The planters menace

What would you consider to be the biggest menace to church planting? Many planters deal with difficult people, limited finances, and un-satisfactory meeting places just to name a few. But have you considered that the biggest menace to church planting may be what we call -- religion. Most church planters think that there are a bunch of elements that are limiting to the success and growth of a church plant. Usually our biggest menace becomes our unwillingness to depart from living and acting out of our own religion. In reality many church plants are masking themselves behind a fresher and livelier religion. Good performances, excellent ministries, phenomenal story-telling, and Cadillac technology are some of the masks that many church plants hide behind these days. When you begin to unveil the "stuff" what you begin to see is another form of "good old religion." How do we know this? Check out who is really attending the church plant! Most church plants in our land are not connecting and reaching people who are outside of church life. Most of the people that are baptized ususally come from somewhat of a churched background. We've also grown accustom to making fun of the "old time" churches, saying that they are irrelevant and inadequate in reaching people. What we really mean to say is that they aren't reaching out anymore to the "church hoppers" that we're accustomed to reeling in. So, what is the solution? Quit repackaging grandma's church and start acting like the church in Acts. Start behaving like the Christian character Paul describes in Romans 12, and stop mimicking the character of the Corinthian and Revelation churches. The character of the Christians that Paul described in Romans 12 revealed the significance of living and functioning in relationships that we encounter in the world. He (Paul) spoke on how to rightly relate to God, the world, ourselves, other believers, and un-believers in the world. It makes sense to me that if we mimicked Romans 12 rather than the church that we've known in the western world for hundreds of years, we might find ourselves reaching and relating to people who live in our neighborhoods and communities. Let's face reality; religion will not reach people. Relationships on the other hand is the true essence of how we can and should reach out to people who need Christ. So, as we begin 2009 I would challenge you to do everything you can as a church planter to bury the habits of practicing religion. Try commiting to living like a Romans 12 follower of Christ (this is what I've committed to do myself). I would further challenge you to do everything you can to reach out and build relationships with lost people. If you haven't figured this out yet, let me remind you that "they (un-churched people) are not going to show up to your church plant." What reaches people are people; not religion, things, gimmicks, and shows. People building and living out of genuine relationships reach people. My prayer is you'll earnestly try this approach this year. What do you have to lose if you do? Oh yeah, that old menace called RELIGION!

Aim small, miss small

One of my favorite lines in the movie "The Patriot" is the one where the father (mel gibson) tells his two sons to "aim small, miss small" when shooting at their targets. When one uses this phrase it always raises an eyebrow to "what does that really mean?" The line was communicated to raise the awareness that if you going to hit a target, the best way to insure a direct hit on the target, is to aim at something specific rather than at something large. Good soldiers know that if you try to shoot your gun at the whole man, rather than at something on the man, your odds of missing your target are extremely higher. But, if you aim for the button on the coat of the man, there is a greater chance for a direct hit.

This is the dilemma many church planters have in starting a new church. They think if you aim at the masses you're bound to hit something. And, in reality they do. The problem is when they focus their aim at reaching the masses, their usual targets are not what they were aiming at in the first place. Meaning, when you aim and shoot at the mass in church planting, what you normally get is dysfunctional and disenfranchised "Christians." If many church planters would adopt the mentality of going after more individuals rather than the crowd, they might find out in time that what they were aiming for is actually what they are getting in return. The philosophy of "aim small, miss small" doesn't just apply in war and hunting, it also applies to reaching men and women for Christ. If church planters would take the time to aim more intentionally at people who are outside of a relationship Christ, and zero in on reaching them, then perhaps our church plants would be filled more with people who have been outside of Christ. What I see is this -- what we put in our sights is what we get. If you put a mass of people in your sights, and then pull the trigger, what you get from the mass is usually a mess. If you target going after one person at a time, you'll probably end up with the type of people you were trying to reach in the first place. So, the choice is yours and mine. We can aim for the crowd, and bag what we get. Or, we can be more intentional at what we're aiming at and zero in on people whom God puts in our path. One is easier and doesn't take as much time, and the results usually are unappealing and regretful. The other is harder and takes time, and the results are always fresh and rewarding. I don't know what your aiming at as a church planter today, but my prayer is that you "aim small so that you miss small" and you bag what God wanted you to go after in the first place.

What it's all about

A reminder for church planters during this Christmas season:

"The beginning of the story is wonderful and great, but it's the ending that can save you and that's why we celebrate. It's about the cross!"

I came across this video that I believe will help you and I to remind people what this season is really all about. Let me know what you think!

When in Rome. . .

The old saying; "when in Rome do as the Romans do" is good practical advice for a church planter. If there is one thing a church planter needs to do well it is to live and become a part of the culture where they are planting a church. I was reminded of this today as I watched the extreme focus that the media was placing on the first day of Deer Hunting in Pennsylvania. In PA. deer hunting is a religion and holiday. On the first day schools are closed, the TV stations are stationed on the roadsides to interview hunters going in and coming out of the woods, and the neighborhoods are looking and listening to find out who got the big Buck. For a planter to be successful in this area of the country they must get connected somehow to this yearly phenomenon that takes place on the first Monday after Thanksgiving. The ability to relationally connect with men (and some women) may totally land on whether or not a planter invests some of his time, energy, and resources in engaging in this sport. When a planter takes the time to "exegete" his culture he will quickly find what makes the people in his arena of life "tick." When they've found that "tick" and invest themselves in participating in the interest of the people all kinds of relational doors quickly open. When they are lazy and can care less about what makes people tick, their approaching them to share the gospel will probably just "tick them off." So, here's some advice from a seasoned planter, "when in Rome you better learn and do what the Romans do." In PA. that means getting a gun and a hunting licence and getting out there with the majority of men who are passionate about one thing; killing deer. Learn to exegete the culture. Learn it, live it, and love it; this may be the very entry point into people's lives that you've been praying for.

Holiday downtime

Holidays are an excellent time for a church planter to recoup his energy and spend valuable time with his family. If you're church planting I would encourage to downshift your energies during this time. After the holidays come and go, the demands of ministering and planting in the winter don't get easier, they get harder. In my church planting experience I noticed as long as people were preoccupied with the festivities of the holidays they were not focused on themselves and their issues. But, once January 2nd came, this quickly changed. The antidote for this annual occurrence for me was to slow down and take it easy over the holidays. When I did this it helped give me the energy that I needed to deal with the "winter blues" that quickly enveloped people. So, slow it down a bit over the next month, spend some time with the family, and get some rest. . . January will be here before you know it.

E & Voice Mail Overload

Have you ever felt like you were on E-mail and Voice Mail overload? All these messages coming are coming at you and you really have no time to address them because of your schedule, family, and other responsibilities. Church planters often have this challenge, especially those guys who are bi-vocational as they are planting a church. So, what is the answer? How do you address the constant influx of those E and V mails that are always coming in? Try, scheduling a time of day that you will respond to these messages. Set aside a specific time for addressing e-mails, and a specific time for answering and responding to voice mail calls. For example; try using a half hour either in the morning or evening to answer your e-mails. . . use your commuting time to respond to voice mails. Then, let those around you know that this is what you do, communicate your schedule to those who are wanting your time to respond to them. There is nothing worse than trying to work on a sermon or bible study only to have a e-mail message pop-up or your cell phone ring as your contemplating what God is wanting you to share with people. Guard your time, lay out a specific time each day that you will reply to those who are trying to get a hold of you. We are told that good electronic etiquette is responding within 24 hours to those who have contacted you. I think it's only fair that those who are trying to contact you should respect the parameters you've established for answering their inquiries. So, set those parameters up, and see if this will eliminate the stress of always feeling like you have to return that call and answer that e-mail right away. I'm sure if you do you, your wife and family will be glad that you did!

Kingdom vs. Church

Kingdom vs. the Church, which one do you choose? This is a tough question! Which one is your priority? Can they be separated? Why is there more focus on building the church than on the Kingdom of God? As I ponder these question myself I remember, reflect, and rely on the Scriptures from the gospels to help me see the priority. 116 times the Kingdom is referred to in the Gospels; the church is referred to but twice. Jesus came on the scene preaching the Kingdom, and His last words to His followers in the 40 days between the resurrection and the ascension were focused on the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). Since Jesus' focus and priority was on the Kingdom, is it possible that this may be the dysfunctional dilemma that the western church faces today? Do we spend more time talking about church and its growth than we do about God's Kingdom? I'm not a theologian nor do I pretend to act like one, I have a pastors heart who likes to take Scripture at face value. Common sense tells me that Jesus modeled what should be our main focus, the proclamation of good news of the Kingdom of God (Luke 4:43). It also tells me that the church was established to help people see, find, and embrace the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ. Is it possible that we have our priorities all "screwed up?" Now hear me, I'm not bashing the church, I'm only challenging what I believe matters most based upon what Christ said and focused on while He ministered here on the earth. Why am I writing this now? A few days ago I witnessed a preacher sharing a message on the Kingdom of God to nearly 7,000 students at a Christian University. What an awesome and inspiring message! As he challenged students to realize the significance of the Kingdom and to embrace putting God's Kingdom first, hardly a stir nor a word was moving from the crowd that filled the arena. This made me realize that if we miss the significance of promoting the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, then we may as well close up shop. Oh!, wait a minute, is that what's happening already? My point is this; if we proclaim and live the gospel of the Kingdom of God (like Jesus did),then perhaps we will receive more of the promise that God provides to those who do (Matt. 6:33). One might ask what is the Kingdom of God actually? Henry Blackaby defines it as "the rule and reign of God in our hearts." Now I've been around a while, so I will leave those who would challenge my thoughts with these Scriptures to ponder (Mark 1:15; Matt. 6:33; Luke 4:43; Luke 9:2; Luke 9:11; Luke 9:60; Luke 18:17; Matt. 24:14; 1 Cor. 4:20). I'll write more about this later.