Willow Creek, the poster child for seeker sensitive ministry, is no longer trying to be so hip. At the recent Catalyst Conference, a Willow teaching pastor, Darren Whitehead, surprised us with the new Willow.
Thirty years ago Bill Hybels launched Willow and the “Seeker Sensitive” movement from a theater. It was all about being fishers of men by lowering the barriers to introducing people to Christ.
It was now cool to use secular music, video clips of Hollywood movies, drama, smoke machines, contemporary worship or whatever drew people and helped connect them to the gospel. Today Hybels is a household name. The church attracts 25,000 on a weekend and baptized 2,000 last year.
By any measure, that’s successful fishing! But it’s a new day.
Darren explained how young people now seek something deeper, more permanent, and more transformational in their lives. In their swirling digital world, history and context matters. They’re turned off by the “alpha male” leader and desire engagement, authority of the scripture, prayer, and discipleship.
To connect with this new way of thinking, Willow Creek has dropped the seeker sensitive bells and whistles and instead sings hymns and focuses on scripture. It’s no longer about being hip but about being the “salt and light” in an increasingly confused world.
In Darren’s words:
If we lose our saltiness, we are worthless.
I was surprised by such a dramatic shift. How about you?
I would say it is not the style of music which counts, but the depth of Christian community. If someone senses that a few people are gathered together and Christ is with them, they will be attracted. (They may be attracted to other things too).
Clare,
Today I think many would agree that it isn’t about style but about depth of community and spiritual connection.
However, through the past 30 years style seemed to be the key to attract the unchurched. We’re in the midst of a dramatic reshaping in a search to discover how to not only attract the unchurched but equip them.
Equip them with the spirit first to be conquerors of their own fear and appetites. Then, to see beyond themselves and sacrifice their lives for others so they can be equipped to do the same.
It really is a new day in many ways.
Thanks for stopping by.
Ed
Again, as of last week Willow still seemed like they were too afraid to convey a message of sin to its “congregation” while Darren in my opinion is being scripted to adress some of the issues real belivers have with Willow itself (protecting the corp. image like any multinational company does). I ran for the hills when they invited some rap star to sing on New Years Day, which by the looks of it seemed more about the bling than the gospel. Bill Hybels also seems left leaning and his guests are always related one way or another to the secular progressive church movement, which clearly encourges blatant misinterpretation of the NT in favor of a pagan doctorine of prosperity in the current world. Willow, Saddleback, Hybels, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen are pawns for a state-run christanity that will slowly but surely erode our great gospel down to mere nothingness.
(27) Deceived On Purpose by Warren Smith Warren Smith is a former New Ager who became converted to Christianity 20 years ago. Since then he has been warning Christians, through writing and speaking, that dangerous New Age doctrines are subtly creeping into the churches. In his most recent book, which is being offered by Discernment Ministries, Smith recounts the considerable influence that the Rev. Robert H. Schuller has had on the ministry style and teachings of Rick Warren. The mystical leaven of New Age teachings, which Robert Schuller controversially introduced the church several decades ago, is now being reintroduced and assimilated into mainstream evangelicalism through the writings and activities of Rick Warren. Deceived on Purpose is a book with an easy reading style that should be given to pastors and parishioners everywhere. The following is an important excerpt from the book, Chapter 3. It chronicles a noteworthy example of how Rick Warren’s “seeker sensitive” emphasis can lead straight into dangerous metaphysical New Age doctrines.