50 Most Influential Churches…

I have read a number of pastor’s blogs over the last week or so that talk about how their church made it onto the Top 50 Most Influential Churches in America List. I guess that’s the equivalent of an ESPY, a Golden Globe, an Oscar, or appearing Leno for churches. What I really wonder is why anyone publishes a list like that, how they can effectively decide where churches rank and why it is suppose to matter to. Shouldn’t we really care which church has grown the most, how many lost people they reached, and how many people’s lives have been changed. If I go kill 50 people tomorrow I will get an audience for 15 minutes, but it doesn’t make me influential. If you are famous its doesn’t make your influential, just popular. Pepsi is pretty well known, but it’s not influential. Drinking a Pepsi will not help you be a better dad. I guess I am unimpressed with lists like that, because I know you have to toot your own horn, get in the right circles and have a lot of resources to appear on a list like that. I would rather be on the list for the church that changed Bartow County forever.