You forgot when the barista announces that for five minutes people need to get up, walk around and forcibly talk to complete strangers they will probably never meet again or have a chance to get to know in any real way. And the music that is so insanely loud, it is unhealthy for human eardrums; but this was 2008 maybe it needs an update.
Excellent point. That is actually something the Holy Spirit once told me to do: “Show them the ways of the world and tell them they must not be like this.”
My experience of churches is, as soon as they want to "sign you up" the FIRST TIME you've been there.... how the hell do they expect to have people come back if they go at you like some damn door to door salesman.... I don't need texts or mail from people I don't know. I don't take to "forced friendship" so why can't they see how screwed up the concept is.
Yep. We obsess over "Seeker-this" and "Seeker-that," but are we actually offering Jesus to them? And how many are genuinely "seeking" to know God? Maybe they just came to enjoy our "between service coffee bar." Youth Pizza Night? Christmas Extravaganza? Men's Macho Machine Day? Blah, blah, blah.
Javalujah. Dying. Hahaha As a Christian, I completely support this parable. After I left for college and went looking for a church away from home I realized a lot of them are like this.
yeah this is what I'm trying to avoid now that I'm looking for a home church. I was kind of excited the other day when I went to go visit a new Church. They didn't do the whole "if this is your first time coming please stand up" thing they didn't pressure people to raise their hands for worship. And they had a visitors center that I went to on my own and wasn't enticed to go to because they had a free gift. I mean the "gift" they had was just simply a magnet with the Church's address and times on it. But I liked it because it was authentic and there were no bells and whistles attached to try to draw people in
Being raised atheist then converting and trying to figure out church people... this really hits home. Very well made, I hope some of those churchy people who watch it will get the point. We just want Jesus. If we get that, the rest comes into play on its own. Otherwise I will just learn to conform and fake the Spirit, fill a pew, and then die and go to Hell. Javallujah!
Seeing Papyrus, Comic Sans, and Curlz all in one composition in this video reaffirmed to me that Satan does indeed walk the Earth. Sometimes he has access to the Adobe Font Folio.
My church is nothing like this. We welcome people and let them know we accept them, but we don't have people do all this stuff. We're just straight out friendly. Honestly, I think being over friendly can be rude, because you make people feel uncomfortable. My church is also pretty small... less than 100 people.
It's funny but just your comment Alone says a lot a Christian who feels uncomfortable at church??? Something to really think about because we should never being comfortable and quote on quote our Lord's House
Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet, Acts 7:48 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Colossians 1:27
When a restaurant has lousy parking and shabby exterior but consistently good food, it will most likely get customers by word of mouth and those customers will probably visit again. It's the desire to have a good meal that drives them, not the trappings. Those extras are nice but they can't stop determined people. People that God has drawn will be satisfied to hear God speak to them through the scriptures. If your church focuses on presenting the scriptures then all that attend will be able to grow. The perception of guests will naturally be that God is speaking to them and they will have the best possible chance of attending again.
Church of Nice (worship centers that try to pass themselves off as Christian, but are glorified community centers) is actually pretty close to this. lol
I hate when churches are like this. There is such a thing as "overlyfriendly".... this is it. Yes, we need to be kind and accepting, but not like this. But I enjoyed the video. It was pretty funny! :)
Although I've been a Christian my whole life I recently moved to another church by myself and experienced being a new member for the first time, and believe me, it was way more overwhelming than this video. What stood out about this video the most was the part when the couple walked in and the black man just looked at them and ignore them; I think I experienced a lot of that when I first moved church.
The worst part is that he didn't just ignore them--he sized them up and deemed them unworthy to talk to! I love that my church is filled with people who are genuinely happy to meet newcomers as well as return visitors and regular members.
This is what a church looks like that is lacking the Holy Spirit! All man made efforts,modern religion! Jesus, help us !! Let the true church move in power and change lives,we are called to set captives free not put on new shackles!!!
As funny and mostly-accurate as this video is, It sure is a good thing that people don't come to church wanting the same sort of thing that they want from Starbucks. Newcomer to Starbucks: "All I want is a cup of coffee." Newcomer to Church: "All I want is..." what exactly? Connection? Community? Hope? Or just to sit for an hour and a half without gaining anything more significant than a cup of coffee? There is definitely a difference in quality of the thing that is sought after between Starbucks and the Church.
+Scott Mersino i think if coffee is to Starbucks then Jesus is to church. So if people came to church looking just for Jesus that would be a great thing to be motivated by. Unfortunately they wont find him in most churches today.
I agree with you. May I paste this specifically for you. Posted it fresh. Does this happen? Yes it does. When does it happen? When the Church resorts to, and rests on 'packaging' and natural wisdom. Result: the faith of the people they seek to impact merely stands on the wisdom of men, and not IN the power of God. John the Baptist preached in the wilderness and crowds sought him out. Jesus did same and stayed teaching for days in the wilderness yet the crowds refused to leave. Arise Church, put on the power of The Spirit. It is found in the place of boiling, travailing, tarrying in prayer. It's war!!! Have cute ushers hand out candy and chocolates all you want, it may help, I know, but your real power is released in the labor room of prayer! Let them do their thing. WE ARE NOT STARBUCKS!
I was expecting the punchline to be that they don't actually serve any coffee. They talk about it a lot and promise that you'll get coffee when you die, but... no real coffee.
"I found out when I gave my coffee came back to me pressed down, shaking together and running out all over, and I was a changed man!" 🤣😂😆 this is too much
One problem I've had with churches that act like this is, forcing people who are new to stand up in front of everybody, and have the spotlight shown on them. Years ago, when friends had invited me to their church that happened, and it put me right off from ever going with them again. When people come up wanting hope, or the need for Christ in their lives, this action makes people uncomfortable, and want to run out of there as fast as they can!
In my church, the coffee has been made, served, and consumed in the same way for hundreds of years, ever since we quit drinking Italian roast in the 1500s (it was a huge scandal). It is a very formal process, but very beautiful and meaningful. Visitors are absolutely welcome to drink as little or as much as they like, to order or simply follow along in the Menu of Common Coffee Drinks at first. It took me a few weeks to memorize my order, but the folks around me were very friendly and helpful.
And Jesus stretched out his hand and LO, there appeared to the disciples a glorious caramel Macchiato. But the disciples quarreled among themselves. "Master," cried Peter, "Did I not order a venti frappuchino with a sprinkling of almonds thereupon?" And Mark also cried out with a loud voice, for he did greatly desire a grande spiced pumpkin latte with two percent, for did not the LORD command that whole milk is an abomination from which comes ungodly cellulite? And Thomas, the Doubter, did complain mightily, for the heat of his mocha burned greatly and was more than 165 degrees in the scale known as Fahrenheit, which was adapted from the great and ancient kings of Britannica and is still used until this day. And there arose a great commotion as the disciples did fight amongst themselves. But Jesus said, "Let he who has ordered the carmel Macchiato first come forth, and take from me this burden, for LO it is heavy upon my hand and much has it scorched me!" Then Mary said, "Oh Master, it was I who did order the caramel Macchiato for great was my temptation!" And she bowed her head in shame. But Jesus said, "RISE, Mary, and be thee unashamed, for I have made this drink free of sugar! Behold it is yet tasty but the curse of cellulite is not upon it!" And she stretched forth her hand and did partake of the caramel Macchiato which Jesus had made.
I visited one of those seeker-sensitive churches back in January. It's amazing how accurate this video is. Amazing and sad. They even had greeters wearing these neon vests who opened the car door for me. It was kind of creepy, and all the people who rushed over trying to be all friendly seemed a little fake.
Mary Williams Yeah...that's code for Mormonism. "Get's paid" can be open to interpretation...What are those mandatory tithes for anyway? Extra gold on the temple?
Caleb D Tithing is meant to:help the church pay bills (electric, water, etc.), be used for outreach (ie: flyers letting folks know the church is there, VBS, etc.), help people in need, and, yes to pay the pastor. Many people think all pastors make a mint and use the church for money. Maybe some do, but there are many God-serving pastors who make a simple living and spend their days serving, studying the Word, and learning more about how to serve and teach better. Unfortunately, there is a lot out there that has given Christianity a bad name.
Caleb D Not sure who told you tithing is mandatory. You might check your sources, someone's having fun with you. 😉 Tithing and charity offerings are privately submitted, we don't even know who doesn't pay. As for how it's used, it's pretty similar as Snoopy111469 described, except it's a lay leadership so No; there are no salaries, tips, or financial benefits for working in any congregation in my church. Pastors in other churches work full time as pastor and don't have another job, so it makes sense for them to have a salary.
My church is like that too - (no one gets paid except for the occasional guest speaker and it is nothing like the video) and we aren't Mormon. We just are seeking to follow the Bible as close as we can. We don't believe it is wrong to pay a preacher or evangelist but currently we have a bunch of men that are willing to work very hard and preach and teach without pay and that allows us to have more money to send primarily to overseas missions.
I pastor a new church in Metro Detroit. We showed this video a few weeks ago, cause we're lookin at relocating into retail space. This was a big hit! Thanks!!!
Very well done! Even churches that claim that they do not market, market. Marketing is everything you do to communicate who you are and how you present yourself. It ultimately comes down to perception. What do you think of when you hear iPod or Coke? You bring up an image or feeling about the product. How do visitors perceive your church? Most churches encourage their members to invite new people, yet are not prepared to be inviting visitors yet. This is why most visitors will not come back.
Unfortunately, this is what happens when churches "market" at all. I was not called to market. I was not called to even "build a church". I was called to bring people to Jesus, and bring Jesus to people. :-)
How do you do that? Many churches go too far like in the video, but most churches act like they can't be bothered to acknowledge your presence - most churches are dying.
@@browserboy1984 It's actually rather simple. You just look for opportunities to love people. People will sometimes trickle in for programs...but they will line up to be loved.
@@haroldburrell4973 how do you love people at your church? It seems obvious to me in the way that I treat people, but my church is dying and most everyone does not know where to start.
@@browserboy1984 are you on facebook? I'd loved to chat with you about this. I certainly don't pretend to have all of the answers. In fact, I'm still learning myself. I think it would be cool to be able to put our heads together. :-)
Interesting teaching story. Tough to teach an old dog new tricks (the Church). Newer forms (or attempts to do so) seem to fall short as well. Wonderful that God is still involved in our messes.
Love this video! For people who apparently aren't getting the purpose of this video, it's for us, the members of the church, to see what it's like for first time guests. They feel like they're standing out like a sore thumb. It's like going to a new school. You feel totally weird! Thank you beyondrelevance for posting this!
EVERYTHING shown in this video is the exact reason why I dreaded attending church :) I'm a pretty faithful christian, but I'm also a practical and realistic person. I tried being a good christian, but i'm not a perfect person and was looked down upon for not attending church every sunday. How do people expect me to attend church every sunday when the few times I try to go, I face this? Maybe if I went more, I'd be a part of the group, but I can't even get started, because of fear.
I know this was a joke, but it is unfortunate if this is even slightly realistic in many churches. My whole life I have gone to one that doesn't have tithing or collections.
this was sooo creative and well done. made me laugh the whole way through, and realize a lot of things about the church that have intimidated me my entire life.
As a pastor and minister for 33 years, I really enjoyed this video! But please keep in mind; the church is a 2000 + year-old institution based on a 4000 + year old history. My job as a "modern" pastor is to bridge the gap between the old and the new. This video is good information, but just like a surgeon has to be patient , careful, and gentle in removing bad stuff from the body, we too have to be patient, careful, and gentle in removing archaic ideologies from the church. I will be showing this video to my staff as a training tool. Thanks for making this video. Javalujah!
When "shopping" for a church when I moved, I did come across a couple that had a slight vibe to this. Did not go back. Fakery is too awkward and and a waste of time.
Last night my wife and I visited a new church for the first time. We're (part of) "church" for decades, just worshiping at another congregation. Although the message was amazing, having seen this video yesterday, I could recognize that many of the same things were done at this congregation, although the people there were very friendly last night. It makes me think, though. Your message successfully communicated, I believe.
This is so funny! I think a lot of people don't understand what parables are so they're getting offended. But the wonderful thing is it's getting people thinking and talking and having conversations about things they hadn't thought about.
I totally agree and it needs to be a genuine welcome too not something that feels forced and artificial. For me, forced greetings also feel creepy. I probably wouldn't return.
What if our focus was on doing the work of God as opposed to doing the work of man. God gave us a command in Matthew 28: 18-20. it says "Go ye therefore" I'll stop there because He told us all to go someplace, but His command specifically said "to the nations" This is what He commanded us to do. He never commanded us to build churches and create an empire where men rule and get rich. This is what He taught against in The New Testament. I really thinks this is a great eye opener for those that are truly looking for the Real JESUS and not just an experience for a day in CHURCH. So as people all over the world are dying of thirst, we here in the US are haggling over what should go on a doggone "COFFEE CUP." How small does that make us? Let's get over ourselves and begin to experience God in a real way.
VitalityIn CHRIST there's nothing wrong with building churches. Temples were built to praise God in, in the Bible. In the book of Acts in Chapter 3 Peter and John go to the temple to pray to God
The gift of the holy spirit is not a coffee mug, neither are the teachings of Jesus. I appreciate satire, production values, acting, camera work and script. I also concur with views that see evangelism as just greed for the contents of the collection plate, but must add that not all churches are like that. Some use such proceeds to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the sick and shelter the poor. What proportion of church goers provide cash or credit cards to meet price variables too often attributed to Starbucks? What was the name of that mafia movie; "Pay Or Die? Lastly, I noted all the actors look as if they, coincidently, eat regularly.
Russo Lewis I agree with your flow. May I post this specifically for you. Posted it fresh. Does this happen? Yes it does. When does it happen? When the Church resorts to, and rests on 'packaging' and natural wisdom. Result: the faith of the people they seek to impact merely stands on the wisdom of men, and not IN the power of God. John the Baptist preached in the wilderness and crowds sought him out. Jesus did same and stayed teaching for days in the wilderness yet the crowds refused to leave. Arise Church, put on the power of The Spirit. It is found in the place of boiling, travailing, tarrying in prayer. It's war!!! Have cute ushers hand out candy and chocolates all you want, it may help, I know, but your real power is released in the labor room of prayer! Let them do their thing. WE ARE NOT STARBUCKS!
Dunkin' Donuts funds a children's charity, Starbucks funds Planned Parenthood. The CEO of Starbucks said if I'm for traditional marriage, he doesn't want my business. Very well, but I do stop in to use the restroom to register my opinion of Starbucks.
Pat: Awesome. I take water pills. Next time I have errands in that area I will add mine to yours. LOL. They do have a NICE restroom. I remember when I used to go there when I was able to afford money for expensive coffee. I don't have that kind of money anymore. And now because of your input you just informed me of, even if I did, I wouldn't buy any more coffee there anyway. LOL. I sure will deposit my coffee from home though. Thanks, Pat. Amen. All Christians need to "give to Starbucks to protest" Planned Parenthood. Thanks for your comment. Shelly :) Now Chick Fillet IS a very Christian organization. A little expensive but great chicken and closed on Sunday's. Lovely service every time I go. Now that is a great company!
Just a thought: when Starbucks started serving hot sandwiches their profits began to take a dive... The with many customers who actually came to drink coffee becoming upset over the wait time and the new group of customers who didn't care for coffee in the slightest, but instead came because it was the "cool" thing to get their sandwich and a frilly drink because which also takes forever in coffee time.
This is a great video. Actually, too many experiences like this in evangelical churches is a big part of why I started looking for something else. I don't regret it though, because without that experience I might not have joined the Episcopal church, which I love dearly. Of course, there's nothing that keeps mainline churches from being obnoxious in this fashion either.
Left the church a while ago and don't intend to go back, but I really enjoyed this video. It perfectly captured the bland, wealth-laden irrelevance of the suburban churches I attended throughout my life. More than a few could have doubled as country clubs, but at least the country clubs didn't pretend to be humble or preach at you about poverty in Christ. Javaluyah!
I went to a "Mega church" in Minneapolis that was nothing like this (Aside from the parking thing- which drove me batty). Granted, I think a 9,000 member church in a 4 city of 4 million people is reasonable... Then I went to a little church of 50 people in a small town and THIS is exactly that church!
