Nathan Moore
Relationship Status
Married
Highschool
Oakland High School
Favorite Music
something corporate, andy davis, mat kearney, blue merl, coldplay, cool hand luke, copeland, dashboard confessional, dave barnes, david crowder band, david mead, death cab for cutie, the early november, echosflow, further seems forever, howie day, imaginary baseball league, interpol, iron&wine, the juliana theory, jump little children, keane, lifehouse, lovedrug, mae, matt wertz, my morning star, the postal service, relient k, shane&shane, the shins, sigur ros, taking back sunday, yellowcard
Favorite Movies
a beautiful mind, falling out of february, a homeless mind, pi, good will hunting, fight club, the usual suspects, memento, napoleon dynamite, eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, secret window, garden state, vanilla sky, serendipity
Favorite Books
The Bible, 1984, Praise Habit, Mere Christianity, Wild At Heart, Blue Like Jazz
Other Websites
http://www.podpoint.net
Empty Heart, Empty Pew
July 17 2005
Sometimes I feel like even people that are in religious positions have gotten it wrong, missing the point of what Christianity is all about. This is a feeling pitted deep in my soul and I cannot even put it into words other than: they are missing the point. No, I am not perfect by any means, but I feel like I do have an understanding of what the goal should be. We should not value our church or ourselves by what we do or even how many people we cranked in on a Sunday morning. Our one goal should be to bring glory to God in EVERYTHING that we do.
Christianity has turned into a numbers game. Visit any church and scan the weekly bulletin. Amongst all of the announcements of upcoming events and the service order, you will more than likely find a record of how many people came into the doors of the church the previous week in addition to what was given monetarily. Churches almost pride themselves with these figures, thinking that if any of these numbers have increased, they have won that week.
Even the events are geared to get more people into the church. It is almost a game of manipulation, fueled by the simple pride of the decision-making members of the church. One more warm body in the pew on any given Sunday morning does not necessarily bring more glory to God. Do not get me wrong, it could, and God could use that to bring glory, but we should not gauge how we are doing by a simple numbered body.
I would rather have a church full of 25 people that are being discipled and that are yearning after the heart of God than 10,000 people that are simply acting out a religion with an empty heart.
Church has almost become a game based on points of attendance and levels of monetary value. Our work is never done and we should be building relationships with people, ministering to their needs, and pouring into people’s lives instead of counting the numbers.
Jesus never once boasted about how many people were at his last sermon or how many people he had healed the previous week. He was more interested in progressing his ministry to the people. His motivation was pure: to bring glory to God in everything that He did. Once we stop measuring ourselves by what we have “accomplished,†we can start to truly see the larger picture of God’s goals.
Christianity has turned into a numbers game. Visit any church and scan the weekly bulletin. Amongst all of the announcements of upcoming events and the service order, you will more than likely find a record of how many people came into the doors of the church the previous week in addition to what was given monetarily. Churches almost pride themselves with these figures, thinking that if any of these numbers have increased, they have won that week.
Even the events are geared to get more people into the church. It is almost a game of manipulation, fueled by the simple pride of the decision-making members of the church. One more warm body in the pew on any given Sunday morning does not necessarily bring more glory to God. Do not get me wrong, it could, and God could use that to bring glory, but we should not gauge how we are doing by a simple numbered body.
I would rather have a church full of 25 people that are being discipled and that are yearning after the heart of God than 10,000 people that are simply acting out a religion with an empty heart.
Church has almost become a game based on points of attendance and levels of monetary value. Our work is never done and we should be building relationships with people, ministering to their needs, and pouring into people’s lives instead of counting the numbers.
Jesus never once boasted about how many people were at his last sermon or how many people he had healed the previous week. He was more interested in progressing his ministry to the people. His motivation was pure: to bring glory to God in everything that He did. Once we stop measuring ourselves by what we have “accomplished,†we can start to truly see the larger picture of God’s goals.
Blake Haley
July 17 2005
A friend of mine once told me that she was sick of living off of past glories, and was ready to make new ones...I don't think that is exactly what you are talking about here...but it fits in nicely. It is so easy to sit back at live off of the things that God HAS done...I pray that I continue to press on to new glories, and I pray the same for you!
Chad
July 17 2005
Nathan, I totally get what you're saying. If each person in the church concentrated on a couple key things (is every part of my life surrendered to Christ and does it bring glory to Him, and am I reproducing Christ in others by telling them about Him so they can invite Him into their life, then discipling them to become like Him) we wouldn't be able to build buildings big enough to keep all the numbers in them, but at the same time, we wouldn't care because of all the lives being changed, and God getting the glory.
Erica
July 17 2005
Haha I just looked at my pics and I saw your message...that was me...with the pizza and I was looking retarded...yup good times
the brian king kenobi
July 18 2005
very good point. good post. and what are the chances of you ever getting me a copy of the play?
Amy
July 18 2005
Wow... good post. It's nice to hear you speaking from your heart. BTW, I have a couple of bear pics in my latest post. See ya in New York next week!
Erin
July 18 2005
very strong. i think the heart matters more than numbers. it's also impt. ppl are wholeheartedly giving glory to God for where their church has come to. it's easy for ppl to get caught up in the looks and what not, but God must receive the complete glory for where the body stands.
Ashley Davis
July 18 2005
Oswald Chambers once said, "I would rather see one heart fully devoted to the Lord than a thousand simply awakened by the Spirit." I love what Mortoca wrote as well. We are the future of the church, so it is incredibly important that we not just know these facts, but they are reflected in our ministries. I love your heart!
Crystal Pittard
July 18 2005
so true.. it really is sad how it's become about numbers.. and like u said it would be better to have 25 people on fire for the Lord, than 10,000 that are just "there" but while it seems to be manipulative, there's always the possiblilty that those people who are just "there" might actually make life changing decisions.. but God is amazing and he knows what is best! Have a great week Nathan Moore!!
Garrett Haynes
July 18 2005
yup you have proposed a very good point. really made me think. thanks for that.
laurabee
July 19 2005
perhaps the increasing rate of superficiality in our churches is due also to the "standardization" of people in schools and life. if we have shallow people, we will have shallow people-composed churches.
darn those standardized tests.
