Popular Wisdom

It's been a pretty sharp learning curve since starting Deep Water. It seems like every week there is another new concept or challenge to wrap my brain around. I think I've been learning some pretty cool stuff but I have been slow to share it because a) I haven't had enough reflection time to let a lot of it crystalize into something I can readily describe and b) I don't want to be the guy who does something that seems to work once and instantly declare it a universal principle and himself a genius for framing it. That said here is something I have am learning in the process.

In the church world there are all sorts of little axioms and truisms that I usually refer to collectively as "the popular wisdom." Some folks live by these ideas as if they were part of some lost book of the Bible. They wouldn't dream passing 80% seating capacity or hiring and anything other than a secretary (or Executive Assistant) second. Others are brave and creative and ignore these little "gems" in favor of a homegrown and context specific approaches they came up with all their own. Both are idiots.

The truth is this. The popular wisdom is popular for a reason, it's often right, but it isn't universal truth either. Don't always follow it but your a fool to completely ignore it. My suggestion would be to use it as a baseline and a way to frame your discussion.

You are filling up your worship service; when is it time to move or add a second service? The popular wisdom is 80% but what if your seating is really comfy and spacious and the people you are trying to reach are used to being ushed into packed seating? Maybe you should wait until 90%. What if 10% of your seating stinks because of location or comfort or sight lines and no one want to sit there? Maybe you should jump closer to 70%. Or what if you have average seating in an average room with relatively average people? I'm guessing 80% is your number.

You should hire a secretary second. What if you are good at letting technology deal with a lot of that stuff? Children's ministry should be a top priority. What if you are in community of retirees with loads of seniors housing. You should keep your sermons under 22 minutes because that's how long sit-coms are. What if your people are wired more like Lord of the Rings or The Dark Night fans (but thats a post for another day, one I should probably do)?

Long story short. Pay attention to the popular wisdom but don't blindly follow it. Let it help you make decisions but don't let it make them for you.