Consumer vs. Investor

I intended to blog about something else today, but had a conversation this morning I wanted to share. What's funny about the conversation today is that it directly reflects something we talked about in Bible Study last night with the young married group, so it was fresh on my mind.

Got a phone call this morning from a guy looking for a church. He's been a part of another church in Fort Worth for several years, but is (in his words) "looking for a change," and wanted to talk to me about whether or not McKinney might be a good fit.

Hearing him tell me he's "looking for a change" led me to ask him what it was about the other church - a really good church in the area - that caused him to think he needs to break fellowship there and worship somewhere else.

He replied, "I'm just not getting anything out of it anymore."

It didn't take me long to tell him he probably wouldn't be a good fit at McKinney.

See, the people who fit best at McKinney, and in our young adults ministry, are the people who see themselves as investors, not consumers. Consumers are primarily worried about what they can get, while the investors' primary role is to give. Consumers usually stick around McKinney for a year or two. They "get a lot out of it" for a while. But once they've picked over our ministries, and sampled every possible Bible Study, there's nothing more for them to "get." So they move on to the next best thing.

I don't see any place in Scripture where even a secondary function of the Church is for people to receive a service. I see a lot of places where we're called to give our lives worshipping God and investing in others.

I'll let you in on a little secret that you might have already experienced: It's the investor, not the consumer who gets the most in the end. It works in the business world just like it works in the church. I consume Taco Bueno almost every day of the week, but I'm not an investor in Taco Bueno, so I don't reap the long-term benefits of my consumption. I show up for a service, receive my service, and leave full, but minus $5.86. The investor takes his $5.86 and invests it in making sure Taco Bueno remains the best fast-food Mexican food on the planet, and receives a return on his investment. Then, Taco Bueno is thriving, the investor is full, and he has more money to invest. Easy math says it's always better to be an investor than a consumer.

Our church won't make it if we simply attract consumers. We have to have investors - people who look for a church where their primary focus is giving their time, talents, and treasures. Those are the people who end up being a good fit at McKinney. Because that's what we breathe here.