A friend of mine said to me one time,  “I’d rather be on my mountain bike thinking about God than sitting in church thinking about my mountain bike ..”

I hear that kind of statement almost every week.  It’s this tension between having time in the outdoors and being a person that attends a “church” meeting once a week.”

I used to struggle with it, but the more I think about it the more I like it.

This issue is nothing new.

I came across an interesting read out of John Wesley’s paper blog he wrote from May 5th to June 2nd sometime in the 1730’s.

From the Diary of John Wesley

Sunday, A.M., May 5
Preached in St. Anne’s. Was asked not to come back anymore.

Sunday, P.M., May 5
Preached in St. John’s. Deacons said “Get out and stay out.”

Sunday, A.M., May 12
Preached in St. Jude’s. Can’t go back there, either.

Sunday, A.M., May 19
Preached in St. Somebody Else’s. Deacons called special meeting and said I couldn’t return.

Sunday, P.M., May 19
Preached on street. Kicked off street.

Sunday, A.M., May 26
Preached in meadow. Chased out of meadow as bull was turned loose during service.

Sunday, A.M., June 2
Preached out at the edge of town. Kicked off the highway.

Sunday, P.M., June 2
Afternoon, preached in a pasture. Ten thousand people came out to hear me.

As I study Wesley, I find that much of his ministry and preaching were done outside.

Yes, he preached in some church buildings, but you can see where he and his brother Charles as well as George Whitefield used the country side as their pulpit. I believe they were adapting to the model’s  other wilderness preachers like Jesus and John the Baptist.

Ummmmmmm – It’s  “both and ….. Not either or.”

If you like a traditional church service inside a building,  you got it…. or, if you like nature and the thought of sitting in the pew bores you to tears…. we got you covered.

Starting in March of 2013,  we will offer one church with a multi locations approach.

Both inside and out.

Pastor Steve

Use the geography to teach the theology.