Who Stole My Church?
Our pastor recently asked us to read through Gordon MacDonald’s newest book, “Who Stole My Church”. The subtitle, “What to Do When the Church You Love Tries to Enter the 21st Century”, clearly indicates that the book is aimed at those who struggle with seeing the church they’ve always known go through the sometimes difficult process of changing with the times.
I think what’s most intriguing about this book is that it’s written as a novel. Mr. McDonald creates this imaginary church in New England, and tells the story of a core group of people in this church who are resisting the change the pastor is introducing.
I don’t want to give too much away, but this group of people in the church are described as “long-time Christians, mature adults, and dedicated church members”, and throughout the course of the book, we watch them struggle to accept and embrace the direction their church is heading in.
As I read it, I thought a lot about Southside and some of the changes that we’ve made over the years. I thought a lot about how easy it would have been to just maintain the status quo. But at the same time, I also thought about what we would have missed out on if we hadn’t been willing to take a few risks along the way, and what we might miss out on if we refuse to take risks in the future.
Although I’m tempted to tell you how the story ends, I’m not going to because I think it would be beneficial for some of you to read it.
Also, because it’s written as a novel, it wasn’t easy for me to come up with the usual handful of quotes that I try and pass along, so this quote from the preface will have to do…
“Any church that has not turned its face toward the younger generation and the new challenges of reaching unchurched people in this world will simply cease to exist. We’re not talking decades- we’re talking just a few years.”
I couldn’t agree more.
And I’m so glad that we are a church that is committed to doing just that.