I’ve had hunch for a long time that something’s gone wrong. As a lover of Jesus and His Church I’m in ongoing conversations about the effectiveness of the church in our world today. I’m constantly thinking about how we can optimize our redemptive potential in this generation. Last Sunday I read an article in the Dallas Morning News that shocked my system. Christine Wicker, the author of The Fall of the Evangelical Nation: The Surprising Crisis Inside the Church, wrote an article entitled, The Great Evangelical Decline. After you read this blog, you need to take time to read her article at http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/points/stories/DN-wicker_01edi.ART1.State.Edition1.46dace2.html

Because she’s a former Southern Baptist she caught my attention. She begins with, “What Baptist leaders have known for years is finally public: The Southern Baptist Convention is a denomination in decline. Half of the SBC’s 43,000 churches will have shut their doors by 2030 if current trends continue. And unless God provides a miracle, the trends will continue. They are longstanding and deeply rooted. The denomination’s growth rate has been declining since the 1950s. The conservative/fundamentalist takeover 30 years ago was supposed to turn the trend around; it didn’t make a bit of difference.”

Those who know me know that I’m a consummate optimist, often to a fault. What’s probably added to my blissful denial of reality has been the wonderful ride that we’ve been on at FBC McKinney over the past 9 years. Two weeks ago I asked a group of leaders if they knew of any church (and particularly any Baptist church) that was blowing the doors off in terms of growth. No one could name one. The mega-church of the eighties and nineties seems to be an ever-decreasing expression of the Kingdom in our culture.

Now, I’m a Christian before I’m a Baptist, but as a Baptist I found Mrs. Wicker’s article startling. While I disagree with much of the article (why the trend has taken place and her suggestions to right the ship), I agree that it’s time for us to wake up. Though I don’t want to admit it, the ship is sinking. As I see it leaders have one option: change or die. Many church leaders have decided to stay the same non-effective course (keep preaching what you’re preaching, only louder). Others have decided that the only option is to bail: “If the ship is sinking, everybody out. Abandon ship!” Others, like me have decided to be a prophetic voice in the midst of radical change from within (and besides, it’s easier to have a voice at the table if you’re still a loving member of the family).

At FBC we’re making some radical changes. In fact, it’s jolting our collective DNA. We’ve determined to do whatever it takes to join Jesus on mission in our world. I’m well aware that the strategies of the past are not working today and that fewer and fewer are hearing our message, regardless of what it is; they’re simply not listening.

Mrs. Wicker ends her article with these ominous words: “Evangelical faith is failing in so many other ways that a growing number of Christians believe a New Reformation is needed. If they are correct, the Southern Baptist Convention is unlikely to lead that reformation. Let’s hope it is at least around to participate.” Count me in. Let’s be among those who, with an ear towards heaven and a resolve to follow Jesus, are courageous enough to ask the hard questions and do whatever it takes to see His Kingdom come (regardless of the cost). A reformation is needed and it will come as God’s Spirit falls upon a prayer-soaked people, clinging to God, with a simple and uncluttered message: “Jesus is Lord.” Let’s continue the conversation…