disneyland or blockbuster? the tension every church feels
A week or so ago, I watched a reel of someone talking about the mundaneness of church.
How every week can feel like the same thing.
The same rhythms.
The same “ritual.”
How it can come across as boring.
They shared how they would rather stay home and watch church online than actually be a part of community.
And honestly… I get the emotion behind that.
It also reminded me how much pressure there is on pastors and churches right now — pressure to either become Disneyland or end up like Blockbuster.
Let me explain.
The Pressure to Be Disneyland
Disneyland (or Disney World) is a massive theme park full of rides, food, entertainment — and constant innovation. It’s always being updated to match the newest movie, the newest hype, the newest success.
Disney is constantly creating and recreating to attract people and keep people coming back.
And sometimes church leaders feel that same pressure:
“If we don’t keep upgrading, we’ll lose people.”
“If it’s not exciting, it won’t last.”
“If it’s not new, it’s not worth coming to.”
It’s the temptation to believe church needs to be an experience first… and a community second.
The Fear of Becoming Blockbuster
Then on the other side, you’ve got Blockbuster.
If you grew up in the 90’s, you know the magic.
Walking the aisles.
Picking a movie for the weekend.
Grabbing candy at the front.
And of course…
“Be kind, rewind.”
But the hard reality is that when DVDs and streaming came along, Blockbuster didn’t adapt fast enough. It got left behind. And eventually, it disappeared.
And churches feel that fear too:
“If we don’t change, we’ll become irrelevant.”
“If we don’t evolve, we’ll close.”
“If we stay too rigid, we’ll lose the next generation.”
So What Are We Supposed to Be?
As pastors, there’s a tension:
We don’t want to become Disneyland — obsessed with entertainment and constant reinvention.
But we also don’t want to become Blockbuster — stuck, fading, and unable to engage the world we’ve been sent to.
And here’s why this is so difficult:
Because we are trying to do something that requires wisdom.
We want to be relevant, but also hold tightly to orthodoxy.
We want to be creative, but also faithful.
We want to be Spirit-led, but also grounded.
The reality is… there is something beautiful about tradition and liturgy.
AND…
There is something powerful about being led by the Holy Spirit.
Those aren’t enemies. They’re meant to work together.
As Eugene Peterson wrote:
“There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue.”
That quote says so much. We are living in an age where people crave an experience — but deep spiritual formation usually happens slower, deeper, and quieter than we expect.
How Do We Live in the Tension?
As a pastor, each week we come in with a plan. We want to clearly make Jesus known and lifted up.
But we also intentionally remain open — open to the Spirit moving, open to change, open to that “holy interruption” that sometimes comes on a Sunday morning… or on an ordinary Tuesday.
So how do we live in this tension well?
Here are a few anchors I’m learning to hold onto:
1. Keep the core beliefs of our faith strong and clear
Trends come and go.
But truth stays.
2. Remember that Jesus is the center of all we do
Not a personality.
Not hype.
Not production.
Not preferences.
Jesus.
3. Follow the Spirit in the moments
The church isn’t meant to be robotic.
We plan — but we also listen.
4. Be flexible on non-core issues
Not everything is worth fighting about.
Some things are sacred.
Some things are just tradition.
And wisdom knows the difference.
5. Invite the next generation to speak into the seasons of the church
Not to throw out the gospel.
But to help us communicate it clearly in their world.
6. Be humble
Pride is often disguised as “conviction,” but it produces division.
Humility builds trust and keeps our hearts soft.
7. Let God carry the heavy load
We aren’t the Savior.
Jesus is.
Our calling is not to be impressive — it’s to be faithful.
Faithfulness Is Not Boring
The world is addicted to novelty.
But Scripture teaches something different:
that slow faithfulness, steady worship, consistent community, regular confession, and ordinary obedience is where deep transformation happens.
There’s a kind of holiness in the “same thing every week.”
C.S. Lewis once wrote:
“It is not your business to succeed, but to do right; when you have done so the rest lies with God.”
That’s a needed reminder in a ministry world filled with pressure, metrics, and comparison.
Because at the end of the day:
It’s not the sameness that changes us…
it’s the presence of Jesus in it.
How every week can feel like the same thing.
The same rhythms.
The same “ritual.”
How it can come across as boring.
They shared how they would rather stay home and watch church online than actually be a part of community.
And honestly… I get the emotion behind that.
It also reminded me how much pressure there is on pastors and churches right now — pressure to either become Disneyland or end up like Blockbuster.
Let me explain.
The Pressure to Be Disneyland
Disneyland (or Disney World) is a massive theme park full of rides, food, entertainment — and constant innovation. It’s always being updated to match the newest movie, the newest hype, the newest success.
Disney is constantly creating and recreating to attract people and keep people coming back.
And sometimes church leaders feel that same pressure:
“If we don’t keep upgrading, we’ll lose people.”
“If it’s not exciting, it won’t last.”
“If it’s not new, it’s not worth coming to.”
It’s the temptation to believe church needs to be an experience first… and a community second.
The Fear of Becoming Blockbuster
Then on the other side, you’ve got Blockbuster.
If you grew up in the 90’s, you know the magic.
Walking the aisles.
Picking a movie for the weekend.
Grabbing candy at the front.
And of course…
“Be kind, rewind.”
But the hard reality is that when DVDs and streaming came along, Blockbuster didn’t adapt fast enough. It got left behind. And eventually, it disappeared.
And churches feel that fear too:
“If we don’t change, we’ll become irrelevant.”
“If we don’t evolve, we’ll close.”
“If we stay too rigid, we’ll lose the next generation.”
So What Are We Supposed to Be?
As pastors, there’s a tension:
We don’t want to become Disneyland — obsessed with entertainment and constant reinvention.
But we also don’t want to become Blockbuster — stuck, fading, and unable to engage the world we’ve been sent to.
And here’s why this is so difficult:
Because we are trying to do something that requires wisdom.
We want to be relevant, but also hold tightly to orthodoxy.
We want to be creative, but also faithful.
We want to be Spirit-led, but also grounded.
The reality is… there is something beautiful about tradition and liturgy.
AND…
There is something powerful about being led by the Holy Spirit.
Those aren’t enemies. They’re meant to work together.
As Eugene Peterson wrote:
“There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue.”
That quote says so much. We are living in an age where people crave an experience — but deep spiritual formation usually happens slower, deeper, and quieter than we expect.
How Do We Live in the Tension?
As a pastor, each week we come in with a plan. We want to clearly make Jesus known and lifted up.
But we also intentionally remain open — open to the Spirit moving, open to change, open to that “holy interruption” that sometimes comes on a Sunday morning… or on an ordinary Tuesday.
So how do we live in this tension well?
Here are a few anchors I’m learning to hold onto:
1. Keep the core beliefs of our faith strong and clear
Trends come and go.
But truth stays.
2. Remember that Jesus is the center of all we do
Not a personality.
Not hype.
Not production.
Not preferences.
Jesus.
3. Follow the Spirit in the moments
The church isn’t meant to be robotic.
We plan — but we also listen.
4. Be flexible on non-core issues
Not everything is worth fighting about.
Some things are sacred.
Some things are just tradition.
And wisdom knows the difference.
5. Invite the next generation to speak into the seasons of the church
Not to throw out the gospel.
But to help us communicate it clearly in their world.
6. Be humble
Pride is often disguised as “conviction,” but it produces division.
Humility builds trust and keeps our hearts soft.
7. Let God carry the heavy load
We aren’t the Savior.
Jesus is.
Our calling is not to be impressive — it’s to be faithful.
Faithfulness Is Not Boring
The world is addicted to novelty.
But Scripture teaches something different:
that slow faithfulness, steady worship, consistent community, regular confession, and ordinary obedience is where deep transformation happens.
There’s a kind of holiness in the “same thing every week.”
C.S. Lewis once wrote:
“It is not your business to succeed, but to do right; when you have done so the rest lies with God.”
That’s a needed reminder in a ministry world filled with pressure, metrics, and comparison.
Because at the end of the day:
It’s not the sameness that changes us…
it’s the presence of Jesus in it.
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