What is church?

Today I was having a conversation with my pastor, not that he's my personal pastor, but he's the pastor of the church I worship and serve at. I love the guy and he's become an important friend in my life in the short time that we've known each other. That must be what happens when you're part of a church plant. At any rate, the conversation we were having today was about the church and how it's become shaped as something. That shape may not be absolutely wrong or right, but it certainly is flawed. Our church is looking for ways to serve our community of Suwanee, Ga and we were thinking of the ways an inner city church does that; by supplying food, clothes, shelter, and compassion for those in their community. At that moment I had a picture in my mind of a group of people serving in a soup kitchen together. At the end of their time serving they weren't ready to part, so they shared their thoughts on what they saw that day. Enjoying their time, this pattern continued week after week and month after month. Through this one act, a small group was born soley based on the experience of serving and sharing. It makes me think what kind of changes to their lives would this group make? What else would they go on to do?

So could a church be based on serving? On a shared experience? What about small groups? We strive so hard to create small groups in church these days and most of time, in my limited observations, they fail or at least flail. It seems like in small groups today we watch a video or read a book to advance our spiritual formation, but Jesus didn't come for the healthy. He came for the sick and if we're in a small group at a church we're certainly healthy enough to be Jesus to someone sick!

It's late and I've had a long day; maybe my vision is of a super group of people and could never happen. Maybe building a church off of serving and the community that that would bring is a silly idea. I know there is no worship music or childrens ministry and it doesn't fit with what we've come to know as church in our religion let alone region, but it just feels as if there's truth in it and that's a fine place to start for now.