Church Visits- March 26, 2006- Liquid Church, Millington, NJ

Website- www.liquidchurch.com
Don't let the traditional appearance of the Millington Baptist Church fool you. This church is far from traditional! "Liquid Church" (which meets every Sunday evening at 5:00PM & 7:30PM) has a reputation for effectively reaching young adults with the message of Jesus Christ. It was filled with 20's & 30's young adults who call this church their home. They run 2 services, and the attendance at each one runs around 250+. The church was packed. I was probably the oldest one there that evening. As I looked around during the worship service, I noticed that these young adults were really WORSHIPPING- lifting up their voices, standing, sitting, kneeling, whatever seemed appropriate for the mood of the service at the moment. Worship was very contemporary- "cutting edge"- but, also with a mix of traditional hymns mixed in (played in a contemporary style).
The pastor of Liquid, Pastor Tim Lukas, was an excellent teacher. He was dressed informally, sat on a bench (sometimes- although, he got up at times when his energy increased) in his jeans and sportshirt, and he spoke very clearly on keeping balance in our Christian lives- balance between spending time with the Lord, spending time with Christians and spending time with unbelievers. I especially appreciated Pastor Tim's transparency. He did not speak as one who "had it all together", but rather as one who was along with all of us on the journey, struggling and trusting the Lord to obey and follow His commands. I have been to "Liquid" 3 times, and each time, I heard Tim say, "This is the area that I struggle with...and let me tell you what that looks like." This does not make him LESS worthy of being a leader, but rather MORE worthy of being a leader. I found myself saying, "yeah- I struggle with that too"- but, he did not leave us without an answer. The answer was always- JESUS! Flee to Him...trust Him...pray to Him- that's the way to "get it done" in the Christian life. I believe that young adults- actually, even old guys like me- appreciate that kind of transparency and genuineness. The pastor is ministering WITH the congregation, not ministering TO the congregation.
After the worship service, they had an informal meeting downstairs with a gift-bag full of gifts and information on the worship service, and a chance to meet with "Pastor Tim" and a few of the others on staff. Again, it was easy to talk with these people, easy to feel like a part of things right away.
This ministry is also very strong in outreach, in serving within the world as a witness to the world about the love of Jesus Christ. For instance, they have a section on the website, "Church without walls" (of course, this topic is of special interest to me- this is the "theme" for our vision for church planting), and it shows some of the projects that they have been involved with- trips to New Orleans, Boardwalk ministry, etc. I was especially interested in their giving away bottled water in New Jersey's annual "Gay Pride Celebration", and meeting with and talking people about the love of Jesus Christ. The sign at their booth said, "FREE WATER! Refreshing, No Strings Attached...Just like God's Love". Wow- that's bold stuff- the kind of ministry that is making a difference. Pastor Tim told a story about talking with a lesbian woman about being "Baptist"- she said, "Are you here to tell us that if we don't change, we are going to hell?" Pastor Tim's response was, "Not at all- actually, God is changing US- many of us as Christians have been pretty judgmental- but, Jesus is changing OUR hearts. So, we are here today just to serve and try humbly to reconcile..." The response was immediate and heartfelt- "Thank you! Finally a group of religious people who are treating us like REAL Christians are supposed to..."
My friends, THAT kind of mission thinking is what will make a difference in our broken, sinful and alienated world!