Okay... this got my attention, a sermon series titled "The 30 Day Sex Challenge." RelevantChurch.com, a Tampa area church, has the reputation of being... well... relevant. In this recent sermon series they gave a challenge: Married couples commit to having sex for 30 days, singles commit to abstinence for 30 days.
Pretty cool.
I called David Smith (David is our THE SOURCE speaker and writer who edits our games and event ideas, manages content, and authors the Youth Culture Window article most weeks) yesterday (he's from Tampa) and asked him if he had heard of the church and the challenge. His response: "Yeah, I meant to bring my wife there that month!" :)
David emailed me a little more about this church. I thought you all would find it interesting:
“Relevant Church meets in The Italian Club in Ybor City (pronounced Eebor). Pastor Paul Wirth and a small staff lead the church of about 200 people, comprised mostly of 18-30 year olds. The very name of their church describes the way they operate, with relevance. They use rock music during times of worship, rely on a heavy use of videos in service, and place an emphasis on preaching towards needs. It truly is a place “Where Culture Meets Christ.”
They have all but mastered publicity. With most of their sermon series, they typically launch a new website. (Check out www.showyourmarks.com, their MySpace profile, or their Facebook page.) Almost every student at USF has seen their cool and catchy signs posted around campus. Their latest “sermon series” involved the whole church going to the movie theater together each Friday night to watch a film…so they could discuss its possible relevance to their faith lives on Sunday morning. (They watched The Incredible Hulk, Get Smart, X-Files, Hancock, Wall*E, Kung Fu Panda, and The Dark Knight.)
Though they have two services meeting each Sunday, they are not afraid to mix things up on the weekends. Within the last month, they took advantage of the summer season, and moved their entire worship service over to the beach. There they taught on baptism and joined 15 people to the church through baptism.
Without a doubt, the church is most famous (or infamous) for their sermon series “The 30 Day Sex Challenge.” It received ample coverage by the local newspapers, radio stations, and TV news teams. Even though their book by the same title has yet to come out, a majority of people (and churches) in the Tampa Bay area have forged an opinion on Relevant Church and its message.”
Hmmmmmm.