“What is it about that church?”
A benefit of being part of a growing and thriving church such as Lifepoint Church is that you get this question a lot… “What is it about that church? Everyone I talk to who goes there just loves it.”
A lot can actually be answered by the question itself… “Everyone I talk to who goes there just loves it.” When you love something you think about it all the time, and you want to talk about it. In one of the first sermons I heard Pastor Daniel Floyd preach at Lifepoint Church he said, “If you don’t love your church, go find one you love.”
I believe a lot of Christians stick with a particular church for a variety of reasons, but none of which are love for the church. They stay because that is where their friends are, or where their parents went, or because of the prestige of belonging to that particular church, or because it has good children programs, or it is more comfortable not to move churches, and so on. If you don’t love your church, go find one you love. Then you will talk about your church like those of us who love Lifepoint Church.
But let’s go back to the first part of the question… “What is it about that church?” Today over lunch with my family I pondered this question and reflected on what made me fall in love with Lifepoint Church. The list below reflects the top (or maybe first) five things that made me love Lifepoint Church.
1. Welcoming attitude without judgment. Without reservation I can say that of all the churches I have ever attended, whether short term or long term, I have never found one that is more welcoming than Lifepoint. I felt it the first time I pulled into their parking lot at Riverbend High School. The parking volunteer was smiling and waving, and seemed genuinely happy to see us arrive. That same welcoming attitude continued throughout the experience until we left the parking lot. (Some of those welcoming and happy volunteers had been there since 5:00am that morning, and they were still cheerful!)
Part of that welcoming attitude is the lack of judgment. I am talking about judgment about what you drive, how you dress, what color your hair is, what your social status is in life, if you have tattoos and earrings, etc. Since I have been at Lifepoint I have wondered how many people never met Jesus because they were judged and scoffed at by the church. I love Lifepoint because it recognizes that Jesus loves people without regard for the things mentioned above, and we at Lifepoint Church do too.
2. They put feet to the words they preach. The next thing I noticed about Lifepoint Church is they didn’t just throw out empty words and concepts. If Pastor Daniel preaches it from the pulpit, then Lifepoint Church puts it into action. If he preaches about generosity and tithing, then the church demonstrates generosity. If he talks about shepherding new believers, then the church demonstrates that shepherding. If he talks about seeking those who don’t know Jesus and bringing them closer to God, then the church demonstrates that. It is so refreshing to be part of a church that believes the Word, and acts accordingly. I can’t even begin to tell you the number of ways I have seen this personified in our church in the 1 ½ years I have been here. I love that Lifepoint Church puts feet to the words it preaches.
3. +2 Mentality. One of the things that is a staple of the culture at Lifepoint Church is the +2 mentality. This simply means that everything we undertake to do for God, we do it with as much excellence as possible. Then, we find a way to go one step further. Then another step further… get it, “+2.” If we as a church are greeting commuters at zero dark thirty in the commuter parking lot, we do that with as much excellence as possible. Then we might pick up ALL the trash in the parking lot. Then haul that trash away with us… +2.
We greet people at the door with excellence. But we might also see a mother struggling to carry a baby in a car seat and we go help her carry it to the door. Then we carry the baby and seat on through the building to where she needs to go… +2. That makes me love Lifepoint Church.
4. Highways and Hedges. It is unfortunate but in my opinion most churches at some point stop existing to reach those who are far from God and exist to coddle its members. That may happen someday at Lifepoint… I pray not. But, at this point in time coddling the members is NOT the focus of Lifepoint church. We are laser focused on reaching those people who are far from God and drawing them nearer to God. I personally am convinced that Jesus has called all believers to this task… I believe it is our highest calling. I want to be at a church that is hyper focused and wholly committed to going into the highways and hedges and reaching those far from God. I love Lifepoint Church for this.
5. Alive and Thriving. My daughter made the statement that, “You can just feel the spirit at Lifepoint Church. It is alive and thriving.” I wholeheartedly agree. I felt God’s spirit before I entered the building the first day I attended. I feel it everytime I am with the church. And yes, the church is alive and thriving. Each worship experience is alive and thriving. God is doing wonderful and miraculous things at Lifepoint Church, and I love that I am privileged to be part of it.
That my friends is my answer to the question, “What is it about that church?”
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