No church is perfect; each will have its own set of problems and challenges. But there are some challenges which most churches will face. 1) Breaking free from routine. Ever noticed how much people don’t like change? Whether it’s a new worship song or a new layout of the chairs, change can cause complaints and disunity to spread through the church. But when we get stuck in routines, we can find our worship becoming mundane. We lose our passion and can end up lukewarm rather than on fire for God (have a read of Revelation 3:14-22). Change can be a risk, but if it helps us draw closer to God then it’s worth it. 2) Finding balance. A big challenge for churches is finding the balance between looking ‘in’ and looking ‘out’. Jesus said: ‘Go and make disciples of all nations…teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.’ This shows us that we need to be focused on evangelism, which means going out into the world and telling people about Jesus. But we also need to be focused on teaching people and helping them to mature in their relationship with God. If we’re too focused on evangelising, we’re not helping those in our churches to grow. If we’re too focused on those already in our churches, we’re not sharing Jesus with others. 3) Relevance. Churches can become too focused on making church ‘attractive’ to people by trying to keep up with latest trends. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be relevant; it’s important to know and understand the way society works. But God still needs to be at the centre. If we’re more focused on being relevant than glorifying God then our priorities need to change. 

What Now?

Take some time to reflect on how your church deals with the three challenges in the reading. Is there anything you can do to make a positive change?