As a new business grows, Cornwall points out: the role of the entrepreneur has to change from doing the business to running the business. This transition is notoriously dicey and the failure to negotiate this transition has kept more than one good idea from being marketed successfully.

We are familiar with the story. An inventor designs a new widget and begins a new business. The business grows quickly to the point where employees have to be hired and procedures delegated – in short, the entrepreneur has to go from designer and implementer to manager.  If the entrepreneur can’t makes this transition, the business fails as fast as fast as it was growing.

I was reminded of a conversation I had with a friend of mine who pastors another church. He was sharing his frustration that his church, for some reason, could never take the next step. They would grow so big and then, fall back to their previous numbers.  As we talked, the roadblock became obvious.  He, as pastor, had a capacity problem.  He had developed the skills and systems to handle a church of a certain size, but hadn’t made the necessary changes in his own ministry to allow the church to grow to the next level.

As congregations grow, pastors have to expand their capacities. If the pastor can’t or won’t grow, neither will the church.

Church growth experts recognize churches face natural barriers to growth.  From 100 to 200 in attendance is a more difficult transition than most people realize. Other barriers are 200-400, 400-800 and from 800-1,000.  Each growth spurt means the congregation will have to adjust to the new demands of running a larger church.

And the pastor has to adjust as well. As the church gets larger, the pastor simply can’t keep doing everything like he did in the past. How do you decide what you do and don’t do?

The first question is “What are you best at?”  While there are some things no pastor can delegate, a lot of things can be handed off.  As pastor, you get to choose what you keep. So, what do you do best?  Preaching… teaching… pastoral care?  Whatever your gifts, be sure they are prioritized in your time and resource allocation.

The next question is obvious as well. “What are you not good at?” or, “What do you not enjoy?” While every job has “rent-paying” responsibilities, a lot of ministry administration and implementation can be delegated through either effective staff hires or the establishment of lay teams to make better use of the spiritual gifts in the congregation.

No organization out runs its leader.  This is especially true of the church.  The church will develop growth capacities only as fast as the pastor does.

After his public fall, one question haunted me, “What’s not there that I think is there?”

That’s the question I found myself asking again as I heard of Whitney Houston’s death.  “What’s not there that I think is there?”

Whenever I heard her sing, I would think “I would give anything to sing like that!”  Has anyone ever sung the National Anthem like Ms. Houston did?  From now on, everyone who sings it will be judged by her standard.  How many millions of albums did she sell? Her voice was amazing.

Sure, I knew about her rocky marriage—how could I not?  She and Bobby Brown were front page news.  I heard about her drug use and hard partying… but that voice.  We think that if we had that kind of talent and fame, we would never have to worry again.

Obviously, that’s not the case.

The untimely deaths of Whitney Houston or Janis Joplin or James Dean or Kurt Cobain or Michael Jackson remind us that happiness really can’t be bought.  Most of us keep thinking that if we could be somewhere else or be somebody else, then we would finally be happy.

But that’s not true. Whatever we think is there, simply isn’t there.  Fame is indeed fleeting and happiness is but a mist that vaporizes quickly in the heat of real life.

We need something more. We need what Christ promised… a peace the world can’t take away and a joy that is based in Him.  Everything else is… how does the old hymn say it? Everything else is sinking sand.

What?

Yep, that’s right.

The article says if your spouse is disappointed with your Valentine’s Day effort, it  may be the final straw that sends them looking for excitement and love in someone else.

One of the founders of a website that caters to “discreet” encounters for married people says Valentine’s Day is one of their busiest days of the year.

Are you kidding me?

This is how upside down our world is.

If we can’t do something well (like staying in a committed marriage) we will celebrate our own destruction.

I hate to sound like a typical preacher, but honestly, I have seen too much to just act like this doesn’t matter.  It does matter and the destruction done by an affair scars a marriage forever. Sure, there is forgiveness and yes, Jesus is merciful, but His healing will not bring back what was lost. The violated trust will never be as pure or as deep as it originally was.  The Bible tells the story of King David’s affair in 2 Samuel 11.  You can read it for yourselves and when you do, notice this:  David’s kingdom was never the same after the affair.  His infidelity had devastating consequences.

And so will yours.   If you’re thinking about an affair let me be as honest as I can be.  You will bring a hell into your life you will never get over.  Sure, Jesus may forgive you, but your children won’t.  Your  friends won’t know what to say. . .and  neither will you.  And as for the self-deception “that no one will ever know…”  Right… just remember, everyone has two best friends.

If you are unhappy in your marriage, then do something positive about it.

Get to counseling.

Sit down with your spouse and talk honestly about what’s going on.

Write a letter.

I don’t care how you get started making your marriage better.  Just do something positive to get your marriage back on track.

Don’t cross this line of infidelity… it is not worth it.

And as for the folks who run this website… to quote my mother, “They should just be ashamed.”

Marriages are not static. You are either pulling each other closer or the world is pulling you apart.

Do something today to pull your spouse closer.

What’s the name you use?
When you made a math error that meant you suddenly have less money in your checking account than you thought — what do you call yourself? When you forgot to stop and get something at the store, or made the same stupid mistake …again…what do you call yourself?

Is the name a put down?
Is it vulgar?
Is it a name that you would never call anyone else?
Where did that name come from?

Most likely it came from some kind of life moment when you disappointed someone and in frustration and anger, the name stuck. This name—this put down—then becomes a weapon against you when you try to respond to Christ working in your life. When you sense the invitation from Christ, your mind begins to work against you.

“Hey, stupid (fill in the name you use for yourself), why would Jesus want to hang around someone like you?” “Why do you think He could do anything in your life?”
“You screw up everything.” (then follows a long list of all of your mistakes to prove the point).

As a result of this self-bullying inner dialogue, you never respond to Jesus at all. You talk yourself out of it. You simply don’t give Jesus a chance to work.

And it all starts with the name you call yourself. How can you change it? The bad news is you can’t. The good news is Jesus can.

Have you ever noticed how many times someone’s name changes when they have a divine encounter? This is not an accident. “If anyone be in Christ,” Paul writes, “he is a new creation.” And this new creation, this new person, has a new name. Now, you may have the same name on your driver’s license, but you will have a new name inside.

In Acts 10, Peter has a vision. Food is placed before Peter and he is told to eat. When Peter responds saying that the food is unclean, Jesus answers, “What God has created, you don’t call common.” The vision was getting Peter ready to preach to Gentiles, people he considered unclean. Lesson: what God has created (and that’ s you), we don’t dare judge or call unclean. That goes for self-incrimination as well.

As a child of Christ, you are loved and cherished…your name should reflect your place in God’s family — the church. When I go home to see my parents, Mom will call me “Michael.” (She’s the only person in my life who calls me by that name). Dad will call me, “Boy,” as in, “Hey, Boy! What took you so long to get here?” Those names tell me who I am in the family.

Where does this name come from? The only place it’s ever come from… Jesus himself. The next time you pray, listen. Really listen. Hear the name Jesus uses when He calls you.

1. Increase trust in the system

Church finances must be beyond reproach. The process of planning the budget, adopting the budget, accounting for expenditures, authorizing payments — in short, the system that takes the  money from the moment it is given to the moment it is spent for kingdom work— must be done under best accounting practices…and then some. Too many nationally known ministries have mishandled donations and most people are now suspicious of churches and their appeals for money. If people are going to give, they must trust the system. As Paul teaches, we must refrain from the “appearance of evil.” Anything less will discourage generosity in the church.

2. Have a vision and workable strategy

The church must know where they are headed and how they are going to get there. Big, audacious dreams are nice, but without a workable strategy, dreams are just dreams. The church must have clear understanding of what the mission of the church is and the steps the church is taking to accomplish this mission. The mission can be challenging, but each step of strategy must be doable.  In other words, the pastor must compellingly communicate the destination and the steps necessary to get them there. Your people must have a reason to give to their church.  Yes, I know about tithing, but a lot of people now see 10% as the total of their charitable giving. That means people in the congregation are weighing giving to the church against the needs of other non-profits. The pastor should always be able to present a compelling reason to give to the church.

3. Celebrate small victories and milestones

Every Sunday, be able to tell the church what has happened the previous week.  Children’s camps, mission trips, responses to community needs, and impacts made by particular ministries show the church their money is being put to immediate use for eternal purposes. Make these stories as concrete as possible. Success breeds success. Seeing their giving make a real difference in the world will encourage them to remain engaged in the financial health of the church.

4. Help your church manage their finances

Here is an interesting discovery we have made within our congregation. Most of our members WANT to give, but can’t because of real issues with their finances.  Some have lost jobs or their investments have gone bad, while others have been unwise in their spending.  However they got to where they are they literally can’t afford to give.  We have found it helpful to offer Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace and courses by Crown Ministries to be very successful in helping our people gain control over their finances and their lives in general. After these courses, people usually find they can give more than they thought they could. If you aren’t aware of this, you will end up trying to get your people to do something they can’t do, leaving your people with unnecessary guilt and shame.

5. Make it about Lordship (and stewardship is part of that)

The issue isn’t stewardship. It’s Lordship. Stewardship is an aspect of Lordship, but not the whole of it.  Jesus Christ is Lord. He owns us…every part of us. Our talents, our time, our relationships and resources are all under His control.  As Christ-followers, we are called to use every blessing from God to bless others and His Kingdom.  This is why we give in our worship services. Giving is an act of worship.  As stewards, we are entrusted with kingdom resources to invest for kingdom purposes. That includes every expression of our lives — including our money. Real disciples don’t ask Jesus how much they should give, but they ask themselves how much they really need to keep.

Jesus taught that our hearts would be where our treasure is. This is why we talk about money. Money, more than anything else, reveals our hearts and the hearts of our people are what we are really interested in. 

What have you learned about giving and your church? I’d be interested to know.

The interview is honest and sometimes difficult. I was moved by Roxanna’s faith and deeply appreciated Jerry’s response about the hope we have in Christ in tough times.  He didn’t down play the hurt or the senseless nature of her death, but spoke with quiet confidence about the difference that faith makes. Jerry and I have become friends (OK, I hung out with him at a writing conference and we have exchanged a few phone calls and emails. By Nashville name dropping standards that practically makes us family…) Anyway, I have a profound respect for Jerry’s commitment to the arts (writing and movies) in the service of the gospel.

Watch the interview online - It’s worth a few minutes of your time.

One that I have just finished is by Scot McKnight entitled, The King Jesus Gospel. Scot is a professor of religious studies at North Park University and has become a good friend to me over the past few years. He is a very dedicated scholar and prolific author of many books on New Testament subjects.

The King Jesus Gospel is written to confront a problem within the evangelical church. According to McKnight, we have been preaching a shortened version of the gospel that has ended up shaping an entire culture. This misunderstood gospel is also deconstructing the church in North America.

McKnight makes the case that, in our effort to win converts, we have shortened the gospel to an overly simple “plan of salvation.” People are given three or four steps to take, three or four sentences to repeat and this is what passes for conversion these days.

What is left out is the rest of the story. The story is of how God promises Abraham that through Him, all the world will be blessed. Of how Israel, chosen people of God, were heirs to these promises and how Christ is the culmination of all God promised to His people.  This grand story is of how God has worked across history, coming to its glorious climax in the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And how, still keeping His promises, God will continue His work until, at the time of Christ’s return, all of creation will be restored to God’s original vision.

By preaching this small gospel, Christians have been allowed and even encouraged, to live small lives. Their faith becomes something that’s just between them and Jesus. We lose sight that, in Christ, we are part of a big and glorious story God is writing across history. We don’t understand we are part of the grand finale of history. We end up just thankful God rescued us never fully understanding that God intends to rescue every one. Once rescued, we are then part of the rescue team. What gives us hope against so much despair? The Big Story of Jesus!

Our churches begin to shrink in the scope of their ministry and vision. The early church took on the Roman Empire. The church in 21st North America no longer believes it has the power or the authority to address the demonic systems of our culture that enslave people and destroy lives. Why? We have been preaching and living a little gospel.

I found McKnight’s book to be challenging to my own preaching and thinking. I have been guilty of preaching this “little gospel” because, well, it’s how I make my living. I have rethought some things and I am committed to living the Big Story of Jesus, Promise of God, Conqueror of Death, and the King whose kingdom will never end. God is writing a big story and we’re all invited to be part of it.  So, find your place and live large—pray large, preach large, serve large — as anyone in a big story must.

Pick up McKnight’s book. It a small one, but it’s got a big message.

And check out Scot’s blog too…