“So what did you think of my blog today?”
“It was okay.”
“Didn’t you find it interesting?”
“I suppose. I don’t do the social networks like you do.”
“I stated in the blog I don’t do YouTube very much either but what did you think about the information?”
“It doesn’t really mean anything to me. I don’t use.”
"IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU!” I exploded, maybe a bit of an emotional over-reaction, but if you know me, you 'll understand.
It’s not about you or me. As my husband who’s a minister often says, “It’s about the people who aren’t here yet”.
To my husband’s benefit, he does do a great deal of work toward revitalizing churches; enough so, he’s often not the most liked person in the room because he tells folks what they need to do, not what they want to hear. That banter was my “gotcha” and now because of this blog, a public one. I did get his permission to voice this interaction because of the overwhelming message:
It’s not about you.
Golly, those are harsh words. We don’t like to listen or read things that aren’t about us; things that don’t help our personal world no matter what level that might be. There’s too much stuff out there to learn, read, hear—we only want to process information WE need. Last week’s blog on YouTube videos points a spotlight to an arena that has over 120 million viewers. As Christians called to the Great Commission to spread the Good News of the Gospel, why are we not there? The Catholic Church is starting to make inroads, but what about the rest of us?
I just had a conversation with a Presbyterian pastor who was interested in developing a website but said he couldn’t until some members of the church Session (board) moved off. I expressed my regret and understanding. But---- PEOPLE! When can we, through love and integrity, meet this challenge head on and say in compassion, “it’s not about you”.
You may not use the Internet much. You may not get on the social networks online, or tweet (Twitter), or YouTube. There is, however, hard statistical evidence millions of other people do use this. Out of those million, there are most likely quite a few that never attend church or remotely think about God and faith. If you are 35 or under and you go looking for a church, if you do not have an internet presence (a webpage), YOU DO NOT EXIST. Forget about the visitor pamphlets in your pews or the greeters you have to meet new folks. They are NOT coming in your door because you do not exist to them. It doesn’t matter if they drive down the street everyday and pass your church. If you do not have some information out there on the web stating the mere basics about your church, they will not come. Church shopping is online. It’s safe. It’s in the security of your own space and you don’t have to walk through a strange door and feel completely uncomfortable because you’ve been online and seen a taste of what you’re getting yourself in for.
Let’s get back to YouTube. I’m not touting every church run out and create a video to upload to YouTube. As mainstream denominations, our collective bodies need to use technology as an evangelism tool. The Catholic Church seems to be engaged in this venture. It would be interesting to learn the statistics on their viewership and results to action. I have to give them thumbs up for reaching out.
We all may want more people in our pews. The process of making that happen is most times, uncomfortable to those of us already part of the congregation. We have to adjust and shift our thinking toward "those who are not here yet". It’s easy to write about and hard to do.
An example:
A Facebook friend, Rev. Candasu Vernon, coincidently shared this YouTube video right after I posted last week's blog. She wrote this saying: “Fruit of the Spirit? That’ll preach.” Imagine at the end instead of the ad, a statement: Brought to you my the church of [_____] .
Yes, this YouTube installment is a little esoteric but this is what draws young people these days:
Grocery Store Musical
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnY59mDJ1gg&feature=player_embedded
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