Remember full service?

Gas stations, I mean.

It was so easy. You’d just pull in, roll down the window, and say “Fill’r up!”

And then you’d watch as other folks did it all for you:

Oil? Checked.

Tire Pressure?  Checked.

Windshield?  Washed.

Wow.  That seems like a long time ago.

You can still find a full service station every once in a while, but over the past few decades things have swung dramatically into the realm of “self serve”.

You get out.

You pump your own gas.

Maybe you wipe off the windshield.

The oil and the tires?  Eh, they’re probably fine.

We certainly have a different experience at the pump today than folks did 30+ years ago.

Interestingly, some of the changes in our gas stations have happened in our churches, too.

It used to be the pastor and the choir would do most of the work filling people up with The Spirit.

Sermon? Check

Anthem? Check

Prayer? Prayed

Just to be present in the congregation would fill people up.

And that still works for many.

But more and more, today, people like to pump their own Living Water, so to speak.

Seeking on their own or in small groups, active and engaged, both in the church and out in the world.

I wonder.  Which do you prefer?

Are you more the Full Serve or Self Serve type?

Well, if I was working at the station on the corner (and by the way, I am) I’d work hard to find a way to offer BOTH options.

Full Service and Self Service spirituality options,

multiple methods to “fill’r up”,

so that everybody can be powered by the Holy Spirit,

operating at the highest possible Ministry Per Gallon.

Have a great week, Mitch