Alternative Worship In Seekers' Service/Believers' Worship

Churches that have adopted the format of a broad-based "?seekers' service?" (accompanied by a separate, more intense worship service for committed believers) are breaking new ground in the integration of worship with other aspects of Christian ministry.

The dual worship format of a Sunday worship service geared to the needs of people seeking a Christian identity, together with a midweek experience of deeper worship for those who have committed themselves to Christ and to Christian growth, has been pioneered on a large scale by Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago's northwest suburbs. A growing number of churches in North America have begun to adopt this format in one variation or another. Willow Creek's uniqueness gives it high visibility among American and, to an extent, international churches and communities. The church has responded in several ways to requests from other churches for information and guidance on how they may use their resources in their own communities to increase cohesion and purpose among their members and seekers. Willow Creek offers several avenues of ministry resources, including Network, New Community Institute, and the Willow Creek Association. All reflect the basic philosophy of ministry at Willow Creek Community Church, which teaches that believers must follow and use their passions and gifts in ways that God directs. While no human organization is perfect, Willow Creek's approach has been highly effective in changing worship communities in the Chicago area and, through the Association, around the world. Willow Creek is known as a seeker-driven church, but those who faithfully attend the church know it also as a place where there is plenty of room to be involved in meaningful ways. With so many people moving into the area, or simply visiting, church leaders are challenged to harness and focus this human potential. The Network ministry is the first step for anyone who wants to pitch in. One night a week, for one month, interested believers attend well-organized seminars on how to use the gifts that God has given to every Christian. Several low-level personality tests are given to help focus one's self-evaluation and match it with opportunities within the church body. From these tests and seminars, along with interviews administered by Network counselors, specific directions for each individual naturally emerge. The believer is both educated in the gifts that God grants and is shown how to apply them in the church. There are more than ninety ministries at Willow Creek, ranging from car repair to a food pantry ministry, from drama to career fellowships. The church has always emphasized helping and working with other people. Though there are almost three hundred full-time staff members, the vast majority of the work is done by volunteers who have all passed through the Network program. Direction and supervision for these groups comes ultimately from the appropriate ministry staff person, who in turn receives guidance and counsel for ministry development from the management team and other leaders in the church. The goal of these programs is to bring more believers into a committed life with God and to a public confession of this commitment, by open association with the church. A new teaching ministry offered to those attending the week night services is the New Community Institute. The Institute runs for a period of four consecutive weeks, with different options on either Wednesday or Thursday evenings. In a manner similar to traditional Sunday school classes, people choose seminars and workshops from a wide variety of topics, including small group management, current issues, and doctrinal and Bible studies. After a time of worship and praise, people move to the many rooms scattered around the 250,000 square-foot facility for their classes. The purpose of these efforts is to deepen the spiritual understanding and knowledge of believers by challenging them to think further. Members of the teaching staff or other department heads lead each class, and the subjects change every other month. Another important ministry, which grew out of Willow Creek's vision for the church today and is now a separate organization, is the Willow Creek Association. This is a growing network of both national and international churches that are catching a renewed vision for reaching the unchurched. Before the formation of the Association, special leadership teams from Willow Creek Church would volunteer their time and talents to travel to other churches around the world and assist them in forming their own seeker-driven ministries. Members of the teaching, programming, music, and drama teams would conduct workshops and lectures to demonstrate Willow Creek's approach. The Association began officially in early 1992 and quickly added members from the hundreds of ministers and other church leaders who have attended various Willow Creek conferences over the years. It is a nonprofit, nondenominational organization governed by a board of directors independent of the church. The Association states its purpose this way: "?Our mission is to assist churches in re-establishing the priority and practice of reaching lost people for Christ through church ministries targeted to seekers.?" The Association promises to become one of the country's largest nondenominational networking groups, with information exchange flowing easily among the membership. The Association is developing its own literature, material, and programs in conjunction with a Christian publishing house. Willow Creek Community Church pointedly avoids getting involved in local or national partisan politics and refuses to endorse any candidate. It does, however, conduct community outreaches in the Chicago area through food pantries and crisis counseling and has sponsored building and teaching projects in Mexico and Jamaica. The newest program changing the face of Willow Creek Church is the small groups ministry. As the church gets larger, it also gets smaller. Interlacing networks of leaders, apprentices, and coaches bind groups of no more than ten committed believers through ties of accountability, service, and community. With such a structure, Willow Creek wants to connect members more effectively to the life of the church and to bring the uncommitted Christian into the kind of worship and church life that promotes the greatest spiritual growth.