Georgia on My Mind
Posted on March 23rd, 2006 by catalyst into the Uncategorized categoryLarry Asplund is leaving City Bible/PBC and moving to Georgia to teach at a small University in Columbus. He has set up a blog detailing this journey. The blog is called Georgia Pine, and I have added it to the blogroll on the right. Mr. Asplund is a great writer, and it will be interesting to see how this change affects him.
Larry also leaves us with a final question:
One of the things I find interesting is that a lot of the things our young friends on the City Business Church blog find objectionable (or at least laughable) are due to the growing influence of the 30-somthing leaders in the church. At one point Frank decided to give increased influence to the younger pastors. The high-tech features (including simulcast), branding, etc., are not features of Baby Boomer style. CBC (and PBC) has become a GenX context.
Therefore, I'm very interested in the seemingly radical differences between our 20-something leaders (who are not GenXers) and the 30-somethings.
Any thoughts?
RSS feed for posts
March 23rd, 2006 at 6:15 am
Larry makes a good point. I’ve visited quite a few churches run by young pastors since leaving CBC, and they all seem like clones of eachother. The music, the preaching, the format, it’s all the same.
I would just say that my chief objection with CBC isn’t the TV’s or the branding, it is their overemphasis on personal wealth. That is what I find objectionable. And that is coming straight from the top, not from the younger generation.
March 23rd, 2006 at 6:36 am
Well, I won’t go into the detail I sent to Larry directly.. but here’s my thoughts:
1) Your leaders tend to seek after the fulfillment of their heart’s desire, which (as a result of the last generation’s messup) include things like power, self-fulfillment, desire to be “needed” or “wanted”, etc.
Religion is used as a self-deceptive technique to pursue those desires.
Having fancy tv’s, closed-captioned streaming, mega-church attendance, and kick-ass productions are often nothing more then a vain attempt for one pastor to say, “Look, MY church is better!”.. with the cover-up of saying, “It’s for Christ, because he needs my help!”.
In short, it is lack of absolute and whole-life trust in the HOLY SPIRIT to do his job of conviction. Many young leaders do not realize the power of the holy spirit, and their own small role.
March 23rd, 2006 at 7:35 am
Larry, I wish you well down there, especially if you are a native of the PNW … you’re potentially in for a big culture shock. I was born/raised in the Seattle area, and at 42, moved to the midwest. I thought the midwest was die-hard traditional religious, but having just returned from a trip to Columbus, GA, am now thankful for the midwest. I knew we were in strange territory on the drive down there - passing a truck painted up with the name “Jesus Landscape Services” … and another pimped out PT Cruiser air-brushed with the pictures of a couple local ministers called the “Dynamic Duo of Ministry” who did rap, preaching and teaching …
At the churches we visited - they were just beginning to lament the conversion from traditional liturgical / bulletinized services of singing the sacred hymns, to “that new contemporary music” …
And - you can feel the racial tension there.
March 23rd, 2006 at 10:41 am
I’m fairly sure that the ’simulcast’ idea came from Jack Hayford, not the
30 somethings.
Over 90% of communication is non verbal. When someone stands above you on a platform, or makes themself larger than life on a TV screen, what are they trying to tell you?
March 23rd, 2006 at 12:44 pm
After reading Larry’s blog I want to congratulations to Larry on being in the first phase of leaving City Bible. The City Bible is great, but it just is no longer right for me phase. Here’s hoping he can move through all the steps quickly and not get stuck in the I hate City Bible, and hope they all burn phase that my mother has been stuck in for the last year.
March 23rd, 2006 at 12:57 pm
And I would just like to add that the above comment was written by Jesse not Justin. And if Cheryl’s sister Debbie could direct her often long, sometimes rambling English/Hebrew email about supporting family to Jesse instead of Justin, that would be really appreciated. Thanks.
March 23rd, 2006 at 3:59 pm
ah, yes…the “hope they all burn” phase was really fun. I think that might have been my husband’s favorite of all my phases. maybe even more than the “sick and ridiculously pregnant” phase. tell your mother to hold on…the “city bible wha? who? where?” phase is just around the corner. just make sure she knows she can still read this blog and it doesn’t mean she’s bitter.
March 24th, 2006 at 6:33 am
How ever did Jesus pull off the sermon on the mount without surround sound and a diamondtron?
March 24th, 2006 at 11:24 am
Ever heard of the game “Pass It On”?
March 24th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
Ah.. you know, that actually would explain a lot of things!
March 24th, 2006 at 5:30 pm
I think they call it presbytery now.
March 24th, 2006 at 7:30 pm
Sorry to hear your going Larry. I hope you have a smooth transition.
It’s probally a good thing your leaving. Its seems to me that every time I talk to someone, there’s another good leader leaving. What a shame!
March 25th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
What I find “objectionable” with City Bible, or any other church for that matter is the service itself. It doesn’t matter if its the 30 somethings or the eldery making decesions of influence. What they are basicly deciding is “what do we want our club meeting to look like?” and “Who do we want to attract to come and join our club?”
City Bible has basicly decided to go with the same crowd that starbucks markets to. It is a pretty good looking club. People feel good belonging to a club like that. I feel good going to starbucks. (A personal note to Larry; There are no starbucks in the South!! A few here and there, but I drive 30 min. for an americano in Florida)
But, we can’t call that Church. The Church is the bride of Christ. The church is people. When the church meets, what that meeting looks like depends on the people that are there, and what God is showing them.
I know we have all heard it. Yeah yeah yeah. “This building isn’t the church, The church is it’s People!” But what that really looks like is not a few deciding how they want things to go on Sunday. It is seeing Christ in eachother’s faces.
The other day, someone asked me how I knew a mutual friend of ours. I said ” Oh, we go to the same church.” Which is to say “we belong to the same club.” But I wanted to say “Oh, he is my church.” Because that is what we are to eachother. We are the Body. And since we have that week to week, I can never go back to sitting in rows listening to the president of the club, oops I mean Pastor talk for an hour. Or to knowing that this meeting was marketed to attract me.
I guess what I’m getting at is, so much of what City Bible does is SO unnessisary. In fact, it is distracting from Christ. And we all know what Paul says about that………..
March 25th, 2006 at 2:55 pm
“People feel good belonging to a club like that. I feel good going to starbucks.”
I used to “feel good” at Starbucks until I realized that there is better coffee out there.
This Blog is more of a church than CBC. And I bet Christ himself agrees.
March 25th, 2006 at 8:26 pm
As a matter of fact, yes, I agree, though not as much of a church as Starbucks.
As a sidenote, it’s OK with me if you count the barista’s tip toward your tithe.
JC
April 1st, 2006 at 12:23 am
You guys are a riot! BTW, I grew up in the midwest (in a rural community) and live 23 years in the south. I’m going home. And there are some excellent emerging churches in Columbus. I’m looking forward to trying a couple out. And there are at least 5 Starbucks (I’ve looked them all up). Mandie - give my love to your Mom and Dad.