On Church and Change
By Minister Jeff Hwang
A Short Conversation Years Ago
“How have things been at church?” he asked, not having been able to come consistently due to his job. “Good. Nothing much has changed,” I replied, half wanting to assure him that what was familiar and comfortable remained. He responded back, “Should we be praying for change?”
This short conversation has stuck with me since it took place many years ago while I was still serving at CBCGB as a member. It has perhaps been even more prominent in recent years as the roles were switched and I inquired about CBCGB from afar. Granted, not all change is good nor do all things need to change. At the same time, I am cognizant of the fact that I myself am a creature of habit without a strong affinity towards change.
Having moved away, my wife, Ying, and I had to ask ourselves, “If God called us back to Boston and to CBCGB, would we still desire and be ready to come back even if our friends and the pastors whom we knew were gone and the church was different?” The answer was undoubtedly “yes” and even appeared to be somewhat self-fulfilling.
Changes at CBCGB in a Few Years
Much has happened in the few years that I have been gone and perhaps much more in the few months that I have been back. Some pastors retired or left while others came in to take their place. The English Ministry became Cross Bridge. The 151 building was just a phase of the church building expansion project. Now, it is an actual building I regularly meet in for ministries and meetings. Yet, despite all the changes, there was still an aura of familiarity as I returned and walked through the church that I grew up in.
“We’re not in Kansas anymore.”
In the past few weeks, with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, our church has needed to adapt our ministries to a virtual medium. Retreats were cancelled. Programs were suspended. The landscape of the church and ministry had changed. As Dorothy remarks in The Wizard of Oz, “We’re not in Kansas anymore.”
Reflections on Changes Under COVID-19
What’s the point of mentioning all of this? First, in the midst of all these changes, whether good or bad, we remember that the God who we worship is immutable, that is, unchanging (Jas 1:17). His immutability means that his faithfulness is a foil to our fickleness. He is constant even as we are inconsistent. And especially now, we have faith that the great I AM is sovereign over this situation no matter what changes or circumstances our church may face.
Second, upon returning to CBCGB and resolving to re-acclimate myself quickly, I viewed everything through the filter of my pre-existing knowledge and experience of CBCGB. What stayed the same, I set aside. What was discovered to be different, I determined to learn to be more effective in my ministry. In doing this, I began to reflect much on church and change.
The recent pandemic has only brought this question further to the forefront. Should we be praying for change? Yes, but perhaps the more poignant question is “What change should we be praying for?” Or put it another way, what should remain the same and what should not? How do we leverage our 50-year history and what God has done thus far through CBCGB so that we stoke the fires of urgency in ministry and not allow complacency and convenience to take root? A few things come to mind.
A Much-Needed Sabbath for CBCGB
The pandemic has evidently and unintentionally forced a much-needed sabbath on many of us and on our church as well.
There is a marked contrast between finding rest this year and last year (ironically, the church’s Jubilee Year). I include myself in this when I note that our church is known as working hard rather than hardly working, but our church also has a hard time of practicing Sabbath. Like a rechargeable battery, we deplete ourselves but sometimes look to counterfeit chargers that provide us with a short-term charge, but ultimately long-term damage.
The only real source of power comes from the intimate and satisfying presence of God himself. In order for us to move forward, we also need to know when to stay still.
Priorities of Church Programs vs Sabbath
Studies show that a church of our size tends to be program-centered. Churches like ours are well known for the quality and variety of programs offered. There is a strong focus on maintaining different points of entry for people of various ages or groups. There is “something for everyone.” Ministry goals and initiatives are launched through new programs aimed at capturing the congregation member’s interest and participation.
However, the pandemic has put a hold on many of our programs. What then is a program-centered church without its programs? It’s still a church, but perhaps one that may need to reevaluate its priorities. To clarify, programs are not bad and are much needed. But, when the pandemic has stripped them away, what is left may reveal itself to be what is important (e.g. people and their spiritually intentional relationships, discipleship in the home, spending time in the Word and prayer).
What changes to our church do we hope to see on the other side of this pandemic? How do we keep what we have gained during this brief Sabbath and bring it to the forefront even as we restart our programs? These are questions that the church must ask itself now in order to prepare for later.
A Shared Goal for More Partnership
With a church of our size, I am deeply encouraged by the desire and goal for more partnership between the different ministries of CBCGB and their respective leaders. We are one church with multiple ministries that intersect at different points. CM parents whose children attend AWANA and ALIVE. CB parents whose children worship alongside the children of CM parents. COM families who move back to the Lexington campus as they settle down in the suburbs. Youth who serve alongside CB adults in different ministries. CB, CM, and COM members who serve in church leadership together. The list goes on.
Like the three-legged race, we cannot move forward unless we all move forward together. For us to do so may require being involved and invested in a ministry not directly our own. This desire and goal of partnership I hope to see shared not only among the church leaders, but among the church members.
Final Thoughts
As we think about church and change, may everything we say and do continue to be informed by the gospel of Jesus Christ and what he accomplished for us in his life, death, and resurrection. We may not be in Kansas anymore, but we can still further his Kingdom perhaps even better than before.
Minister Jeff Hwang is a minister for Cross Bridge.
Edited by: Hei Man (Grace) Yeung