We’re Fine the Way We Are

Bovina Bulletin Board

Now we are getting at something for sure. While not always explicitly expressed, I contend that the “We’re fine the way we are” mentality is at the root of a number of church growth problems. This is simply my opinion, and I’ll own it, but there has been very little to disprove it over the years. Not surprisingly, it’s not until the “off the record” moments, though, that it verbally surfaces. But it doesn’t really have to to be recognized.

Church systems often possess the most significant power struggles of all organizational systems. At times they rival the political. Many churches have long established power bases that do not like to be disrupted. Growth often does that very thing.

Most churches, but not all, tend to grow primarily through swelling. People from one religious tradition move to another area and, naturally, associate themselves with a church from their religious tradition in the new town. This is what it means to swell. Consequently, people new to a church often struggle to fit in, especially, if they are viewed with suspicion. If they don’t dress the right way, carry the right bible, or don’t come from a reputable congregation, this is particularly so.  The same kind of thing applies to those who come to know Christ. The baggage they often bring in with them can be very disruptive as well. They, too, find significant difficulty in penetrating the prominent congregational circles.

Ironically enough, the first century church struggled in the same respects. When Gentiles finally were introduced to the kingdom, the Jewish Christian power base was reluctant to let them in without them conforming to certain Jewish practices. The book of Acts clearly attests to this problem.

The situation at Rome, in particular, is especially germane because its struggles were oriented around division on cultural norms. The Roman church went from being primarily a Jewish church to a Gentile church after the Jews were banished from Rome. When they returned years later, they were disturbed by the norms of the Gentile Roman church. They weren’t doing the right things; they were eating the wrong things; they weren’t do things the right way. Sounds eerily familiar to the modern church. Paul’s solution was Romans 14 & 15. Unfortunately, some of us are just now figuring this out. In the end, blame could be put before the feet of those who possessed a “We’re fine the way we are” mentality.

There are churches that are willing to grow, but only if the resultant growth isn’t going to unsettle the system. Fear causes some churches to be content with where they are. A church of 50 that has been a church of 50 for 50 years might be suggesting something without realizing it. I believe they might be saying, “We’re fine the way we are!” But the lack of genuine growth, too, is saying that God isn’t at work there either. That is a scary thought.