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Chris Elrod of Compass Point in Lakeland, FL has discovered that “strategies” and “vision” don’t work unless they are yours…directly from God and directed by God. What works for other churches doesn’t necessarily work for Compass Point, and in fact, it will likely flop. He recently wrote a series of posts on the topic:

• Crash and Burn in Three Parts
• Part 1 (heading around turn 3 and it all spun out of control)
• Part 2 (the sound of screeching tires and crunching metal)
• Part 3 (life on pit row)
• Part 4 (the conclusions)

I’ve taken that to heart for Flowing River and the other fellowships I’m a part of. I had noted in something I wrote a ways back… that each church we’ve been part of has its own personality and culture, and that culture likely isn’t transferable. What Chris has to say confirms my assumptions.

Chris mentions in his last post that other churches are now trying to copy them, which he feels is a BIG mistake. I agree for the most part (after all, he’s a guy who crashed and burned by trying to copy others… why should what he’s doing be copied, then? logic, logic)

However, one thing Compass Point is doing should be done by every church, everywhere, all the time:

1. Study God’s Word
2. Follow God’s Word
3. Share God’s Word

…all without compromise.

How that plays out in the life of a pastor, in the life of a church, and in the lives of the congregation will vary from person to person and place to place. What’s new, cool, and innovative in one place may totally flop in another… but if both pastors are studying, following, and sharing God’s word - then it’s all good. Deviate from that path or try to embellish on it, and destruction will follow.

Chris also had something to say about honesty… that some people have emailed and taken him to task for being brutally honest about all of this.  I want to publicly thank him for his honesty!! Too many people underestimate the job a pastor and/or church planter must do. Too many people feel that if we tell the truth about our struggles as pastors, planters, and even as people, that it will somehow diminish our (ahem - high and lofty) image and office, or even scare people off from being Christians.

Hogwash! People NEED to see God’s hand at work in the lives of imperfect people who have the same struggles, temptations, ups and downs, and pitfalls as anyone else. If the pastor sits in an ivory tower, how on earth can s/he relate to people? How can people expect to relate to the pastor? How can the pastor speak into their lives about struggles if the pastor “has none”? (more hogwash!)

Jesus is our perfect example - Hebrews 4:14-16 says,

If Jesus endured struggle and temptation and can sympathize with our weaknesses because He endured them… why should we expect a trouble-free life? The Bible says repeatedly that we will experience trials, tribulations, struggles… “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.“  (John 16:33)

If the apostles encountered difficulties in building the church - consider why the epistles were written - why should we expect that building a church should be any different? People are still very much the same now as they were then!

So why should we hide our struggles? It doesn’t make sense to me.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 8:22 am and is filed under Bible, Christian, Church Planting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.