Acts20.com

Let me offer a few caveats from the outset. Ultimately, we must be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Also, I want to make it known that I can sit in church with the best of them. I remember services as a kid that would last 2-3 hours. Having said all of that, may I offer this as well? .....We don't have Wednesday night or Sunday night services. We have two Sunday morning worship services and various Life Groups that meet during the week for bible study and fellowship. A friend of mine asked me if I would be willing to attend his evening services to evaluate them. He is concerned in the decline in attendance at these services. I agreed to attend on the condition that he conducts and moderates the services just as they always do. To give an honest evaluation, I needed to see how things happen on a regular basis. He agreed, and I made my observations. They are as follows :I attended 3 different services and I found a common theme. The music lasted about 45 minutes each time with lots of stand to your feet and you may be seated . Lots up and down and standing. And each time, his teaching / preaching lasted about 45 minutes. I noticed that about an hour into the service, the people became restless and less and less attentive. The music was great, and the content of the sermons was great, but I sensed the weariness of the congregation. There are a myriad of reasons why people don't attend services regularly, but I honestly felt like if he could simply condense some of what was going on, there would be a positive response.

This is a much needed Ministry tool. A man is wise to ask for an evaluation from an outside source. YOu have covered some very significant points. My wife and I were talking today and she was saying when my dad came to pastor their church, long before she was 'my girl' She and the other young folk were thrilled. The services no longer dragged on until 10 every night night service.I gave her my reason for what I thought that was today as we walked. My dad had been a farmer and a Cotton Mill worker, he was sensitive to his people. I could say much more but I think you have a REAL point, sensitive to your congregation. Good stuff (from the pew, we appreciate it) Some facts but mostly just my [email protected]/

an axiom I generally lived by:

The pastor may be excited to speak a long time because that is the time he gets to use his spiritual gift and to express all his pent up thoughts. If he's salaried, he may think he gets paid to preach and wants people to get their money's worth (buffet style instead of small portions at fancy restaurant style.)Musicians may be excited to use their spiritual gifts. Preachers and teachers see how important it is to minister the word. Musicians see how important it is for people to praise the Lord as they sing. So they all want to spend a lot of time doing their important ministry.Then you've got the traditional Pentecostal pressure to attend church. How many times have you heard the phrase 'there every time the church doors are opened.' Some people think of that as the mark of spirituality. And traditionally, that's Sunday morning, Sunday night and once on Wednesday night. I went to a church that had a foreign language service at night, but a meal after Sunday service (which was great), so we'd spend until 1:30 or 2. But they did have a mid-week, oh yeah, and training for teaching Sunday school, and a session for people in ministry, oh, and a prayer meeting. They were going to have another night meeting for someone else I needed to be a part of.I realized that I hardly ever had devotions with the kids at night. The church was small and while Sunday school before church could be okay, I don't think the smaller kids were getting that much when they went out of service to go to the nursery. I wondered if all this church activity was really that good for the kids. There were teens in the church who'd fallen into sin, too, who were raised with all those services. I'm all for community, spending time in the word and fellowship, but there also needs to be some time for family life. We also need to realize that sometimes pastors don't have much chance to evangelize those who really need to be evangelized. And neither do those who go to 5 services a week and work a job. You can talk to your family and co-workers. With a lighter church schedule, believers can get involved in the local school board, local charities, organizations, hold small local political roles, etc. where they just might have a better chance to be salt and life. Kids sports may be overemphasized, but it just makes sense for some of the more talented kids to spend their time in those arenas if they can gain more influential places in society where they can be salt and light.Extolling the virtues of 'being there every time the church doors are open' can actually discourage people from being salt and light in other areas of their life. Specifically reminding people that they don't have to attend mid-week if they can be a part of the school board or PTA may be helpful. Even encouraging people to go be a part of these influential roles while those who attend pray for them may be a better route. We are concerned with some of the garbage that's being promoted in schools and in government. There are things we can do about it

Served me well in 28 years I served as pastor.

Hey, I think most movies are too long, too. If I had been editing, I could have cut out at least a third of

Hopefully my point isn't being lost ..

I'm not making an appeal for shorter services necessarily. I'm saying sometimes we (pastors ) are not sensitive or perceptive as to how the congregation feels. Link makes a great point. We often study and prepare for hours each week so we feel excited / obliged to share everything in that one message. I can assure you if you come to the pulpit with 20 pages of notes the congregation won't absorb a third of it.

Boxed In?

While it has been awhile since I pastored a church with two Sunday morning services, I never felt boxed in, or like I had to hurry the earlier service for the sake of the second. Everything went smoothly, and just so OTCP can rest assured, the Holy Spirit always had freedom to work as He/She pleased.Yet, recent trends in some cases include two or more Sunday morning services. Have they boxed themselves in in order to meet logistic demands?I know of one church once operating out of a theater and had to be through by a certain time - but they never reported any issues, but that circumstance would seem limiting, possibly God-HonoringChrist-CenteredBible-BasedSpirit-Led