is lifepoint a seeker-driven church

I was asked recently whether or not LifePoint would be a seeker-driven church. Great question. In church parlance, being seeker-driven means designing everything about your worship service around non-Christians. The idea is to make non-Christians feel comfortable and non-threatened. It also involves making the service understandable and even enjoyable (imagine that -- a church service being enjoyable!).

In some cases, however, being seeker-driven means removing any hint of Christian spirituality from the environment or experience. In other words, some seeker-driven churches do not have any visible crosses on display. The idea is to create an environment much like you would find at the local movie theater, minus the popcorn. The audience is not expected to participate but to observe. The goal is for the seeker to remain anonymous.

I guess I draw a distinction between being seeker-driven and seeker-sensitive. To me, a church experience should be understandable and even enjoyable. We should avoid losing people with jargon and should give them permisison to explore at their own pace.

With that being said, I believe we are dealing with a different kind of seeker today. They come to church already considering themselves to be spiritual and expect church to be a spiritual experience. When a church service feels like a meeting of the Rotary Club or a visit to Wal-Mart, they sense something is missing. And they are right. What is missing is an authentic experience with a living God.

Rather than reducing signs of the spiritual, LifePoint will attempt to create an environment that communicates truth verbally, visually, interactively. We will not apologize for worshiping God creatively or passionately. When people go to a restaurant, they're not surprised when the menu features food. Likewise, today's seeker is not surprised when the church community offers spiritual food ... as long as it's prepared and presented in a relevant manner.