This DOES Apply to You

It happened.
Some people visited Connections this past Sunday because they were interested in the Parenthood series.  That's AWESOME!
That's the reason why we offer "series" at Connections- to grab people's attention and maybe get them interested in Jesus.

But some folks, I've heard through the grapevine, are "skipping out" because they aren't parents.
Of course, there's a little personal sting in hearing that.  But instead of wasting time ranting, let me do some teaching on the purpose of Sunday worship.

First, and this is MOST important for the person who says they are a Christ-follower:
Worship is about GOD, not about you!
It's not about what you get out of the service, but what you can put into worship.
And what you should put in is your whole heart, mind, soul and strength.
Worship is about gathering first thing, on the first day of the week, to reaffirm our first love- God.
It's about PRAISING God.
Learning the WORD of  God.
OFFERING our lives back to God
It's about FELLOWSHIP with the PEOPLE of God.

Second, saying that a given series/topic doesn't apply to YOU puts you above God.  Perhaps this needs to be made clear- no matter what TOPIC is being addressed at Connections, it will always start with the BIBLE.  So while the focus may be parenting, the text is still the bible, and the purpose is still learning what God has to teach us. ALL believers, no matter what stage or life circumstances, should know what the bible teaches on ALL areas of life.

Third, I am very concerned about creating a culture of church "consumers."
There is a great irony surrounding our church that everyone should reflect upon:

We meet in a theatre, which is all about profit, and entertainment, and not talking, and not interacting, and getting what you want, and leaving, and then going back to your real life.

But we call ourselves "Connections."  And we talk about invading this public space with "church," which is all about "connecting with God, people and the world."  We have done this because we hope to reach out who are not in a church or who don't even believe in God.  Folks who don't know anything about who God is or why we worship.

So I'm left in this predicament:
If folks in our church DO NOT fully understand who we worship, why we worship, or what worship services are all about, then we must actually be accomplishing our mission!  Sweet!

But if people who have been with us for a while haven't started to learn about this things, then we are not maturing in our mission.  Not sweet.

So what should a person who is not a parent do when your church is talking about parenting?
Or if your church is talking about any topic which does not DIRECTLY apply to your life stage?
You say, that's fine because I still want to worship God.
I still want to know what the bible teaches on all topics.
I still want to be in the fellowship of believers.
I still want to bless someone I know for whom something like a parenting series would be the perfect way to introduce them to Connections.

If you missed the past message on Parenting, or know someone who could be blessed by learning what the bible teaches on the purpose of parenthood, just send them to  http://www.connectionschurch.ca/sermons/ (You can even subscribe through itunes.  Instructions are found at the link above.)