“I Refuse to Lead a Dying Church”

Last night and today I am sitting in a conference with Paul Nixon, the author of “I Refuse to Lead a Dying Church.” His book is a powerful look at choices that Churches make either actively or in the subconsciousness of their organized programs and ministries.  These choices make the difference between whether or not that Church is healthy and grow in the community, or picking out its plot in the local cemetery. Last night Paul stated that the way these questions are answered is constantly changing with the culture of our world and community.  He said, “A Facebook page for your Church is of vital importance to your Church’s ministry, possibly even more so than a a web page, because it connects to the web of social media streams that clearly fit more in the area of Frontier instead of Fortress model.”  (from one of the questions in his book)  This is the kind of radical thinking that will be a necessity if the church wants to continue to have a voice of relevance in our world today.  Anyway, as I used his book for a study with a Joel Council in my previous ministry I thought you might benefit from an outline / Cliff note version of his book.  (If you like what you see here I encourage you to purchase the book for your leadership team or a friend in ministry)

I refuse to lead a dying Church, Paul Nixon

Summary, Pastor Craig Ferguson

1. Introduction
   1. An understanding of Apostle leadership – (Churches with these kind of leaders are growing)
      1. A person who has had a personal experience of meeting Christ
      2. A person with a sense that they are sent to share something of eternal value
      3. Are persons who are anything but settled
      4. They can be spotted by their passion and audacity
   2. Growing Churches share these things in common

Techno Church VS. NoTech Church

I met Yesterday with a tech savy education focused Dr. Scott Mcleod.  (Thank You again) I learned more than I could process, but I learned first and foremost that technology and using the resources of the web is an absolute must for our churches.  And a simple church web page is not enough, we need to expand our internet outreach by creating multiple connecting points in the world of social media.  I located this webinar which has a great overview of the use of internet as a way to be on mission, disciple, and create community.  Give it a look and share your thoughts.

http://player.vimeo.com/video/4415857

Technology is effecting every area of life.  We live in a world where information on every subject is available at the touch of a button.  I carry 40 versions of the Bible with me, commentaries, and concordances everywhere I go, and that is only one app out of 50 thousand on the Droid.  We are dependent upon this internet world and some people even attend a weekly worship service sitting in front of their computer screen.  (Offering donation and all)  While I do believe that there needs to be a balance of real life relationships where we are surrounded by real people who care about us, it emphasizes the reality that the social world has a huge audience that would go untouched with the gospel unless we actively pursue ways to share the gospel in their social media setting.

Some churches, pastors, and laity are avoiding this technology transition.