Last year our mom and pop video store near our home sold their inventory of movies and closed their business completely. Now this month Movie Gallery is selling inventory and preparing to close their doors as well. The entertainment business continues to change everyday. I recall the days of renting a vcr for the weekend, because we did not actually own one! A few years later dvd’s became the industry standard for movies. . It appears to be a difficult time to be in the entertainment business right now.

Netflix and companies that have copied their concept of mailing dvd’s and providing a form of instant viewing have made the movie rental business obsolete overnight. Red Box should be factored into the equation too. Their economical and simple way of renting new releases is far superior to going to a store that rents the same movie for three or four times the cost. The music industry has undergone very similar changes. The inception of i-pods and various ways of downloading music has made other forms of marketing in that industry archaic.

I find it impossible to keep up with the changes. My kids grasp these things quickly. They introduced me to Red Box, Netflix, and Pandora. I love my Pandora internet radio! (Of course they are completely disgusted with the stations I have assumed on Pandora.) What do I do with this information then  How do I react to sweeping and often complex changes in the entertainment industry? I actually have a single reaction.

A culture that is so accustomed to be entertained in such instantaneous ways comes to a worship service at church with an expectation of experiencing more of the same. I seriously doubt most of us are ready to admit that fact, but it is true. Preachers are taking advantage of all kinds of media forms to communicate religious messages. I can’t help but be intrigued by some of it. I like good videos that have a meaningful message. I appreciate effective graphics. There are just neat things we can do. And quite frankly I really get into most of it!

We also feel some degree of pressure to address an audience that has had all kinds of multi media experiences all week. That may not be such a good thing. I would issue a word of warning to all of us who plan Sunday worship gatherings. If we allow the pressure to entertain a culture whose tastes change like the shifting shadows to drive our worship planning, we will live to regret it. We will end up somewhere we never intended to be at some point. If the entertainment industry cannot keep up with constant barrage of changes, how will churches possibly do the same? Note to myself: Keep worship theocentric. If we can use some technology in a helpful way, then get with it. Worship should be God driven and not entertainment driven.

I don’t think we will close our doors because the message is obsolete. I do think we could have to close our doors because suddenly we are no longer cool. Someone else is doing a better job entertaining down the street. I know it sounds crazy, but in a few years such events could actually happen. How do I keep it about God and communicate to an ever changing culture effectively? That is the question of the hour!