I just revised a course at Eastern Nazarene College, Adult Studies Division titled “Professional Business Communication.” You might think this is sort of outside the pastoral role, but I have taught this course many times and enjoy it, probably because it has to do with writing. I am scheduled to teach the first class after the revision next week for a new class. I started a new class tonight supposedly using the older module, and that is what I was prepared for. Lo and behold, the students had received the new module and I came prepared to teach the old one. Some chaos. Felt sorry for the students. They have enough on their plate already. We made it through the first class with some patience and understanding.
Worked on our new web site design. It’s looking pretty good. I like simple and clean. So many church websites look like amusement parks. Somehow it seems to be that the more bells and whistles on a church’s website the less I am inclined toward them. I am always torn about these things. I want to communicate well, but I don’t want to treat people like consumers who are only driven by need fulfillment. The emerging church movement is a reaction to stuff like this
I had a lady call the church the other day seeking information about our church. She had her list: what times are your services, what do you have for children ages 5 and 8, what size is your church, etc.? She had no interest in engaging in any kind of conversation. Not irrelevant questions but nothing about God’s work among us, the character of our fellowship, our journey, our experience of Christ, and absolutely no interest in me. This is all too typical. This is the “church-as-Walmart” syndrome. The bottom line is service and not community.
