Are you ready for a fight?

I had the pleasure last week to meet 60 courageous pastors and leaders from across the U.S.  They were in town for my organization’s bi-annual Leadership Academy.  (By the way, registration for September begins soon . . . You’re welcome to join us!)

I want to share what one of these pastors said during a particularly honest moment.  I’m using neither her real name, nor her exact words, but this is what she said.  It inspired me . . . maybe it will inspire you, too.

I’m tired of playing “nice church.”  That’s my term for what happens in most churches on Sunday.  People come to church and say “Hi, how are you?”  “I’m fine.  How are you?”  And that’s the extent of our relationship.  It’s shallow.  And what’s worse is that people seem OK with that.

I’m sick of it!  As a pastor, I’m craving something deeper.  Something more meaningful.

I’m ready for church to mean something to people again.  For it to make a difference.  I want to be part of a church that goes against the norm.  That challenges the culture and doesn’t just play along with it.  If people want “nice church,” there are plenty of those in my town they can choose from.  But I want to be part of something different.  Something bold and courageous.  Something that confronts our image of what church is “supposed to be.”  Something that causes a little trouble and gets under people’s skin.

I’m itching for a fight.

How about you?  Is your church content to play nice?

What do you gain from it?  What is it costing you?

Are you ready for a fight?