One group likes a church with programs running five nights a week; another prefers a simpler model.
I’m not sure scripture should be used to justify our preferences. Biblically, there is freedom on certain issues. And biblically, there is always love.
Sadly, too many strategic conversations go down in the flames of scripture wars.
And when we do that, don’t we play right into the enemy’s hands? As shocking as it sounds, the scripture sometimes gets used as a weapon against God. (Satan tried this with Jesus.)
All we do as Christian leaders should be deeply biblical and scripturally sound.
It isn’t wise or helpful to use the Bible to beat each other up or shut down needed discussions.
4. The Church Is Not a Business, You Know
You’re not a CEO, you know. And the church is not a business.
I’ve heard this many times.
Critics who say this are quite right—and very wrong.
The sentiment underneath this criticism suggests the church has nothing to learn from the business world.
Again, without getting into the scripture wars outlined above, you don’t have to read the scriptures very deeply before you encounter organizational leadership in the life of Moses (who couldn’t handle millions of people by himself), or David’s skillful building of a nation, or Jesus’ organization of his followers into a group of 70, 12, 3 and 1, or the early church’s reorganization after explosive initial growth.
As much as it makes some people wince, historical Christianity has always been about corporate strategy because it has always been corporate (from the Latin corpus as in body).
Anyone who cares about people has to care about organizing people, reaching people and caring for people.
Sadly, the business world has become better at it in many cases than the church. Companies use advanced strategies to make something as shallow and fleeting as profit.
What if the church used that level of strategic thinking to reach people and make disciples?
Think about strategy when it comes to tackling one of the biggest obstacles facing churches today: breaking the 200 attendance mark. (I wrote about why 80 percent of churches never break that barrier here.)
Most churches fail to break the 200 attendance barrier, but it has nothing to do with their…
Desire. Most leaders I know want their church to reach more people.
A lack of prayer. Many small church leaders are incredibly faithful in prayer.
Love. Some of the people in smaller churches love people as authentically as anyone I know.
Facility. Growth can start in the most unlikely places.
