Common wisdom says focus on what we need to do to get on with God’s work. But Phil Snider says vibrant churches become obsessed with what God wants – and this makes all the difference.
Phil is an amazingly gifted author, teacher, and pastor serving the people of Brentwood Christian Church in Springfield, Missouri.
In this interview he talks about building up congregational health, new trends in preaching (he’s got a book coming out soon), and the Church’s biggest challenges.
Watch the Full Program.
Rather Listen? Click here to download the Mp3 to your mobile device.
Click here to visit The Hyphenateds at chalicepress.com
Click here to visit Turnaround 20/20
Synopsis Phil Snider says it’s as easy as simply providing searchers with a place to engage their spirituality. Here are my notes from the interview:
Welcome Post-Christendom!
The loss of Christian hegemony in the U.S. is the source of all kinds of congregational angst, but Phil tries to funnel that stress into something really productive: living more completely before God’s face.
Give People a Place to Engage
Phil says this is our biggest yearning, and the most oft ignored: the spiritual cries of a North American world that wants to know God more completely but a church that is not organized well enough to engage them.
Sermons Should Anticipate God
Phil says it’s the most common shortfall of today’s sermons: they become either instruction sessions or position papers, when they should be a time for us to focus on what God is up to all around us.
About Phil Snider
Phil Snider is senior minister at Brentwood Christian Church. He is an award-winning writer, speaker, pastor, and teacher whose work focuses on the intersections of religion and postmodernism in relationship to community practices and traditions. His books include Toward a Hopeful Future, The Hyphenated, and the forthcoming Preaching After God. Phil holds degrees from Missouri State University, Phillips Theological Seminary, and Chicago Theological Seminary. He also holds a certificate in pastoral care and counseling from Forest Institute of Professional Psychology. In addition to being a guest lecturer for the Missouri State University religious studies department and an adjunct instructor for religious studies courses at Drury University’s College of Graduate and Continuing Studies, he regularly speaks at a variety of church-related conferences and events across the United States.
Books Phil Recommends:
Preaching in the Age of Globalization – Eunjoo Mary Kim
Insurrection – Peter Rollins
Ancient Faith / Future Mission – Stephanie Spellers, ed.
Sponsors I Mentioned
Chalice Press – Check out The Hyphenateds, edited by Phil Snider. It asks: Can emergence Christianity help established denominations understand that radical transformation means more than a new worship service? Hear Phyllis Tickle, Doug Pagit, Elaine Heath, and many more important voices, chime in about how mainline congregations are taken the lessons of emergent Christianity to heart. Check out this book, and more at chalicepress.com
Turnaround 20/20 – Learn from experts who have conquered obstacles to growth and watched God turn things around. Turnaround 20/20 is a unique congregational development conference that brings together 20 experts who speak for 20 minutes each. People like Nelson Searcy, Charles Arn, George Hunter, and Elmer Towns will focus on a specific area of congregational development and are out to spark new ideas and innovations for you and your church. Turnaround 20./20 is Tuesday, October 23 in Nashville, TN.
