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Going Beyond Relevance

As the church has transitioned over the last few years to recognize its need for better communication, one of the largest buzzwords of choice has been the word “relevance.”  It is a great and profound word. It implies a need to meet people where they are. It challenges us to know the latest of what the world consumes or frames their perspective. It is often the key to beginning a connection that can lead people to Christ. We love relevance.

Where my heart breaks is for the churches that have given themselves to the pursuit of relevance and lost their way from creating true change and leading more people deeper. There has been a sense that church success and relevance go hand in hand. While this correlation has often played true, simply put: being relevant is not enough. I have witnessed countless churches pursue relevance as an end all, only to find themselves "cool" but confounded in reaching people.

The truth is, there are many deeper issues behind church growth and the way we do things that factor into the church's success in reaching people. To be effective, a church has to be so much more than just relevant.

My desire is to bring these deeper dynamics of church to light. If we do not understand the real root of the issue, we’ve missed it all together. It is my passion to reveal the roots of church life that work hand in hand with relevance to produce long-term sustainable growth.

Perhaps to really understand my heart, read my first blog post... Why I Hate Blogging.