There are certain passages of scripture that simply disturb me! Mostly because I catch a glimpse of what the application of that text would look like and I see how far as a society we are from an actual real world application. Last week I spent the week at a large Christian conference about church planting and I found some elements I loved and some elements I just couldn’t place with some of Jesus most disturbing passages.
“The first shall be last, the last shall be first”
“the least of these”
“The servant master”
So I want to simply label a few categories – The uncomfortable & the beautiful & we would love to hear your thoughts.
The Uncomfortable
1) Pastor Celebrities -
I watched a speaker at the conference being asked to sign books and to pose in pictures. There were pictures of these speakers on the banners everywhere including life sized cardboard cut outs. I listened to some young pastors speak of these pastor celebrities as if they were what this conference was all about. “I came to hear ……………” “I can’t wait to hear from him” At one point there was a mascot similar to Ronald McDonald or Brutus the Buckeye that looked exactly like one of these guys. I cringe at all of these images and pray that God would break us of our desire to elevate the teaching gift or writing gift over all the other gifts. I pray that we would see more humility and more humanity from our leaders and less of their face on billboards.
2) Strategic Planting Locations -
There is good and bad in this & I heard them both. But I am so bothered when we discuss where we are planting in terms of growing emerging neighborhoods or economic growth. I don’t like hearing from planters that they chose their location because the neighborhood is growing and the wealthy portion of our society is moving in or is near by. I realize some are called to reach the wealthy it just doesn’t seem like all of us have been. Lets not choose where we plant based on our ability to grow our church but lets start choosing on our ability to grow his kingdom!
3)The Blueprint
I think there is a prevalent lie in our church society that there is a blueprint for growth and that if I work my list and if I go from point A to point B then our church will grow, or will succeed or flourish. To often I have heard the message of these are the four things you need to grow your church or if you follow this plan you will make it. Everything from books to sermons to media companies to missions organizations all seem to have the key to your churches growth which stand opposed to Proverbs 16 “in his heart a man plans his course but the Lord determines his steps.”
4) Bigger is better
I will just simply state it – bigger isn’t better its just bigger! Too many young pastors are made to feel that if their ministry isn’t big then they are not successful. We have the wrong heroes, I want to be celebrate faithfulness more and success less.
The Beautiful
1) The Struggling Planter
I sat down with a few friends who are really struggling. Things haven’t worked the way they would have liked them to and now they are scared and are re-evaluating who they are and who God has called them to be. I found in them men who are finding who they are apart from the “stage”. They are finding their fulfillment in who God is and who he has called them to be. I found so much faithfulness in their stories of struggles and found myself wanting to hear more from these guys then the mega church guys on stage. One planter said exactly what I have been feeling when he said, I don’t know if anyone in my community is changing but I know God is changing me, my family and my heart.
2) The Brotherhood
At all of these conferences I love finding a few real brothers in Christ that I can laugh with, pray with and share my heart with. I was more encouraged with these discussions than with any message from the stage. Knowing that I have a few brothers in Christ who are in the same boat as me, who are just as terrified, just as clueless and just as crazy dependent on God as we are is amazing. Those moments are sacred and meaningful because I begin the see the body of Christ at work through faithful men all over the world!
Maybe you aren’t a church conference attender but all of live in a “Christian” culture and experience bits and pieces of the great reversal. Where do you see us getting it right & where do you see us getting it wrong?
