Christ Community Church

Someone should not say something unless he is convinced he has something to say.

This is how I view interacting with others on the internet. I have contributed sparsely to forums and blogs not because I do not recognize the value of worldwide communication (I do) but because I have not been convinced that what I have to say is worth saying (or typing). I even once had a blog, but, like so many others, it sits unupdated. Again, this is not because I think ill of blogs but because I was not sure that I was saying anything useful.

However, in conjunction with thinking through a re-design of our church website, I have come to the conclusion that I would at least like to attempt to add something to the worldwide conversation on the web. If I conclude that I have nothing useful to say, then I will cease speaking (or typing).

The first series of posts here I would to like to address the issue of why have this website in general and this blog in particular. Our church is a rather small one by American standards, with all the limitations of man-power and budget that go along with a limited number of people doing most of the work. While there is nothing wrong (and plenty good) about a smaller church, there is something sinister about a small-church mindset, the one that sees and is excited about a grand opportunity to serve the Lord but tempers that excitement by saying, “We could never do that.” This is seen in individual Christians who limit their service to the Lord to those things he or she can envision doing as well as congregations who do the same.

The reason why this is so bad is not because it is untrue: most of the time, it is absolutely true that the individual or church cannot do the thing they were excited about. The problem is what is done with that realization. Typically, the excitement wanes and the routine resumes, sometimes with wistful remembrances of what they would have liked to have done but did not. While it may be that that person or church should not have done that particular thing, they should not allow their perceived inability block them from pursuing all that the Lord has for them.

The realization that one cannot do a certain thing should bring about concerted and fervent prayer. As I said, it may be that the Lord would not have them do that thing, but one should not allow circumstance alone to dictate how one will follow the Lord. It bears remembering that the Lord turned the world upside down in the first century, and He began that upset with 12 rather unqualified men.

How does that bear on this website and blog? A smaller church tends to look at a website as an information portal for those in the church or who will eventually come to the church. Thus, you will find sermons, service times, and, perhaps, a statement of faith on a typical church website. Do not misunderstand me: there is nothing wrong with this. If that is what a church wants and how the Lord has led them, then praise the Lord for it. After all, there is no mandate from Scripture regarding websites.

However, is it possible for a smaller church with limited resources to have not only an information portal for members and guests but also a voice in the wider theological conversation going on across the world through the internet? Or, are such things best left to mega-churches with superstar pastors?

Here is the great thing about the internet: it does not care how big your church is, what your annual budget is, or how much you paid for your site. Most people who get on the internet will never visit your church, so its size does not matter. Since they will never visit your church, its budget is of even less concern than its size. And, so long as your site is not aesthetically appalling, your start-up and maintenance costs mean nothing to the average reader.

What matters is whether or not you are offering something worthwhile, which brings me back to the initial point: I think that Christ Community Church has something to say, a voice to add to the chorus, as it were. We may not be the loudest, but we will passionately sing of the glory of God, the beauty of Christ, and the wonders of the gospel of grace.