Worship or Fellowship? Which takes priority?

Cover via Amazon

I can’t stop thinking about this quote from Donald Miller the author of the book Blue Like Jazz:

"Sunday morning church service is not an enormous priority; spending time with other believers is," he says. "Some people associate Sunday morning with God. One of the things I associate with God is a sunrise. How many sunrises have you missed over the years, and God created that?” [Born-again rebel Don Miller reveals 'best sermon I ever heard' by John Blake, CNN]

Statements like this one show that for many people church is merely something you do or something you attend. The return on the investment is expected to be low. This leads people to assume that there must some more fruitful spiritual experience out there.

I understand that church “services” can easily become impersonal if pastors and leaders are not thinking much about the purpose of that hour. I agree that spending time with believers, which is an essential of the Christian life, takes on a different form in church versus outside of the church. I simply don’t see how Miller can think that congregational worship and spending time with believers are mutually exclusive. They are both, to use his words, “enormous priorit[ies]” and can happen together in a healthy church environment.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Born-again rebel Don Miller reveals 'best sermon I ever heard' (cnn.com)
• Donald Miller and the Gospel of 'Gentiles' (beliefnet.com)

The Hole in Our Gospel – audiobook review

How does the president of a company that produces fine tableware find himself at the helm of a Christian organization dedicated to alleviating poverty and its symptoms? This is the story of Richard Stearns, the president of World Vision, Inc. and the author of The Hole in Our Gospel (audiobook read by Tommy Creswell).

Stearns’ book is a detailed account of his personal journey leading to his position at the head of World Vision. While the book does trace his career path, the narrative has more to do with the change of heart that occurred over time to bring him to such a role.

The author’s compassionate heart is present in every chapter. Listening to Stearns describe the current state of poverty in our world, it is hard not to be drawn in emotionally. Perhaps this was part of his purpose in writing this book, to tug at the heart of those who might otherwise be oblivious to the living conditions that many outside of our context know as “normal”.

Because I listen to my audiobooks mostly while driving, I was able to listen to a large portion of this book during a period when I happened to be in the car a lot. One doesn’t need to listen in a single sitting (rarely do any of us have that luxury of time to spend anyway). I found that the chapter division would be good stopping points to take the book in pieces.

While I did find much of the book very interesting and engaging, I have to admit that I am somewhat distracted by the book’s title. With the subject matter of the book it could be easy to leave someone with the impression that compassion for the poor is an essential element of the gospel. A person could wonder about his status in Christ if he doesn’t share the same level of concern for the things Stearns and others do. The “hole” isn’t in our gospel, it is in our understanding of how the gospel moves us to love our neighbors as ourselves.

If in the all this book does is to poke a hole (no pun intended) in our Christian bubble so that we become more aware of the economic state of the rest of the world, then I think Stearns has done his job. The author’s argument and presentation isn’t flawless but it is still very engaging and is worth a read (or listen in my case).

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from christianaudio.com as part of their christianaudio Reviewers Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Christian Book Awards Announced (readersread.com)
• "Hole In Our Gospel" receives big honor (one.org)
• World Vision: Nonprofit's New Approach Helps Small Business Worldwide (huffingtonpost.com)