3 Ways A Local Church Went "Member-Driven" Without Knowing It

I recently talked with an old college friend who also leads a church in my area. When I shared some of the basics of the member-driven model of church he not only immediately resonated with them, he offered examples of how they have made their church services more member-driven.

First, they begin each Sunday gathering with 20-30 min of prayer. It's not a "before-the-service" meeting. It's the first item on their agenda. He says that it sets a crucial tone for the rest of the meeting.

Also, once a month they won't include any music as a part of the service. No, it's not to give the musicians time off. :) It's to help their members to step out of the "consumer mentality" our culture and typical churches encourage (something he's passionate about).

He talked about moving from declaration of a truth to demonstration of that truth in their services. (His more intelligent version of Growth Through Practice.)

I'm not saying that these are habits every church needs to adopt. That would just be replacing one non-Spirit-led assumption about church for another. The particular ministry mix used in your church needs to be based on the leading of the Holy Spirit.

I am saying I was encouraged to see these demonstrations of member-driven principles--whether or not they originally called them "member-driven".

What are you doing in your church? What creative approaches to "spurring one another to good works" can you share with the rest of us (Hebrews 10:24-25)?