20 Percent…And I Feel Fine!

The following is a list of a few popular Christian charities and how they spend their money. By the way, the administrative category would include all staff salaries.

Angel Tree Prison Ministries:

Programs: 67%  Fund Raising: 20%  Administrative: 13%

Compassion International:

Programs: 82%  Fund Raising: 10%  Administrative: 8% 

HOPE International:

Programs: 79%  Fund Raising: 14%  Administrative: 7%

Salvation Army:

Programs: 84%  Fund Raising: 1%  Administrative: 15% 

Samaritans Purse:

Programs: 89%  Fund Raising: 6%  Administrative: 5% 

 

Looks pretty good right? Most of these organizations spend the majority of their budgets on helping people. Some obviously do a little better job than others, but all are doing a great job.

With that in mind, consider the following:

A recent survey conducted by "Christianity Today", found that the average church spends less than 20% of its total budget on ministry that directly assists others. The survey was based on the responses of almost 1200 churches of various denominations. The overwhelmingly largest portion of these churches' budgets went towards paying the salaries of their staff with the pastors' salaries comprising most of that category.

In fact over 70% of most churches' budgets are allocated to cover staff "compensation" and facilities costs. Typically, most charities spend between 5 and 13% of their total expenditure on salaries.
Throw in supplies, denominational "fees", and the all-important "other" category and you will burn up another 12 to 15 percent of the total budget.
What's left over? Not much.

I find that to be….disturbing. Actually, shouldn't we all find that a little bit disturbing?

Would we be quite so "charitable" to any other organization knowing full well that so little of what we give goes to actually helping others? I don't think so.

I can hear it now, "Ken it's different with church. That money goes to provide for the needs of our pastor and staff!" Well, I can assure you that were it the CEO of any charity out there receiving almost half the total budget as a salary, there would be an uproar of monumental proportions. Yet, for some strange reason we are more than willing to embrace such a mindset within the body of Christ. Why? Because that's what "church" is. That's how it works! You give the money, you trust the "leaders" to allocate the dough correctly, and all is well.

Here's a thought: Maybe "church" and how we "do" it…needs an overhaul!

Maybe we need to "rethink" what it means to be salt and light in the world and how that is actually "fleshed out" in the lives of those around us.

By the way, please don't say it's all about reaching "the lost" for Christ. We all know that the research proves that the majority of new church membership comes from "the sheep" shifting pens! It does not come from new conversions. That is an illusion.

In closing, I would like to say that I do know of a church and a pastor in the Dalton area that is truly managing God's money in a God honoring way. This particular church uses almost 100% of its budget to help people. This pastor takes nothing and wants nothing in the way of compensation. He works just like the rest of us. How can he do that? The "members" of that church understand what it really means to be the body of Christ. You know, more than 20% doing the work!

Hey, there's that number again….strange!

By the way, if your church is doing better, God bless ya!

At the end of the day, we can all "do better", but that will only happen when we get real about who we are and what we're doing, or not doing…me included!

Hula Hoops and Pharisees

I do not like hula hoops. They are evil things! They require movements that border on being risqué and present a high likelihood of painful hip dislocation! Still, as bad as these foul contraptions are they aren't nearly as bad as "religious" hoops. Those are the worst hoops of all! Unlike the hula hoop which has been conquered by a proud few, "religious" hoops cannot be mastered! Oh one may try, but no amount of jumping can ever suffice for there are always more hoops waiting to thwart your best efforts. They come in many varieties, but most seem to find their beginnings as twisted bits of scripture taken out of context. For example, I have ALWAYS struggled with the following scriptures from Chapter 14 of the Gospel of John:

^Verse 15: "If you love me, you will keep my commandments."

^Verse 21 "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me."

^Verse 23 "Jesus answered him, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words."

Am I the only one? Please tell me I'm not the only one who struggles with this!

These scriptures seem to indicate that our love for Jesus is based on our ability to keep His commandments. Keep them, and you obviously love Jesus. Fail to keep them, and you my friend…are a loser! Not only are you a loser, but you are a loser who does not love Jesus which of course is the worst kind!

Every single time I fail Jesus (which is ALL THE TIME); I am reminded of my lack of love for Him. It's just not fun folks! It's like a riding some sadistic rollercoaster. Up and down, over and over, and I WANT TO GET OFF!

So, I am left to deal with the following conclusions:

I fail God constantly. If I fail to keep His commands, I obviously just don't love Jesus. If I don't love Jesus, how can He really be pleased with me or any part of my life? Therefore, how can I ever call myself a Christian which means "follower of Christ" if I don't love Him? I can't!

BUT, I WANT TO!!!!

I really do want to keep His commandments. I just cannot seem to pull it off. No matter how hard I try, I fail, everyday, all the time! It is this idea of having to do something that I know I cannot that DRIVES ME NUTS! Not only does it drive me crazy, but it keeps me in a continual state of defeat.

When I first came to Jesus, it was "just as I am". Now, it seems to be more along the lines of "do this, or else"!

What happened?

Well, I think several things are at work here.

Number one would probably have a lot to do with my personality. Honestly, I think I need medication! I obsess over EVERYTHING! My wife would give a hearty AMEN to that. Nothing is ever a small deal for me and I constantly analyze and pick apart every aspect of life. So, feel free to feel sorry for your poor tormented brother!

Secondly, I think I have heard far too many sermons about how much we all suck (excuse me, but it seemed appropriate) and we never "do" enough "for Jesus". I'm honestly not bashing anyone here. Heck, I've preached more than a few guilt laden "tongue lashers" myself. I think sometimes we forget that the guy standing up on the platform is still just…"a guy". I realize he's doing the best he can, but we shouldn't dismiss the fact that many of his own views were formed by listening to other "guys". That doesn't mean we should avoid "guys", but I do think we need to be very careful especially when we assume "our guy's" words are coming straight from the throne room of Heaven.

Last, but not least would have to be a misreading of scripture and taking verses out of context. This is certainly at the core of all "religious hoop jumping". When you look at the totality of scripture, it seems quite clear that God is completely aware of our inability to do anything good! We NEVER get it right and when we do, it's not us, it's Him. We would have to admit that it is God living in us that enables good things to happen. It is never "us", because it is impossible for humans to "be good" or"do right"! Even Paul made it clear in Romans 7 that he was completely incapable of "doing right".

So, what's up with the above mentioned scriptures? Is Jesus really saying, "Jump through the hoops to prove your love for me suckas"?

I just don't think so. If we look at these verses in light of what all scripture teaches, I believe we will see a different message.

Notice verse 15 says, "If you love me, you will…." Could it be that Christ is saying that our focus should be on loving Him and not on keeping commandments? Could it be that loving Jesus is the key to keeping His commandments, not the opposite? IF you love me, THEN you will be able to keep my commandments. After all, isn't that what most of the book of Galatians is talking about?

If my focus is on getting to know and love Jesus, maybe I will not have to worry about keeping His commandments. It is no longer me trying to "pull off" the Christian life, but rather it is Jesus doing everything through me because I'm in Him and He's in me. In fact, in the very next chapter of that same book (chap. 15), Jesus lets us know that, "Apart from me, you can do NOTHING"! Absolutely NOTHING! And friends, surely that would have to include keeping His commandments!

You see, if keeping commands satisfies God and proves our love for Him, then every Pharisee ought to have had it in the bag! They knew God's commands and were quite zealous in keeping them. Still, Jesus called them a, "brood of vipers" and "white-washed tombs". And let's not forget about Saul (later to become Paul). He was certainly someone who took God's commands very serious. Yet on a certain road to Damascus, Jesus let Him know He was not "okay" with him at all!

By the way, you should know that thinking this way REALLY scares me! The little Pharisee in me is constantly prodding me to work hard to please Jesus. Grace…is for lazy, sin loving "wannabes"! For me, embracing such truths goes against every religious bone in my religious body….and it probably does yours also.

Why is this? Is it fear? The fear that God will "whack" us is very prominent in the body of Christ (and in the life of Ken Richmond). Still, I think it is more than that. I really think the root of performance based thinking is really just plain old pride! Yep, you heard me right, pride.

You see, in a very sick way, it is much easier to "try" your best at hoop jumping rather than trust in the goodness of a very great God. For years, I've tried to convince myself that I really do have some part to play in this whole Christianity deal, but truthfully it just doesn't work out that way. As soon as I get involved, it all goes wrong. Not only that, but having to rely on God's goodness causes me to have to deal with the reality of what my relationship with him looks like…and many times that tends to be a little more than I'm looking for. It's far easier to attempt to do the stuff, fail, and then ask for forgiveness than to simply give Him my heart and trust him for everything including my right standing with Him. Unfortunately, I don't "do" trust very well. Besides, relationships are messy, scary things. They take effort, time, and are full of unknowns. Not only that, but you actually have to listen and at times walk by faith and who wants to do all that? Religious hoop jumping is far more convenient and allows us to at least fool ourselves into believing we are somewhat "in control".

News flash for Ken (that's me): You are not "in control", nor will you ever be!

I suppose for me it all boils down to one of two lines of thought. Either we are expected to live this impossible thing called the Christian life or Jesus has to do it through and for us. All I know is that I'm 42 years old and I have never lived a single day without thinking, saying, or doing something ungodly….and I probably never will. If God doesn't love me today "just as I am", then I doubt He ever will. At the end of the day, I know that the hoops will never go away unless I begin to truly embrace what God has clearly and lovingly shown me in His word. That of course being, that He does indeed love me "just as I am" and He promises to never leave me or forsake me...regardless of my endless list of failures! By the way, if you are His kid, that would apply to you also!

Apart from that, I suppose we are all toast!

So, if you get to Heaven and realize I'm not there, you can assume that I had this whole business of just trusting Him wrong. Tell all the "hula hoopers" and Pharisees I said hi and try not to gloat too much!

Just kidding…..sort of!

 

Thanks To All My Kairos Prayer Partners!

My wife gave me a sweet card Friday morning that said,

"I think this Kairos is probably the most challenging ministry you've ever been involved with".

I wholeheartedly agree!

I told one of the workers that I have never encountered such intense spiritual warfare as I do when I'm involved with a Kairos weekend. It is hard! Still, it is a ministry in which you see unimaginable miracles happening all around you and that is no small thing to experience.

Obviously, it would be impossible to share everything that occurred this weekend. I can tell you that I watched in awe as God moved upon a group of very confused, angry, and hard-hearted individuals and changed them in ways I just can't describe.

One particularly intimidating (at least in my sissy opinion) fellow seated near me could not stop crying. Literally, it was like watching someone being taken apart piece by piece and slowly being "reformed". I can't explain it really, but it was honestly amazing to watch God take a lifetime of hurt, anger, and unforgiveness and wash it away in just three short days. Only God could do such a work and I am grateful to have witnessed it.

Again, I can't share everything, but I do believe you will be blessed by this story. Sunday morning, I got into a conversation with a man named Tim. Tim was obviously a Christian and very sharp. As we conversed, he began to tell me about what God had done for him through Kairos. Tim was serving time for rape and kidnapping. Although he had indeed given his heart to Christ, he still carried around a crushing sense of guilt and shame for his crimes. He told me of how he longed to tell his victim how sorry he was for his crime and that he had truly changed, but knew it was impossible. To do so would be considered a crime and he knew it could never happen. Tim said it was that inability to ask for this young woman's forgiveness which haunted him the most.

It was this burden that led Tim to seek counsel from one of the team members sitting at his table. By the way, during the weekend the men sit at what we call family tables. These families are made up of six inmates and three team members. As the men conversed, the team member eventually shared that his wife had been raped as a teenager. Tim asked this man to please tell his wife how sorry he was that this had happened to her and that he begged for forgiveness on behalf of her attacker. Later that night the man shared Tim's plea with his wife and through tears she not only accepted his apology, but also offered to forgive him on behalf of his own victim. Needless to say, God had matched up perfectly the exact people that needed to be together at that table. As a result, two people found freedom from years of pain, guilt and shame! Only God could orchestrate events such as these friends.

So with that let me say thank you so very much for your prayers and support. I realize that most of you could not physically be there, but your love and concern was felt throughout the weekend and I am so very grateful! God heard your prayers and through them changed the hearts and lives of many men. Thanks again and may God bless you!

WARNING: Throwing Rocks Will Get You…Nowhere Good!

Over the past several months, I have written many blogs.

Most have been completely about me.

What I mean by that statement is that rarely have my blogs been motivated by a genuine love for others or even a true concern for God's holy church. Instead, most of my ramblings have been about my desire to be heard by others for my own glory. God has shown me this and I know it to be true.

You see, when you are in the ministry spotlight it just feels good. People pat you on the rump (figuratively….most of the time) and tell you how awesome you are on a regular basis. Such things can lead one to have a very inflated view of oneself and unfortunately it all can be very addictive. There's nothing wrong with affirmation, but "my-oh-my" it can really go to your head!

So what do you do when the ride comes to an end? Anything you can to keep the spotlight on yourself.

And that….is what I did with my blog.

Now it's not that I don't believe the things I wrote about because I certainly do. I suppose much of what I have shared over the past several months needed to be said, but not from someone who had no heart for God's people (that'd be me).

The truth is somewhere along the way, I lost "my way". Religion has a way of doing that to us. It leads us farther and farther away from His presence and deeper into ourselves. Still as much fun as it would be to blame "religion" for all of my baggage, I just can't. Honestly, most of the blame falls squarely on my own shoulders.

Ministry was always a mixed bag of motivations for me. Did I truly want to see people change and experience God's love, healing, and grace? Absolutely, but I also would have to admit that I enjoyed the power, prestige, and sadly…the money. As a matter of fact, I am quite sure that the motivation behind more than a few of my ministry pursuits was mainly about a paycheck at least more than it should have been. Again, it's not that I didn't care because I did. Still, God makes it very clear that no one can serve two masters at the same time, and I certainly found that out the hard way. Doing it for the money will leave you with an empty tank every single time!

People often ask me if my blogs are in response to some deep hurt I have experienced. Most of the time I respond no, but I can't say that is completely true. I have been hurt many times, and the scars run deep. Christians are great at putting on a loving countenance and welcoming you with the firm handshake of "Christian" fellowship. BUT, most will not hesitate to drive a knife in your back if deemed "necessary" for the "greater good".

How do I know? Well, I've certainly felt the pain from betrayal and unjust attacks more than once. Still, lest I over play the "poor little me" card, I should note that my own little religious blade is stained with the blood of more than a few wicked "thrusts" of my own.

Indeed, you will find no clean hands here. I've been a killer of my brothers and sisters as much as anyone out there and that saddens me more than I can say.

With that you might care to ask "now what"? What does one do with such revelations?

Well, for me the only choice has been to take it all to Jesus. All the deceit, half-truths, and mixed motives must be dealt with and only Jesus is big enough and strong enough to handle it.

The result: I'm finished.

I absolutely have NO desire to even pick up a rock much less throw it at anyone in my church family (that'd be all of you). All that's left is a desire to follow Christ and pray that He would be so gracious as to allow me to love on others along this journey. By the way, I say that with fear and trembling realizing my own capacity for stupidity and foolishness! Truly I realize that apart from Him, I can do squat!

I pray (by God's grace), that I never again write anything for my own glory, "shock value", or especially out of bitterness, hurt, or pride.

If I do, you should be so kind as to call me out on it!

If it doesn't come out of a heart of love and a sincere desire to help my brothers and sisters, I will not type the first letter. Now, that does not mean I will not write something you may disagree with, but I can assure you it will not happen unless I am convinced it is bathed in love and has been covered with prayer.

Again, I am finished with my little "sack of rocks". It is quite heavy and not at all stylish for a man of God to carry!

So, what about this little blog of mine and all my past jargon? Well, I started to delete the whole thing and just be done with it, but I'm still pondering that possibility. Part of me wants to leave it up as a reminder to me of what I don't want to be and of all that God has taught me. Again, it's not that I disagree with most of what I shared, it's just that so little of it was written in love and that disturbs me.

So if you have any wisdom to share with me regarding this decision, I'd be grateful to hear your opinion.

With that, I am simply waiting. Waiting to hear from God and praying for the courage to follow His leading. As of now, I have no desire to seek out a church. This is not due to any unresolved inner conflict. Rather, it is just that I really feel that my family and I are where we are supposed to be. That's not to say that I am not open to change. I have submitted to God that I will gladly lock arms with anyone out there He chooses to partner us with. So for now I simply wait, listening and hoping that He who began this good work in me will indeed bring it to completion.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and it is my hope that you will remember my family in your times of prayer.

And if you don't, I will throw a rock at you! (joke)

Ken

WARNING: Quiet Times Can Lead to Extreme….Quiet.

I became a believer (aka Christian) at the tender age of 21. For me, this was no small thing. In fact, it was a very huge thing for sure. I remember a friend of mine relating to me that he almost wrecked his car when he saw me tooling down the road with a flashy "Know Jesus?" tag decorating the front bumper of my '92 Chevy truck. Needless to say, the change in my life was radical and nothing less than completely miraculous.

Now you should know that my salvation experience was completely God led. In other words, I did not enjoy the fine luxury of having someone say, "Ken, pray this prayer." Nope! It was just Ken and Jesus sitting on the back pew of my granny's church doing "business" while the other 12 people in the church (all 60 and older) were doing what good Pentecostal folks do down front (if you don't know what that is, I won't tell you!) Why am I sharing this? Well, I think it is important that I make it clear that I had no "mentors" as I began this journey with the Lord other than the Lord Himself.

Over the course of the next couple of years, Jesus and I got to be pretty good friends. We went everywhere together and shared our days in wonderful fellowship. Yes, I was the guy that looked like he was talking to himself driving down the road, but YOU know better….don't you. Honestly, it was amazing.

A few years after meeting Jesus, I met the gal that would one day become my wife. It was at a Grove Level (a local church) single adult's dinner/listen to Ken sing his songs "thingy". The group had asked me to come and share and I was glad to do so. That same night, my future bride who was in attendance invited me to join a mission trip she was going on to an Indian reservation in Arizona. Apparently, they needed a guitar player and she figured I'd do nicely. What I did not know at the time was that this seemingly innocent invitation from "my lovey" was actually all part of a devious scheme to rope herself a hunky guitar playing man (yes I know I will pay for that one!)

ANYWAY….

Just a few weeks later I found myself in Chinle, Arizona smack in the middle of the Navajo Indian reservation. The camp itself was made up of several tents, a brush arbor type meeting area, and a small building that was used as a kitchen for preparing meals. All of this was located in a grove of trees which provided some wonderful shade (which is very uncommon in that part of the country). The place was really wonderful!

Unfortunately, it was here that I learned something that would drastically impact my relationship with Christ in a very negative way! Let me explain.

Not long after waking up that first morning, we grabbed some breakfast and then received some very unusual instructions (at least to me). We were told that team members should now find a spot somewhere to have our "quiet time".

I thought, "quiet time"? What the heck is a "quiet time"? Now it is at this point I am sure you're thinking, "Ken, don't be dumb dude! You know what a quiet time is!" Sure I do now, but at that time….not a clue!

As a matter of fact, I recall asking someone (possibly my girl) what a "quiet time" was. Unfortunately, this person was gracious enough to explain this great mystery to me. Why did I say "unfortunately"? Well, "unfortunately" this thing we call a "quiet time" really screwed me up! What had up to this time been a great relationship with Jesus quickly turned into a hoop jumping checklist of religious jargon!

You see all of the sudden I actually began to believe that I had been "doing it" all wrong. Here I had been walking and talking, and sharing my life with Jesus throughout every part of my day when actually I was supposed to be setting aside a "special time" for Jesus! I mean after all, these were seasoned Christians who knew their stuff. I had only been a Christian a few short years. They had sat under real pastors and heard real sermons and stuff. Me? I was going to a wee little Pentecostal church with a handful of elderly people who obviously didn't know jack about "real" Christianity. No, I had not "arrived", but I was definitely on my way….YAY!!!!!

I know it is sad to think that I would be sooooooo clueless, but alas it was so. Thus began my practice of limiting my time spent with Jesus to this all so very blessed "quiet time". Actually, it really made sense! After all, He probably didn't have time to fool with me all day long anyway. There were lots of people out there and He was probably a very busy God! The great part was that this was only the beginning for me! Soon I learned many other valuable "aspects" (aka rules) of living a "real" Christian life such as the importance of never missing "church", tithing a strict ten percent (regardless of my ability to pay up), being devoted to Sunday School, and possibly most important of all, attending Tuesday night visitation!

Yes sir, over time I began to understand why we had a "quiet time". Why with all these other fine activities, who actually had any "extra time" to talk with Jesus? Not me! From there, it got even better! I began teaching classes I wasn't qualified to teach, serving on committees I didn't understand or enjoy, and doing everything the pastor guy guilted.…I mean "encouraged" me to participate in. I even enjoyed the all so special "you can drive the church van" privilege!

Oh yes, I was quickly shaping up to be one heck of a religious guy and to think it all started with learning about the treasure of having a "quiet time". Lucky me!

Oh and by the way, it didn't take me too long to figure out why they're called "quiet times". Whoever said, "silence is golden", needs a good slapping!

(End sarcasm)

My point:

Look, I know lots of you out there participate in these activities and do so with pure intentions. I too set aside special times with God. Please know that I am only relating how having a wrong focus impacted MY own life.

So, is it wrong to set aside a special time with God? Absolutely not! Again, I do so myself. We all live busy lives and I understand we all are doing the best we can, BUT consider this:

Should we really believe that the God of the universe who created us for fellowship and gave us His precious Spirit is content with being a part of just a portion of our lives? Also, do we honestly use that same approach with the other relationships we hold dear in our lives such as those with our spouses, our children, and our friends?

I think not. I can't imagine my wife would be okay with such an "arrangement". My wife wants to share life with me (at least I think she does) not just a portion of it, all of it. And I have to believe God, is no different!

Jesus came that we might have life, His life. Apart from that life, we just exist. To engage in fellowship with Him partially is to only partially live. I don't know about you, but living life as some kind of spiritual zombie (you know sort of alive, but not really) is not my idea of living!

The bottom line is this: No religious activity in the world can do anything to change you or give you life.

Religious activity only has value if it is an expression of the overflow of God's love and presence in our lives. If it is being utilized to give us a sense of significance or even worse as a cheap substitute for a true relationship with God, it is worthless!

It's really the whole "cart before the horse" scenario". For me, setting my focus on the cart (aka the religious stuff) caused me to lose sight of who was really making this whole deal work and move forward in my life. And as you know, carts were never designed to pull horses. They are fully dependent upon the horse before their true value can be realized. Confused yet? Yes, I suppose I'm being wee bit too metaphorical at this point. Still, I hope you get what I'm really saying here. Doing stuff for and in the name of God can never replace having a relationship with Him. We start with Him, let Him lead, and trust that the "stuff" we "do" is the result of our love for Him and more importantly His for us.

So, go ahead and have your "quiet time" with God, just don't ever lose sight of the fact that He is always with you and wants very much

To be a part

Of every part

Of your life!

The First Shall Be First and the Last Shall Be…Who Cares!

As many of you know, I used to be one half of the ministry team known as “Heart’s Desire”. For over nine years Scotty man and I traveled around the southeast singing our little hearts out and performing drama for lots and lots of folks. Throughout those years, I watched God work in amazing ways (despite my involvement) and met some really incredible (and a few not so incredible) people. Most of what we participated in was fairly okay in my book. After all, we did do our best to not bring shame on the name of Jesus or ourselves, and that’s a good thing! So, after it was all said and done, I can honestly say I was happy with what was accomplished. Indeed, I don’t think there were many things we participated in that would cause me to shutter with embarrassment, but there were a few!

Here’s a fine example:

One particularly horrific aspect of big conference youth ministry (for us it was “Super Wow”) occurs at the beginning of the first night. It is the opening “let’s get fired up for Jesus” time! Yes, even now the cold chills of shame and disgust run down my back just thinking about it.
The foul ritual went something like this:

Out walks some member of the conference team (usually some “cool” college kid that was obnoxiously loud, with few inhibitions) arms waving, and jumping up and down. He would then proceed to issue a challenge:

“Alright guys, we’re gonna see who loves Jesus in this place tonight! On the count of three, I’m gonna ask this side of coliseum to SCREAM as loud as you can, WE LOVE JESUS YES WE DO, WE LOVE JESUS HOW BOUT YOU!!! Then, I want the other side to see if you can SCREAM that same phrase LOUDER in return!!! We’ll find out WHO REALLY LOVES JEEEEESSSSUUUUSSSS!!!!”

And then, it would start. Back and forth, louder and louder until the heavens themselves reverberated with the passionate cries of thousands of youth, shouting out their great love and devotion for the Lord.

And I...wanted to puke.

Why? Well you see, it wasn’t so much what the kids were doing that made me “sickly”, but rather it was more about the message we were instilling in the hearts and minds of these kids.

That message of course being, Christianity is in many ways one big competition complete with winners and losers. Who are the winners? Those who can “out do” the “other guys”! Out praise, out sing, out evangelize, out love, etc. The good news is (sarcasm) the spirit of competition isn’t just limited to youth events. Nope, actually it can pretty much be found in every nook and cranny of the modern American church.

The result: We have generations of children (and older folks) being inundated (unintentionally I think) with this, “bigger is better” mentality about serving God. In the end it’s not hard to see why this mindset so permeates the Christian church today. It’s been going on for a long time with no end in sight. Bigger buildings, more programs, better preacher, all of which lead us to believe that we are somehow achieving success. And, if we can show up the guys down the street, even better!

It is at this point I would expect to hear replies (especially from the professionals) such as, “Our church isn’t like that!”, or “Our church is just about Jesus! We don’t play such games!” (One word: bologna!), or even “You can’t say that about us, we’re small!”

My reply: Sure I can!

Ask any “pastor guy” out there what question is asked most often (or close to it) at local and regional “pastor guy” meetings. If they’re honest, they’ll have to admit that it is the question, “So, how many you running?” You know, like cattle. “How many heads you got?” In other words, “Hey, do you have more people warming the pews at your place than I do?”

And just why do they ask this? The answer is simple!

They want to know how they’re doing in comparison with the “other guys”. Are they “winning” or “losing”?

You see, if you’re lucky enough to be “running” the most, YOU are “the man” and your “church is successful! If not, you know it’s time to go back and crack that evangelization whip on the rears of “your” flock. Could be, you need a fancy new building, or you might want to include a flashier "contemporary" service to reach the masses...for Jesus.

"Yeah, then we would look just like the "other guys" and we might take the pole position!"

Now would any of these guys admit to such shenanigans? Probably not, to do so would be completely “unspiritual” and we can’t have that! Don’t like the sound of this? Too bad, because I know it’s true. How you ask? I will reply with eight little words:

Over twenty years of being in “professional” ministry.

When you’ve “ministered” in as many churches and performed at as many “Christian” events as I have, it doesn’t take too many conversations with the good folks you meet to realize the truth. That being, that there is a dark thread of competition that runs deep in almost every “ministry” out there.

I know it’s hard to hear such things, but it’s true. Unfortunately, that is the very nature of competition. It is a fight for first place and bragging rights. The winners get to boast of their victory, or at least want to. While the losers, are left licking their wounds vowing to “get ‘em” next time around!

That may be fine if you’re taking part in some sporting event, but folks it’s not very Christian.

The fact is you just don’t hear that kind of talk in the bible. What you will find are many admonitions for unity. Yep, like it or not we Christian folk all play for the same coach and are on the same team. It’s no wonder the church is so ridiculed by the world. Why would anyone want to be a part of such dysfunction? We can’t even get along with and support each other?

“Not true Ken! We love our fellow Baptists!” “We love and support our denomination and pray for each other without ceasing!”

Really?

Well what about those wild and crazy Pentecostals down the street? Wanna have a joint service with them once a month? Heck no you don’t! Why? Because, they have “questionable” doctrine (at least that is the perception of many Baptists). By the way, the opposite of that would also be true (so don’t get the big head just yet my “charismatic” friends!)

I suppose I should say it would be the same for any other denomination out there. Methodists, “Whiskeypalians”…I mean Episcopalians, etc. We all think the “other guys” have...issues.

You may say you love other churches, but don’t pretend you want to be the church that’s lost all its members to the sister “we’ve got bigger and better stuff” church down the way. In my town that’d be Rock Bridge. I’ve heard more negative talk from more folks about that church than I’d care to admit and mostly from “pastor guys” and “church leaders”. Why? Well I’d say it is because they are perceived as being more “successful” than most other “churches” in our little town, and competitively speaking, that stinks! Now that doesn’t mean I am for them anymore than any other joint out there, but it does prove my point. If you deny such talk goes on in your own congregation, you are either living under a rock, or just enjoy lying to yourself and others!

1 Corinthians 1:10 says it quite plainly.

I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.

Notice the word doesn’t say, “a little healthy competition never hurts”. No it makes it very clear that the Lord desires that there “be no divisions” in His body. And unfortunately, competition has a way of dividing folks.

“But Ken isn’t that just a little bit unrealistic?” Sure it is! The whole bible is “unrealistic” if you expect “people” to pull this stuff off. It takes the Holy Spirit to do any of this. I suppose that is why the word states, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me the strength.” And also, “Apart from me, you can do nothing.”

Heck if you think that’s unrealistic, try these on for size!

Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.”

Matthew 20:26 “…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.”

I don’t know about you, but that stuff sounds way unrealistic and quite difficult to me! So how do we accomplish such feats?

We don’t, He does!

Nope, you just don’t hear about “healthy competition” in the book. Again, what you do see is God calling us to do what we can to help our brothers and sisters move ahead even if we are left behind. By the way, that would include those of other denominations and doctrinal beliefs. Loving on people and supporting them does not mean you have to agree with everything they believe. It does mean you rejoice when they are successful and do what you can to support them. Why? Because, we Christian folk are ALL are parts of the same body!

Bottom line: Competition is not healthy for “the body” folks. It is detrimental to the work of God in the world and does squat to show His love at work in our lives.

So, if you find yourself in a big, big room being challenged to shout something louder than your buddy across the way, may I suggest you quietly excuse yourself...

And head to the potty!

Your time will be far better spent!

Church Membership? Your Questions...Now Have Answers!