Joshua Benadum from Dwell Community Church and Matt Ulrich from Greenhouse Church discuss microchurch networks. They explore the relationship between macro and micro churches, the challenges of centralized preaching in a network of house churches, and the dynamics of attending macro gatherings but not being involved in micro churches. They also delve into cultural resistance, reluctance, and scalability in microchurches, and offer advice for finding the balance between macro and micro in church ecosystems.
Macrochurches play a key role in creating culture, unity, teaching, and worship, while microchurches provide a simpler form of church life.
Understanding the origin stories and leader giftings shape the structures and dynamics of micro-macro churches.
To prevent the macro from overshadowing the micro, constant recalibration, strong leadership investment, and prioritizing personal discipleship are crucial.
Deep dives
The dynamic between microchurch and macrochurch
The podcast episode explores the dynamic between microchurches and what some would call macrochurches. It discusses how microchurches are seen as the simplest form of church, but also how their life necessitates something more, a larger family or city-wide church. The episode highlights that macrochurches, often large group weekend gatherings, play a key role in creating culture, unity, vision, teaching, worship, and harvest. There is a recognition that both microchurches and macrochurches are fully the church, but serve different purposes. The episode emphasizes the need to build structures and formats that facilitate both types of churches, drawing from biblical examples and historical church practices.
Defining macrochurches and their purpose
In this section, leaders from greenhouse and dwell define macrochurches according to their own experiences. They explain that macrochurches are usually large group gatherings focused on creating unity, vision, teaching, worship, and reaching a wider audience. For greenhouse, the macrochurch gathering is seen as a key piece, especially for harvesting and getting everyone on the same page before launching them into microchurches. Dwell, on the other hand, highlights that the purpose of their macro gatherings is more equipping-focused, providing high-quality preaching and teaching to serve their house churches and microchurches. Both perspectives emphasize the importance of macrochurches while recognizing the autonomy and value of microchurches.
Influence of origin stories and leader giftings
The podcast delves into the origin stories of greenhouse and dwell, acknowledging how these stories influence their approach to the micro-macro dynamic. For greenhouse, the origin involved transitioning from a traditional Sunday gathering to a focus on microchurches, while recognizing the need to retain a macrochurch structure to reach a wider audience and facilitate unity. Dwell, on the other hand, originated from grassroots movements and organic communities, starting without a formal organization and emphasizing house churches. The leader giftings and personalities, such as evangelistic or teaching-oriented, also played a role in shaping the structures and functions of each movement. The podcast highlights the importance of understanding the inception of a church and the leader's giftings in determining the ecclesiological model and dynamics.
Maintaining the Balance: Macro vs. Micro
The podcast episode explores the tension between macro and micro expressions of church and how to prevent the macro from overshadowing the micro. The speakers emphasize the need for constant recalibration and a strong vision for maintaining the focus on the micro level. By ensuring that leadership is invested in and leads micro churches, consistently referring to micro churches in sermons, and prioritizing personal discipleship and every member ministry, the podcast highlights strategies to keep the macro from dominating.
Empowering Every Member and Building Healthy Structures
The podcast discusses the importance of empowering every member and building healthy structures within a church community. The speakers emphasize the need for strong leadership alignment and a culture centered around the vision of the micro church. They also emphasize the value of individual discipleship, equipping members for ministry, and creating a culture of disciple-making. By focusing on individual gifts and equipping disciples, churches can combat macro consumerism and foster a culture of active and engaged members.
This week we're kicking off a new series called Network Conversations. In this particular episode, we'll chat about microchurch networks with Joshua Benadum of Dwell Community Church and Matt Ulrich of Greenhouse Church in Gainesville. Specifically, you will hear about the dynamic between their microchurches and their macro expression of church for their respective communities.
The Microchurches podcast is presented by The Underground Network, a network of microchurches and missionaries in the Tampa Bay area. We exist to inspire, engage, connect and empower missional people, churches and networks. If you have enjoyed or benefited from this podcast and/or other Underground resources and would like to support, click here to give.
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