Changing the Story

While the church is committed to changing the world, let me suggest that we need to start by changing our story. A future with hope is one we can build together intentionally, while the future of fear is one from which we can only run haphazardly. The difference is the story we decide to tell.

So you want those millennials to start attending your church? Great! A funeral in progress may not be the strongest story we can tell. So let’s stop telling the tale about the death of the church and start writing the story about the future of the church. Our rewrite cannot ignore current realities, but it must refuse to be limited by them.

This quote is from an article on ChurchLeadership.com written by Patrick Scriven.  It's a good article - take a gander when you have a moment.

What story are we telling those we hope to win for Christ?  Are we saying, "Come to this church; we are dying and need more members?"  Or are we telling them, "Christ has made a difference in my life, and in the lives of the people in this community.  Come and join us."?

I know I keep harping on the same question, but I hear the two messages all the time.  Which one are we called to tell?  What should be our story?