Rekindling Vision in an Established Church
Dennis Sawyer
Battling for change is less productive than letting the need become obvious.
—Dennis Sawyer The warmth of the autumn sun through the bedroom window aided my mellow reflection. Sunday afternoon naps were a luxury. I had resigned a productive but stressful pastorate ten months before to slow down, do some thinking, and await further direction. The phone rang. I reached across the bed to answer it. Eric Pearson introduced himself as an elder of Philadelphia Church in Chicago, two thousand miles away, and then inquired whether I would be interested in candidating for the position of pastor. I took a deep breath. "Before I answer that, Eric," I replied, "I need to ask two questions. First, are you planning to stay in the inner city, or move to the suburbs? Second, if you opt for staying, are you willing to make the necessary changes to reach the community for Christ?" "I can answer both of those now if you like." "Actually, I'd prefer an official response from the church leadership," I said. My insistence grew out of what I knew about this particular congregation. It had begun under the name Filadelfia Forsamlingen in November 1925, in a storefront building three blocks south of Wrigley Field. A haven for Swedish immigrants, it had named itself after the mother church in Stockholm. For the first fifteen years, almost all of its services were in Swedish. The church had grown steadily, made the transition into English, moved into a large building easily seating seven hundred—and filled every seat. But in more recent times, things had changed. An average Sunday morning was now less than 200. The neighborhood was still called "Andersonville," but as you walked along Clark Street, the few remaining Swedish bakeries were widely separated ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
