Heartprints

Three Steps for a Decapitated Church

Is your church decapitated (headless)? If your church is headless, then your kid’s ministry is headless. Without the head, the body is lifeless, including all of its parts. Thus, a church (the body) without Jesus (the head) is headless and lifeless (Colossians 1:18).

No matter how one dresses the body, the body is still lifeless. Interestingly enough, many in the church continually attempt to dress the body with budgets, meetings, strategies, payroll, square footage, advertisements, and lists of ministries. Some attempt to place charismatic leaders as the head of the body, creating a really awkward look to any church.

Would people come to see a headless church? Sure, as it might be a spectacle to see. They might not see the invisible strings attached to all the body parts or the people pulling the strings, but at least the body is moving for people to see, right?

Three things to do with a decapitated church:

1) Find the head

The Bible gives direction and location to the head, while history reveals proofs and examples of people finding the head. Look into both and you will find the head. Therefore, stop looking in the tomb and acting like Jesus is still dead. Stop looking for different heads also. Now, look up to Heaven and trust that Jesus sits on a throne like any great king, issuing commands for people to live.

2) Attach the head

Stop trying to attach other things or people into the head spot. Attach Jesus to the church as the head. Do so in conviction, community, conversation, counsel, curriculum, creativity, and charisma (ie: office of authority or personality trait, not denomination). When any of those seven C’s replace the head, we have a seven-headed beast with all the C’s attacking each other instead of working together. Submit to Jesus, repent (go a different direction), and follow him into the future making disciples of him and not a church organization, brand, or cause.

3) Keep the head

Trust the head and stop rebelling – the proverbial axe to the neck. Seek humility and confidence found in the gospel. Church is not the movie “Fight Club” where one is beating himself, especially in the head, for lunatic reasons. Jesus has already been beaten to the pulp for us once and for all, and we do not need to continue the beating. Fight differently by fighting to keep Jesus as the head and no one or nothing else!

When the head reattaches to the body, a body begins to live again – functioning together, in unity, with power and plans, and working to make disciples. In so doing, we can build a healthy kid's ministry. It just might look a little different from here on out.