Why Willow Creek and Saddleback are Losing Influence While North Point and LifeChurch.tv are Gaining Influence
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Cultural shifts are ever with us... but to ascribe a single cause is to be in error. Perhaps the impact of the economic crisis is one of the causes of staff and program reductions. Nevertheless, an interesting trend, which raises questions about discipleship and community.
1 comment:
I agree with these points and I want to use a simple example to explain why; the common preacher. In Jesus' time, and for many millenia afterward, the preacher could only speak to a relatively small crowd. Eventually, with the advent of electronic amplifiers, crowds in the twenty to thirty thousands could be spoken to at once. Note; would Dr. Billy Graham be as well known or have made as great an impact were it not for amplifiers? And I've little doubt but that Andy Stanley learned the importance of utilizing current technology from his own Dad right here in Atlanta, taking his organization to a higher level of influence than his father has. How many outside of Georgia even know his father's name or the name of his church? And yet they both preach the same message and both are successful in their own right. Are Saddleback and Willow Creek being left behind? Not at all. Will they continue to enjoy the influence in the world as they have had? Probably not, if they don't utilize the current and future technologies. Is that a bad thing? No. Rick Warren and Bill Hybles established a foundation upon which others are building.
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