Moving Forward By Doing Less

In a recent article Tony Morgan asks the question, "Can your church let go of traditions for the mission? It is a question worth thinking about!  There are many things that we do because it is a part of our church's tradition - even if they do not help us fulfill the mission for which the church was founded.  

If you were to write a short paragraph sharing the purpose of your church and then evaluate everything you do by asking, "Does it help us fulfill our purpose?" would you have a list of things that you are spending your time and resources on that don't move your church forward?  Let me challenge you to take a few minutes, grab a cup of coffee and write your paragraph and evaluate what you do!  
You can see his article here http://tinyurl.com/3urmkru

Established Churches and Church Plants

How can church plants and existing churches help each other?

Brandon Levering wrote a great article in which he asked, 

"What would happen if more churches embraced the passion and energy of new church plants?" He continues to describe five things established churches can glean from church plants.  His list includes:

1. Church plants clearly define their mission and keep it before them in everything they do.
2. Church plants feel an acute sense of urgency to engage in evangelism.
3. Church plants tend to better understand the culture they're engaging.
4. Church plants use a wider portion of the congregation in the congregation in service.
5. Church plants are morel likely to think strategically about planting more churches.

What things would you add to his list?  If you were making a list of things church plants could learn from established churches, what would you include?

God is doing great things as He continues to call people to Himself through His Church!   Let's learn from each other so that we might become more effective in reaching our areas for Christ!

You can read Brandon's article here: http://t.co/TcwfDGyL

Discovering The Truth

What do you do if you find that your church is not all she should be?  Perhaps you are doing well in a few areas, but you can admit that there is room for improvement in others.  Maybe your church has more areas of improvement than you care to admit!  You may be tempted to look for some easy solutions, but let me encourage you to take time to discover the truth.

I believe that the first thing you should do is investigate.  Do some digging and ask some people to join you in the process of discovering more about why your church is in the condition that she is in.  Through this process ask questions, search the Scriptures, talk with other churches, and look for resources that will help you determine why your church is the way she is. 

Once you determine the underlying reasons for your church's condition,  you are more likely to address the real issues that you face and confront the truth that you have discovered!

One resource I came across the other day is The Leisure Suit Trap.  In this e-book, Tony Morgan shares eight reasons why your church may be stuck.  You can get a free copy of this by going to his website, www.tonymorganlive.com.  Here is his list of eight:

1. You lack a leadership empowerment plan.
2. You are unclear about your vision and mission.
3. You blame outsiders and external factors.
4. Your structure inhibits growth.
5. You worship your past successes.
6. You focus on activities instead of outcomes.
7. You fail to equip God's people.
8. Your ministries ignore people outside the church.

His book may help jump start your thinking and help you dig a little deeper to discover the truth about your church!  

Four Great Questions!

In the introduction of The Externally Focused Quest, Eric Swanson and Rick Rusaw ask three great questions!  The first question is, "If your church were to close its doors, would anyone in the community notice - would anyone in the community care?"  I wonder what we would learn if we took a quick survey of the homes and businesses around our church to ask if the people were aware of our church and what their opinion of our church is.

The second and third questions are at odds with each other.  "How can we be the 'best church in our community?'" and "How can we be the best church for our community?"  Those two little words change our focus tremendously!  To be the best church in our community we find ourselves comparing our church with the churches around us.  It is easy to fall into this trap.  To think we are doing fairly well because at least we are "better off" than the church down the road.  To be the best church for the community puts our focus back on what God intended His Church to be.  We are to be salt and light not in competition, but in coordination with other Christians for our community. 

So, how do you measure success for your church?  Be careful!  How you answer that question will tell you if you are trying to be the best church in, or for, your community!

Caring?

Perhaps you are old enough to remember the picture on the right.  It was a part of an ad campaign in the 70's called "Keep America Beautiful."  The commercial ends with a close up of a tear running down the Indian's cheek after a car drives by throwing trash that lands at his feet.  The idea was that the trash being thrown out so carelessly affected him so deeply that he cried and, perhaps, you should as well.  The picture became a symbol for caring about our environment.

I was reading Nehemiah just the other day and in chapter one, we find that some people came and gave a report to Nehemiah about the condition of the people and the city Jerusalem.  The report is not a good one!  The people are in distress and the city's walls are broken down.  The Bible tell us Nehemiah's response, "So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days" (Nehemiah 1:4).  He mourned over what he had learned.  He cared for his people.

When we look at the condition of our churches what do we discover?  We see that a majority of our churches are plateaued or declining.  We see churches that, over time, have focused more on the institution and no longer reflect the people that live around the church plant.  We see people who have never learned what it means to live life as a disciple of Jesus. 

When we look at our community what do we discover? 

How has what we have seen affected us?  Has it brought a deep sense of caring?

Starting Out

Would you call your church a transformational church? Before you can answer that, we need to ask, "What is a transformational church? According to Thom Rainer and Ed Stetzer a transformational church is one where, "people become more like Jesus, churches act more like the body of Christ, and communities reflect more like the kingdom of God." The community, the individuals in the community, and the church itself are all in the process of change. As we look at the majority of churches (80%) we are either plateaued or declining. Not the change we are wanting!

Your church is probably a part of that 80%! There is no need to be discouraged, or defeated. Understanding the reality of our situation is a great first step! We need to see who we are and understand who we are called to be and allow the tension to move us forward!

Perhaps the best way for us to begin our discussion together to start out is to ask a question. "What would it look like for your church to turn the world upside down?" Bob Roberts asks this question in his book, Transformation. What a great question!!

He also says, "We don't make a difference because the gospel has not made us different as God intended it to do. We are just more religious." Now I know that this does not describe all of us, but is it possible that many in our churches have become religious rather than transformed?

So where do we start? I believe it starts with you! God has called you to be transformed and as a result you will make a difference where you are. Bill Hybels declares, "The local church is the hope of the world, and its future rests primarily in the hands of its leaders.”

So leader, are you being transformed? Are you using the tension to help your church move forward?