futuristic

A couple weeks ago, futurist and theologian Leonard Sweet named the top five trends religious leaders should keep their eyes on. Number three is, "epic rules."

In Sweet's The Gospel According to Starbucks, the futurist calls the church to master the "EPIC" living that Starbucks has mastered. EPIC stands for Experience, Participation, "Images that trob with meaning," and Connection.

How many of these four epic principals are you making room for in your church's third place space?

Experience: Is your third place hosting events? Speakers, artists, clowns, etc. Are there experiences available?

Participation: Is there room for volunteers? Are your events participatory? Open mic nights are good for this.

Images: What are people looking at in your space? The same picture of Jesus in the same gold frame that was in their parents' church? Local artists expressions of what it is to find freedom? Does your third place space have a logo of its own? Is it meaningful? Is it displayed?

Connection: How are people able to connect in your space? Is there room to connect over business? Is there room to connect socially? Is there WiFi to connect internationally?

The Christian Post quotes Sweet as explaining, "The culture helps the church become more of an epic community." When was the last time we considered how culture could help a local church?