four-part blog series is for the church worker who needs such forthright words.

It is important to do things with excellence and to give your best in ministry. Paul exemplifies this in 1 Corinthians 9:22-23. However, when trying to give your best, it is equally important to avoid the pitfall of thinking it is all about you.

If you are good at what you do, this pitfall nurtures pride. If you lack confidence, it cripples you with insecurity. Thinking it’s all about you keeps you from delegating. It keeps you from resting. Many pastors have ruined themselves, their marriages, their families, and their churches by thinking that they are the only ones capable of doing what they do.

But the truth is…

You are not good enough.

This crude statement is actually an incredible encouragement. It is not about you. Nobody is good enough. We are all sinful, but God’s gospel gift is about grace rather than being good enough.

Fortunately, the success of God’s Kingdom does not rest on your shoulders. God does not need you, but He desperately wants you to be a part.

You are never as great as you think you are, so don’t become prideful. And you are never as bad as you think you are, so don’t become crippled by insecurity. Simply give your best and be thankful that God has given you the opportunity to be a part of His great plan.

Read Part 1 - You Deserve to Go to Hell
Read Part 2 - You Will Die Unless…
Read Part 3 - What If You Die Today?

For the first time since 1995, more Americans are pro-life (51%) than pro-choice (42%) on the issue of abortion according to Gallup. This coincides with the trending decrease in U.S. abortions since 1990.

While most Christians are pro-choice and view abortion as morally wrong, there are differing views on how to further reduce the popularity of abortion.

Stereotypically, Christians believe the solution is legislating abortion and making it illegal. This solution is particularly popular among those who take the theological stance that the shedding of innocent blood curses a nation.

Donald Miller counters this perspective with:

A sort of Republican Evangelical Conservative mindset has been to make it illegal, and it’s never worked. I don’t see it working anytime soon. It’s a great bit of idealism. But it is a pipedream, and I think we need to face that now twenty years in.

We need to face that, and we need to be able to work together to come up with other solutions. And so many people will disagree with that. They will say, “No, we have to win a moral victory,” and actually, the moral victory will cost many, many lives. And they will say, “It’s worth it to be right,” and I would say, “No, I think we need to deal with the issue holistically.”

Eugene Cho shares a similar perspective (part 1, part 2):

Like most Christians I know, I am against abortion.  However, I just do not believe we can legislate it.

Rather than legislating it, I wonder how abortions can be reduced by speaking and appealing to the Heart and Soul of a person and to make all necessary provisions if a person decides to have that baby.  In short, can we maintain choice but do all that we can to preserve and ensure the life of an unborn?  This is where most of us fall short.

I find it incredibly frustrating and naive when Christians take a stance of being against abortion at all costs but are unwilling to yield to issues that have direct correlation to abortions: sex education in schools [starting in middle school], health care benefits for low income families and women, post birth care and benefits, usage of contraceptives, etc.

Legislation understandably is an ideal solution, but it has been a sloppy and weak one. Unfortunately, politics has become a stumbling block that drives Christians further away from the people they need to reach. Christians have been labeled as judgmental, insensitive, and too involved in politics.

Ultimately, only a life-changing relationship with Christ can effectively change a person and a culture for the better. If you want to reduce abortions, create a better ministry.

In the big picture, a toolbox with all hammers isn’t very effective. You can hit nails, pry, and not much more. A good toolbox has hammers, wrenches, files, and screwdrivers. It has a drill, some pliers, and plenty of other tools.

So why do so many churches try to be a hammer?

Eugene Cho of Quest Church (Seattle, WA) recently blogged about the pursuit so many churches have to be a megachurch. He states:

Megachurches only comprise 1% of the churches in North America. But then why do the majority of the conferences revolve around the megachurches and their pastors?

I think megachurches and their leaders are doing phenomenal ministry.  I really do.  But we’ve elevated this 1% as the epitome and face of a successful ministry and created a machine of conferences, publishers, books, and networks based on this very limited expression.

Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv (Edmond, OK) puts it this way:

In order to reach people that no one is reaching, you will have to do things that no one is doing. But in order to do things that no one is doing, you can’t do what everyone else is doing.

We each have a unique God-given calling, but many of us want to live the calling of  the ministers in the limelight. Likewise, each church has a unique God-given calling, but too many churches distract themselves by pursuing the calling of famous megachurches. Consider how 1 Corinthians 12 reads when substituting church terms:

The Church has many different parts, not just one part. If the house church says, “I am not a part of the Church because I am not a megachurch,” that does not make it any less a part of the Church. And if the rural church says, “I am not part of the Church because I am not a gigachurch,” would that make it any less a part of the Church? If the whole Church were a gigachurch, how would you reach rural areas? Or if the whole Church were a rural church, how would you reach urban areas?

But the Church has many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. How strange the Church would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one Church. The gigachurch can never say to the megachurch, “I don’t need you.” The Internet church can’t say to the church plant, “I don’t need you.”

In fact, some parts of the Church that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary.

To clarify, I do think it is good to study successful churches when the principles learned are considered within the context of your church’s unique calling. And I do believe that good ministry typically grows churches. However, some of the greatest ministries have the smallest numbers. Sometimes small is needed to be effective. Sometimes huge is needed.

I recommend that you study them all. Learn from megachurches, house churches, rural churches, and the rest.

Above all else, never lose focus of staying true to your church’s purpose. If God wants you to be a hammer, be a hammer. If God wants you to be a wrench, be a wrench.

[Photo credit: dipster1]

Ben Arment is putting together another fresh ministry conference called STORY (Chicago, IL) at the Paramount Theater on October 28, 2009. It has been a year since he debuted his first conference creation, The Whiteboard Sessions.

STORY conference is quite different though. It has a Q conference vibe with a focus on creatively telling the greatest story ever told - the gospel. Speakers include Nancy Beach, Mike Foster, Dave Gibbons, Donald Miller, Chris Seay, Stacy Spencer, and Ed Young. The following day, workshops led by artists, scholars, authors, and communications experts will be held at Orchard Valley Community Church (Aurora, IL).

And if you go to STORY, you should consider coming a day early to attend the Cultivate Conference.

Yes, a former mob boss has good advice for church leadership. Michael Franzese turned his life around and has penned the leadership lessons he learned in his new book, I’ll Make You An Offer You Can’t Refuse.

Having lived two different leadership styles, Michael compares the leadership styles of the worldly Machiavelli and the godly King Solomon. However, I particularly appreciate two bits of advice Michael gives early in the book.

There is no magic formula that will guarantee your success.

This life principle is important in any field, but in the pursuit of effective ministry, it is extremely important. There is no perfect church model. There are no 3 steps to megachurch perfection. God has given us each a unique calling. And unique callings require unique formulas to achieve success.

First, nail down the basics.

I am a firm believer of not pursuing the next steps until you have the basics covered. In ministry, first you need sound theology. First, you need the Great Commission. First, you need love. Paul sums up this concept beautifully in 1 Corinthians 13 when he talks about how his ministry efforts would be worthless without love.

Of course, I’ll Make You An Offer You Can’t Refuse has many more leadership nuggets than these, but you will need to read the book for the rest.