Earlier this week, we sent a ministry update to everyone we know via e-mail. Did you get it?
In case you didn’t, you can click on over and read it here. Check it out!
Global Church Advancement Update
August 5th, 2010Mistake #6: Not Understanding the Priority of People Over Programs
July 25th, 2010“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” 2 Corinthians 11:30 (ESV)
This is the sixth in a series of blog posts called, “My Top Ten Mistakes in Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly.)” After many years of ministry experience as a church planter, pastor and seminary professor, I think I’ve finally learned that one of the best kept secrets to surviving well in the ministry is to stop making the same old mistakes that others (like me) have been making for decades. Instead, let’s all start making some brand new, bold, innovative and creative mistakes!
We began this series with an introduction called, “Ladies First” in which veteran church planter wife, Shari Thomas, addressed the tough topic, What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting from the perspective of the church planter’s/pastor’s spouse. We then took a look at:
- Mistake #1 (these are in no intentional order), “Failing to Understand the Importance of How I Define Ministry Success.”
- Mistake #2 Managing My Time and Not Managing My Life
- Mistake #3: Not Understanding the Difference Between my Goals and Desires.
- Mistake #4: Not Understanding the Difference Between Pursuing the Grace of God and the God of Grace.
- Mistake #5: Not Understanding the Way Up is the Way Down
Mistake #6: Not Understanding the Priority of People Over Programs
It’s been thought by all of us in Christian ministry (both clergy and laity) at one time or another: “I love God, and I love the ministry, but it’s just people that I really don’t like!” In his best-selling book, The Master Plan of Evangelism, Robert Coleman writes, “When Jesus’ plan is reflected upon, the basic philosophy is so different from that of the modern church that its implications are nothing less than revolutionary….His concern was not with programs to reach the multitudes but with people whom the multitudes would follow….People were to be His method of winning the world to God. The initial objective of Jesus’ plan was to enlist men who could bear witness to His life and carry on His work after He returned to the Father.”
I had the privilege of having Dr. Coleman as one of my professors when I was in seminary in Chicago (Trinity). I’ll always remember his incessant repetition of this same basic concept over and over again: while in the ministry if we don’t actively, constantly fight against it, we will inevitably become nothing more than mere “ministry program administrators—thereby failing to be like Jesus who always made people (not programs) his highest priority.
In Jesus’ words to Peter, after the resurrection, we learn again that one of the greatest ways we can show our love to Christ is not merely by doing great ministry exploits for him, but by showing sacrificial love to his sheep–to love deeply and well those He loves and those for whom he laid down His life. With these lenses on, take a new look now at these ancient words of the resurrected Christ to Peter:
“So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.” He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep.
Here we are meant to learn a valuable lesson about life and ministry that is very easily missed if we’re not very careful. The lesson? One of the greatest ways to show our love to Jesus is by showing our love to His sheep—especially when they don’t love us well. It’s relatively easy learning to lead well. But it’s really hard learning to love well.
Hear his voice today asking “Do you love me?” Then hear his answer, “Tend my sheep.” In other words, love those whom He loves–lay down your life to shepherd well especially those sheep who are back-biting, betraying, whining, unappreciative and arrogant. Where in the world can you find the power to do that? It begins by realizing how deeply the Good Shepherd keeps loving you in the face of all your back-biting, betraying, whining, lack of appreciation and arrogance.
Oh, and by the way, since we haven’t addressed it since the introductory message in this series by Shari Thomas, I thought it might be good for all of us to be reminded that one of those 
people in your church in need of your very special love—is your spouse. I wish someone had told me what it means to understand and love my wife well—especially during our early church planting years.
If you haven’t read Shari Thomas blog entry that addressed the tough topic, What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting from the perspective of the church planter’s/pastor’s spouse then please do. If you have, then please read it again.
Again, I long for you not to make the same mistakes so many of us have made in the past three decades of ministry. Instead, as Bob Logan says, “Go make new, creative, innovative mistakes!” As our beloved Steve Brown would say, “You think about that.”
Steve Childers is the President & CEO of Global Church Advancement, an inter-denominational ministry that provides church planting training, consultations, and resources for church planters, pastors and missionaries throughout the world. Steve has trained Christian leaders from more than 50 countries (curriculum in five major global languages), representing over 200 denominations and mission agencies in 5 continents (& 5 languages). Steve is also an author, Professor of Practical Theology (since 1995) and the Director of the Doctoral program at Reformed Theological Seminary, in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches church planting, missions, evangelism and spiritual formation. To learn more about GCA:
- Browse the GCA Website: http://www.gca.cc
- Join the GCA Cause: http://bit.ly/X5bZC
- See the GCA Blog: http://www.gca.cc/blog/
- Follow GCA on Twitter: http://twitter.com/_gca
- Follow Steve on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevechilders
- Check out upcoming GCA Events: http://gca.cc/Seminar_Overview.htm
- Support GCA: http://gca.cc/Support_GCA.htm
Calvin Rejects Privatized Faith and Promotes Vulnerability in Church Planting Networks :)
July 18th, 2010
“In the church, as Calvin conceived it, every man helped every other man. If in Christ Jesus all believers are united, then a private believer is a contradiction in terms. Not only are the blessings and the virtues given for the common good, but the faults and the weaknesses concern the other members of the body. There was to be no hypocrisy of pretending to be other than a sinner, no dissembling or cloaking of sins; but, just as God is completely honest with men, and men must be honest with God, so also believer with believer must be courageously honest and open. The quarterly meeting was a little day of judgement when, flattery and convention laid aside, each man saw himself through the eyes of his fellows and, if he were wise, harboured no resentment but knew the uniquely joyful release of voluntary humiliation.”[1]
[1] Herman J. Selderhuis, John Calvin: A Pilgrim’s Life [Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2009], 30.
2010 West Africa Update – Part 2
May 31st, 2010This just in: Another update from Steve Childers! It sounds like things are going really well so far. Please pray for the remainder of Steve’s time in Africa – which he will spend with his team in Togo – that the team will be safe and that God’s glory will shine through their work with church leaders there.
Here’s what Steve had to tell us:
I learned today that most of these pastors have been taught (and have been doing it) to be “praying down Gods wrath on all pagans/poor/etc. NOW they have openly repented of this practice and have PLEDGED to pray the Lords prayer (i.e. the exact opposite), praying fervently instead that Gods will on earth (their part of it) will now be done as it is in heaven … through their radical acts of mercy & justice!
I’m so in awe and humbled by all this. Your prayers are being answered! Thanks again.
West Africa 2010 Update
May 27th, 2010We’ve finally heard from Steve, who is in Africa this week for the 2010 GCA West Africa Church Planting Institute. He’s been keeping busy with his team. It sounds like things are going well, though. Here’s a summary of what he had to say (it’s a little stream-of-consciousness):
All three team leaders are doing well so far. We’ve been eating a lot of rice and chicken.
The first day of training went GREAT! The church we’re mtg in is not enclosed – just a metal roof totally open sides with wood poles. So we’re exposed to the weather, which is extremely hot and very humid. Also, we’re in the rainy season, and that and that means we get to do a lot of walking in mud. We have electricity, but mainly through use of a gas generator because electricity often off in village. We made a makeshift PowerPoint screen using bedsheets and sticks the locals carved with their machetes for us. It works great even when wind blows it!
The sessions haven’t been without distractions. A goat bleated so loudly while I was teaching we had to stop and get rid of it. Goats are everywhere!
A few prayer requests: Nathaniel tried to drive to Togo 2 times today-to prepare for the next conference. Both cars broke down so he’s still here. The roads here would break down a tank! Please pray as well for several painful blows I’ve taken to my head since getting here due to short doorways. I’m not used to ducking and it feels like someone periodically keeps hitting my head with a bat. It would be funny if didn’t hurt so badly. Finally, please pray that our team would be able to serve well despite our lack of sleep.
Thanks for your prayers, everyone!
Prayers For GCA 2010 West Africa CPI: Part 1
May 24th, 2010Editor’s Note: We’ve already shared that GCA President Steve Childers is currently in West Africa, leading a group of indigenous church leaders in the GCA 2010 West Africa Church Planting Institute. Some supporters have known about this for awhile and have been kind enough to commit their prayers to writing and share them with us. In the spirit of coming together as an online community in prayer, we are passing along some of these prayers with you. Please take this opportunity to join with us in prayer!
Gracious and Powerful Lord,
We commit Steve, his travels, his teaching, his partners on the journey, and his family as they remain to you.
We ask for wisdom as he teaches, sensitivity to the workings of the Holy Spirit, insight into the gifts and challenges of his translators and images that teach in powerful pictures the lessons you would have the pastors who hear learn.
Allow the lessons to be woven into the hearts of all who participate. Open Steve’s heart to the messages with which you would have him bring home. Join hearts together in the Hope of your Kingdom Come and in the work that is here now.
Protect all the families who remain and lend your travel mercies to those who join together. Fill up the participants with a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit that they might be refreshed, encouraged and empowered.
Provide good soil for the seeds which are sown. Send water and sun to nourish them. Raise up harvesters to reap the Word in deed and in their thoughts. Hold back the thorns that would choke your harvest. Protect the footpaths of those who would work and not damage the fields. Allow patience for your timing and what you will bring forth. Let there be rejoicing in all that you provide. We give you the Glory!
“O Taste and See that the Lord is Good!”
We lift all these things up in the name of Jesus,
Amen.
Steve Childers In West Africa This Week!
May 23rd, 2010A team of missionaries led by GCA President Steve Childers are making their way to West Africa for the 2010 GCA West Africa Church Planting Inistitute. We’ve already shared details about GCA’s goals and aspirations in holding this summit. Now we want to give you specific details (i.e. dates and places) so you can pray with us. Steve has also asked us to pass along some personal prayer requests.
West Africa 2010 Dates:
- Depart USA: Sunday afternoon/evening, May 23, 2010
- Ghana, West Africa Summit: Monday, May 24, 2010 to Saturday, May 29, 2010.
- Togo, West Africa Summit: Saturday, May 29, 2010 to Wednesday, June 2, 2010.
- Return USA: Wednesday evening, June 2, 2010
Mission Team 2010 Leaders:
- Steve Childers
- Dick Brown
- Allen Hunter
Steve Childers’ Personal Prayer Requests:
- The health and safety of the African church leaders I’ll be training, as well as their families and churches while they’re away. Many of them will be traveling long distances in remote areas of Africa in order to receive the training.
- Wisdom for me to know what to teach: even though the training topics are already planned I often find that I need to change some topics, put down the prepared notes and address real needs that have surfaced during the training.
- The ability of my French translators in Togo to understand accurately the concepts I’m teaching and communicate them with great effectiveness—resulting in not only renewed minds but renewed hearts. I’ve learned the hard way that my translators can make or break the learning experience.
- My relationships with the African leaders would be deepened resulting in new levels of mutual trust, love and ministry partnership.
- God would be glorified and His invisible kingdom would be made visible through starting, growing and multiplying gospel-centered churches in West Africa (starting in Ghana, Togo, Benin & Senegal) that result in the spiritual, social and cultural renewal of all West Africa (15 countries) AND that West Africa would become a major sending sub-continent to ALL nations.
2010 GCA West Africa Church Planting Institute
May 23rd, 2010You’ll be hearing a lot from us over the next week about the West Africa Church Planting Institute. In particular, Steve will be sharing his prayer requests with us. We will also be sure to pass along any updates we get from the field from day to day.
So, since we’ll be talking about it, we should probably get you acquainted with what the Church Planting Institute is – namely, what are GCA’s goals and aspirations. This is a pretty exciting time for us; and we want you to be excited too! Because there is so much to share, this post will be longer than usual. So, without further ado …
GCA West Africa 2010 Church Planting Institute (CPI) Goals
During the early GCA Leadership Training Summits in a nation, we intentionally do not focus primarily on church planting methods and programs for the indigenous leaders such as “practical steps to planting a church in Africa” or “how to develop and manage a church plant core group”. Instead, the initial, primary focus is on laying a strong, biblical foundation among the indigenous national leaders and churches—from which these more practical church planting methods will emerge. The four foundational goals (pillars) of the initial training are:
I. Uniting around a National Kingdom Vision for Church Planting
- A Vision for the Glory, Kingdom & Will of God to come with great power through the Church of God in all it’s various forms (denominations/agencies).
- A Vision not merely for individual church plants but for regional church planting networks that form kingdom alliances with other like-minded denominations that birth true gospel renewal movements and spiritual awakenings.
- A Vision for developing a common church planting training curriculum (“practical steps to planting a church in Africa, etc.”) through a Kingdom Partnership with GCA and other denominations that share this vision.
II. Renewing the Church Leaders through the Power of the Gospel
- Almost every great awakening in the history of the church has been started by a great awakening in the hearts of the church leaders. If we long for an awakening in our churches and nations, it must first begin in the hearts of the church leaders.
- So there is a strong focus on the need for the release of the transforming power of the gospel in the hearts of the leaders through their ongoing repentance (from heart idols) and faith in Christ—setting their heart affections on Christ in worship.
III. Renewing the Churches through the Power of the Gospel
- Like a spreading flame, the personal renewal of the leaders must spread to the churches. The leaders must return to their churches as agents of personal renewal that will lead to church renewal and reproduction of new churches.
- For a church to parent other churches (new church plants) it must first be strong and healthy itself. If not, it will birth sick babies—unhealthy church plants that have little or no true Kingdom impact. So we must have a strong, healthy base of leadership churches in these emerging movements or we will be reproducing unhealthy churches.
- During this training church leaders will study the “Vital Signs” of church health/growth and participate in practical exercises where they evaluate their present church plant or established church in order to help these churches become healthy (especially in evangelism, discipleship and mercy/justice ministries) so they will grow and reproduce new transformational churches.
IV. Raising Up Church Planting Movement Leaders
- For there to be true movements born in these nations, God must raise up movement leaders. So during this training we are asking the Lord of the Harvest to begin raising up church planting movement leaders from all the denominations represented.
- We need what we call “Movement Champions” in several critical areas: We need Vision Champions, Prayer Champions, Worship Champions, Preaching Champions, Discipleship Champions, Small Group Champions, Evangelism Champions, Mercy Champions and Leadership Development Champions. As we spend time studying these areas, we’re asking the Lord to begin raising up key movement leaders who will become champions for strengthening these areas in their own emerging regional and national movements.
- These movement champions will then begin to work in partnership with GCA to develop a common curriculum that will include contextualized church planting methods and programs that can be used effectively by all denominations and agencies in the movement.
GCA West Africa 2010 Church Planting Institute (CPI) Aims & Aspirations
This 2010 GCA West Africa Church Planting Leadership Summits (Ghana & Togo) are designed to equip key West African national leaders to strategically partner together to glorify God by advancing a movement in the West Africa that is multiplying churches and disciples through the transforming power of the gospel. Our purpose is to use this forum as a catalyst to help start strategic church planting movements in West Africa that will advance God’s kingdom in word and deed over every sphere of life by starting, growing and multiplying churches in West Africa that share a passion for the glory of God to be manifested in and through His Church for all nations.
Through these Summits, we aim to foster:
- Kingdom Vision: Helping to develop kingdom-minded church leaders throughout West African with a strong focus on transforming cities, towns and villages through deeds of mercy and justice as well as words of truth.
- Servant Leadership: Equipping leaders to better understand the capacity of the indigenous church to minister to and serve well their own people—leaders who will think and act strategically in spreading the gospel in West Africa.
- Church Planting Networks: Fostering a vision for leaders to develop cooperative Church Planting Networks that recruit, train, and mentor emerging their own indigenous church planters that will help multiply churches among their regions’ diverse groups of people. These networks will work in strategic partnerships with other ministries and NGOs to form alliances, create resources and facilitate more and better church planting movements in West Africa.
- Kingdom Collaboration: Creating platforms for dialogue with various regional leaders to explore new strategies and best practices for working together in their regions.
- Community Development: Fostering a vision of developing creative, entrepreneurial and passionate leaders who are constantly working to create a process of problem solving and improvement in the community that is sustainable through the leadership of different alliances and networks both at the regional level and abroad.
Through these Summits, we also aspire to:
- Explore and learn new strategies and best practices for working together in various West African regions
- Bring church leaders together to build alliances with various like-minded groups who are strategically involved in the same regions and are seeking partners to join them in their efforts.
- Share ideas and models with national leaders regarding how to foster church planting movements through establishing regional church planting networks and alliances.
- Examine holistic ministries and deliberate, proven models that foster social transformation by providing employment, encouraging social change (justice/mercy), influencing government and key national leaders, and helping church leaders provide a credible platform for demonstrating the love of Christ.
- Share proven business strategies that work well hand in hand with church planting, growth and multiplication movements.
Great “Keeping the Heart” Quotes from John Flavel (17th century)
April 25th, 2010
“There are some men and women who have lived forty or fifty years in the world and have scarcely had one hour’s discourse with their own hearts all the while.”
“He who will keep his heart must take heed of plunging himself into such a multiplicity of earthly business that he cannot manage it without neglecting his main business.”
“Take heed of losing the liveliness and sweetness of your communion with God, lest thereby your hearts be pulled off from God. The heart is a hungry and restless thing; it will have something to feed upon. If it enjoys nothing from God, it will hunt for something among the creatures, and there it often loses itself as well as its end. There is nothing that more engages the heart to a constancy and evenness in walking with God than the sweetness which it tastes therein.”
Steve Childers At Exponential Conference This Week
April 19th, 2010Steve will be speaking this week at the national Exponential Conference (“Largest gathering of Church Planters on the Planet”) in Orlando, FL. On Monday, April 18 (TODAY!) he will be speaking at the afternoon Pre-Conference Workshop called “Best Practices in Church Planting Forum” hosted by author and missiologist, Dr. Ed Stetzer. Here’s the link.
On Thursday morning, April 22, Steve will be leading a workshop during the main conference called “How to Start & Strengthen a Regional Church Planting Network.”
Please pray for Steve and the Exponential Conference this week!
Mistake #5: Not Understanding that the Way Up is the Way Down
April 16th, 2010“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” 2 Corinthians 11:30 (ESV)
This is the fifth in a series of blog posts called, “My Top Ten Mistakes in Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly.)” After many years of ministry experience as a church planter, pastor and seminary professor, I think I’ve finally learned that one of the best kept secrets to surviving well in the ministry is to stop making the same old mistakes that others (like me) have been making for decades. Instead, let’s all start making some brand new, bold, innovative and creative mistakes!
We began this series with an introduction called, “Ladies First” in which veteran church planter wife, Shari Thomas, addressed the tough topic, What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting from the perspective of the church planter’s/pastor’s spouse. We then took a look at:
- Mistake #1 (these are in no intentional order) called, “Failing to Understand the Importance of How I Define Ministry Success.”
- Mistake #2 called, Managing My Time and Not Managing My Life
- Mistake #3: Not Understanding the Difference Between my Goals and Desires.
- Mistake #4: Not Understanding the Difference Between Pursing the Grace of God and the God of Grace.
This time we’ll take a brief look at another common mistake church leaders make that I wish someone had told me about before I went into the ministry.
Mistake #5: Not Understanding that the Way Up is the Way Down
One of the supreme glories of the Gospel is that it is primarily through weakness that God chooses to show His strength. And it’s through foolishness that God loves to manifest His wisdom. The Apostle Paul makes this abundantly clear when he writes,
“For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God. (1Cor 1:26-29).
In their excellent book entitled Liberating Ministry From the Success Syndrome by Kent and Barbara Hughes (required reading for all church leaders!) they write, “To you who deem yourself unusually ordinary be encouraged: God must have liked ordinary people because he made so many of us!” I wish someone had told me years ago not to hold my weaknesses in disdain—but to know that God’s plan is to work through my foolishness and weakness so that He might manifest His wisdom and strength.
I also wish someone had explained to me more clearly that God’s kingdom is an upside down kingdom where “God is opposed to the proud but He gives grace to the humble.” and “Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted “and “When pride comes, then comes dishonor, But with the humble is wisdom.”
And I wish someone had helped me understand more deeply these profound words written by Oswald Chambers:
“God can achieve his purpose either through the absence of human power and resources, or the abandonment of reliance on them. All through history God has chosen and used nobodies, because their unusual dependence on him made possible the unique display of his power and grace. He chose and used somebodies only when they renounced dependence on their natural abilities and resources.”
To those of you who consider yourself unusually gifted (you know who you are!) this means you must be very careful not to trust in your strengths illegitimately. In fact, unless you humble yourself and renounce your dependence upon them, all your labor and even your fruit is apt to be in vain. It will all be burned away (see Hughes’ book for more details).
What are some of the ways we can know we’re at risk in this area? In C. Peter Wagner’s book, Humility, he lists 5 Signposts Along the Road to Pride:
1) Yearning for Praise and Accolades
2) Keeping Score
3) Rejoicing in others failures
4) Resenting others successes
5) Compulsively defending yourself
The paradox of grace is that the way up is the way down. One of the reasons there is often such little display of God’s presence and power in many of our lives and ministries today is because of the unknown root sin of pride and self-reliance. The Bible teaches that God’s presence and power normally dwells in a humble and contrite heart. “But to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My Word” (Is 66:2).
With this truth in mind, I wish someone had made clear to me early in my ministry that coming to the cross of Jesus Christ is not meant by God to be just a one time thing for us (at conversion) but an ongoing process. The Apostle Paul wrote “…just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, so walk in Him” (Colossians 2:6). Coming to God in humility means learning to keep coming to Him in repentance and faith through the cross of Jesus Christ.
Paul wrote, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14). As God progressively shows us our sin of pride we must learn the secret of coming in humility again and again and again to the cross of Jesus Christ for not only pardon but also for power to change.
It is only at the cross that the streams of God’s transforming grace will begin to flow into our lives. Like water, God’s grace and power always flows down to the lowest place. As you respond to this reminder, prayerfully meditate on the words of the nineteenth century hymn writer, Horatius Bonar,
“I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Behold, I freely give the living water. Thirsty one, stoop down and drink and live”.
——————————
Steve Childers is the President & CEO of Global Church Advancement, an inter-denominational ministry that provides church planting training, consultations, and resources for church planters, pastors and missionaries throughout the world. Steve has trained Christian leaders from more than 50 countries (curriculum in five major global languages), representing over 200 denominations and mission agencies in 5 continents (& 5 languages). Steve is also an author, Professor of Practical Theology (since 1995) and the Director of the Doctoral program at Reformed Theological Seminary, in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches church planting, missions, evangelism and spiritual formation. To learn more about GCA:
- Browse the GCA Website: http://www.gca.cc
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GlobalChurchAdvancement
- See the GCA Blog: http://www.gca.cc/blog/
- Follow GCA on Twitter: http://twitter.com/_gca
- Follow Steve on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevechilders
- Check out upcoming GCA Events: http://gca.cc/Seminar_Overview.htm
- Support GCA: http://gca.cc/Support_GCA.htm
Steve Childers Preaches at Bethlehem Baptist Church
April 13th, 2010This past Sunday, Steve Childers preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN – the home of John Piper. You can download the sermon by clicking the link below.
Please pray for Steve this week as he works with Bethlehem to train their church planters.
A Gospel-Planted Life Blog Reviews GCA Conference
February 5th, 2010The folks over at A Gospel-Planted Life were kind enough to share their experience at last week’s North American Church Planting Conference. You should check it out!
Mistake #4: Not Understanding the Difference Between Pursuing the Grace of God or the God of Grace
February 4th, 2010“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” 2 Corinthians 11:30 (ESV)
This is the fifth in a series of blog posts called, “My Top Ten Mistakes in Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly.)” After many years of ministry experience as a church planter, pastor and seminary professor, I think I’ve finally learned that one of the best kept secrets to surviving well in the ministry is to stop making the same old mistakes that others (like me) have been making for decades. Instead, let’s all start making some brand new, bold, innovative and creative mistakes!
We began this series with an introduction called, “Ladies First” in which veteran church planter wife, Shari Thomas, addressed the tough topic, What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting from the perspective of the church planter’s/pastor’s spouse. We then took a look at:
- Mistake #1 (these are in no intentional order) called, “Failing to Understand the Importance of How I Define Ministry Success.”
- Mistake #2 called, Managing My Time and Not Managing My Life
- Mistake #3: Not Understanding the Difference Between my Goals and Desires.
This time we’ll take a brief look at another common mistake church leaders make that I wish someone had told me about before I went into the ministry.
Mistake #4: Not Understanding the Difference Between Pursing the Grace of God and the God of Grace.
John Piper’s words still seem to be ringing in my ears after all these years: “Is God a means of grace in your life and ministry or is grace a means to God?” No one had ever asked me that kind of question before. In fact, it took me a while to even figure out what the question meant.
But when I finally understood it, I found myself wishing someone had dared to ask me that kind of penetrating, potentially life-changing question many years ago. Let me try to expound on this idea briefly.
The Ultimate Quest of Your Life & Ministry
In John 17:3 Jesus said, “And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.” Here we are meant to learn that God’s goal for our lives is not merely to serve him in faithful ministry but primarily to know him, to love him, to glorify him and enjoy him.
Think of this question again: “Is God made a means to grace in your ministry or is grace made a means to God?” To put the question differently, “Does the quest of your life and the passion of your ministry terminate on God? Knowing Him? Enjoying Him? Glorifying Him?
Or is God brought in beside all your planning, techniques and ministry strategies in hope that he might somehow be the means of a great outpouring of grace on your ministry and in your life? The big idea here is that it makes a tremendous difference whether the ultimate quest of your life and ministry is the grace of God or the God of grace.
Using God to Solve Your Problems or Using Your Problems to Find God?
One of the most fundamental questions is whether you will place God or yourself at the center of your ministry. The practical benefits of a God-centered focus in life and ministry are far-reaching. Author Larry Crabb makes the point that a leader with this perspective stops trying to “use God to solve his problems”. Instead such a leader learns how to “use his problems to find God”.
A very common problem among church planters, missionaries, and pastors, is that we begin to see ourselves primarily as servants of God or soldiers of God. Unknowingly, over time, our view of God becomes primarily that of a Master or a Commander-in-Chief. And those pictures of God are biblical and true, but there is so much more to a truly biblical view of God.
In John 15 Jesus said, “You are my friends.” There is a sense in which that’s richer than merely being a slave or a soldier. Then in 1John 3:1 we read these astonishing words, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God.”
Stop and think about this: more than being a “friend” of Christ, because you are now “in Christ” you are also considered by God to be His child—one who is now loved with the highest of all loves, a love previously reserved by the eternal Father for His one and only Son! There is no stronger love in all the cosmos (Eph 3:14-20).
In Ephesians 5 we see another graphic picture of a bride and a bridegroom—the picture of intimate lovers. As a church leader never allow the imagery of what has been called the “John 3:16 of the Old Testament” to leave your mind and heart: “The LORD your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy. He will be quiet in His love. He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy” (Zeph 3:17). Here we have the Commander-in-Chief (the Victorious Warrior) rejoicing over you as His child with shouts of joy.
The Lord is our Commander-in-Chief, and we are called to be “good soldiers of Jesus Christ”, putting on and utilizing all the spiritual armor (Eph. 6) that is now ours in Christ. He is also our Master and we are called to be His “servants” availing ourselves of all of His means of grace so we might be called “faithful” at the end of this race. But we must never forget He is also our Friend, our Father and our Lover (and so much more).
The reason having a proper view of God is so critically important in your life and ministry is because it is so easy to be unknowingly:
- Pursuing the Kingdom and not the King
- Pursuing the Truth of God and not the God of Truth
- Using God to solve your problems rather than using your problems to find God.
In other words, if you are not consciously fighting against it, you are at risk of falling prey to pursing the grace of God and not the God of grace.
Just before his death, Dr. Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade spoke at Reformed Seminary in Orlando, Florida, where I’m on faculty (along with Steve Brown). He had a terminal respiratory disease. Many of us were told he might not live long enough to speak in chapel on the date he had been scheduled. So I’ll never forget watching this man of God being helped into the seminary chapel in a wheel chair with a oxygen tubes hooked under his nose. Here was without question one of the greatest visionary leaders of our generation. And he had come to preach to us as “a dying man to dying men”.
I found fascinating that the focus of his final message that morning was not on the importance of capturing a vision for reaching the world for Christ. That’s what I was expecting. But it was, to my surprise, a powerful message on the importance of capturing a vision for God in the fullness of all His attributes.
I’ll never forget Dr. Bright’s final challenge to us that day—to see God not merely as useful but instead to learn to see God primarily as beautiful. It was just another way of saying, “Don’t merely pursue the grace of God. Pursue the God of grace”. I hope this helps you in that life-long process.
Steve Childers is the President & CEO of Global Church Advancement, an inter-denominational ministry that provides church planting training, consultations, and resources for church planters, pastors and missionaries throughout the world. Steve has trained Christian leaders from more than 50 countries (curriculum in five major global languages), representing over 200 denominations and mission agencies in 5 continents (& 5 languages). Steve is also an author, Professor of Practical Theology (since 1995) and the Director of the Doctoral program at Reformed Theological Seminary, in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches church planting, missions, evangelism and spiritual formation. To learn more about GCA:
- Browse the GCA Website: http://www.gca.cc
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- Follow Steve on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevechilders
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GCA 2010 Conference Attendee Tweets
January 30th, 2010
Culture + Gospel + Church = Transformational ministry. #gca10
“Beneath the demographics of your community are the lifestyles that are an expression of beliefs.” -Bob Orner #gca10
Allender: If you don’t need the Gospel more than the people you are sharing it with, you ought not to be sharing it with them #gca10
Half of the fun of #gca10 has been meeting people. There are a lot of great people here!
Round 3. “who will pray with and for us?” #gca10
With Bob Orner thinking through the “whom” and “where” of church planting focus. #gca10
“If any of you should ask me for an epitome of the Christian religion, I should say that it is in one word — prayer.” C.H. Spurgeon #gca10
Dear Presbyterians who are (like me) into God using appointed means: prayer is one of them. Gospel effectiveness depends on it. #gca10
I’m really encouraged that my prayer life doesn’t always have to be as mediocre as it often is. Thankful for this session at #gca10
Church Planting: Using Technology and Social Media #gca10 Very informative and helpful.
It’s the beginning of another busy day of sessions at #gca10. Please pray with us and for us!
day 2. round 4. “developing a philosophy of ministry” #gca10
“The work of faithful evangelism is to identify with the world without losing your identity in Christ.” – Stott #gca10
Great training session on philosophy of ministry tailored to local context by a guy with lots of story-arc similarities as me. #gca10
Seminary student Casey Johnson shares his thoughts with us on last night’s Worship module taught by Jason Sears. http://bit.ly/bI5fk2 #gca10
“When you do church planting, you can’t blame the previous pastor for your church’s problems.” -Bob Orner // Humorous and humbling #gca10
Why do church planting anyway? #gca10 listening to this Guy right now
Hotel excitement. These are burglars posing as pizza marketers w/ fake flyers looking for unlocked doors http://twitpic.com/1039pu #gca10
Doing some hard thinking about ministry style contextualization led by a black pastor, Andre Rogers from Columbia. #gca10
Hilarious. There’s a white pastor’s wife in a cross-cultural church here. The black attendees call her the First Lady. #gca10
“Your first 20 people will dictate your next 100 people.” – Andre Rogers #gca10 //very-true church planting statement.
@andrerogers I’m not @RickWarren but I’m glad to follow you. Good word at #gca10
Looking at ministry models—how church ministries in a plant will work together—with Bob Orner. #gca10
Great lunch-time panel…#gca10
“Giving always comes back to forgiveness of sins and life eternal.” Fred Marsh #gca10
“Too often the church is composed of a consumer-driven clientele.” – Fred Marsh #gca10-
Benevolent and missions budget allocations do not keep pace with operational and building expenditures as churches grow. #gca10
“I’m firmly convinced that God calls the church to bless the poor. It’s still hard for the rich to enter heaven.” – MNA $$ guru #gca10
Really enjoying my first conference experience at #gca10. Meeting with Ted Powers and @ARStager in 10.
Just finishing up our last sessions of the day. Looking forward to Steve Brown tonight! #gca10
Listening to Dr. Steve Brown (Key Life) for the 1st time. Sounds like God. Topic is “3 Free Sins.” #gca10 http://twitpic.com/108asv
If pastors think their job is to keep their people from sin, then you are playing a sick game that will eat you alive. -Steve Brown #gca10
Brown: I’m so screwed up I can hardly stand myself, and Jesus loves me, and he’ll love you too. #gca10 (via @PlantInBoston)#fb
gearing up to finish out the @_gca conference. ten sessions down; two to go. #gca10
Tools and diagrams are helpful, but it never works out the way you plan. Every church plant is a unique work of the Holy Spirit. #gca10
Ted Powers: Diff B/W Planter & Pastor: Planters gather those who are 2 be shepherded, Pastors Shepherd those who have been gathered. #gca10
Powers: Small Churches, 150 & Down are 1600 times more effective evangelistically than mega churches. #gca10
Most churches do not go beyond 200 because of the natural change from relationship to program driven #gca10
Powers: What is critical to a church plant is not only the people you attract and keep, but the people that move on. #gca10
A church is more than a bunch of people gathering for worship. A church is a biblical functioning community. – Ted Powers #gca10
Great truth frm #gca10 Lead people to have general conversations with unbelievers and they will eventually beg you to teach them how to do evangelism
Powers: the goal of church planting is not to get a church up and running. It is to reach people with the Gospel. #gca10
Notice how Jesus planted a church… 12 (Matt 4) > 72 (Luke 10) > 120 (Acts 1) > 3,000 (Acts 2) #gca10
Wishing I had attended #gca10 when it was #gca09… good stuff, lots to process
It’s amazing how a conference can both energize and drain you all at the same time! #gca10
Whether you realize it or not, you have a specific def. of personal success. It greatly affects your life…(LK 10:20)-Steve Childers #gca10
“Your joy in life must not be found in what you do for Him, but in who you are in Him” @stevechilders #gca10
“Jesus knew the time would come when his disciples would feel subject to the demons, not vice versa” Identity in Christ essential #gca10 #fb
It is THE best CP event/class/conference I have ever been to. It’s a bootcamp on gospel steroids. #gca10
Visionary church planters: what’s your vision for your marriage? For your family? – @stevechilders via his wife. #gca10
Church planters/pastors (every1 4 that matter) R in danger of offering to their “idol of success” their children, wife, time & sleep #gca10
“In repenting and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling. Is 30:15 #gca10
it’s one thing to start your ministry well; it’s another thing to finish it well. – @stevechilders #gca10
“Take a nap, REST! The Kingdom of God will go on. You may be surprised to find Jesus on his throne when you wake up.” @stevechilders #gca10
Sleep, sun, solitude, sabbath, sex, sweat, sustenance. Steve’s 7 S’s of success. Funny and true. #gca10
Differentiate between goals & desires. Desires you cannot control…goals you can. Work for goals, pray for desires. #gca10
Is God a means of grace in your life, or is grace a means to God? – @johnpiper via @stevechilders #gca10
“Don’t merely see God as useful, see Him as beautiful” – Bill Bright via @stevechilders #gca10
God will never really use you until you renounce your reliance & dependence upon God’s gifts & humbly rest only in God Himself #gca10
“God’s grace is like water, always flowing to the lowest place.” Puritan Statement #gca10
Church Planter & wife, like 2 people on a roller coaster: 1 puking over the side, the other hands in the air – roles can change daily #gca10
“Don’t let your living for tomorrow slay your living for today.” -Elisabeth Elliot via @stevechilders #gca10
(My wife) and I were just discussing the church plant, her comment: “I hope you have a green thumb!” me too, me too.
Welcome back to the real world–low in orlando 63, in boston 11 #gca10