Good Enough
This past week nine of our senior staff spent two days at the Leadership Institute at Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City. It was a wonderful opportunity for us to travel together, learn together, and worship together along with 2000 other church leaders from across the country. We've had significant turn-over in our staff in recent years. Of the 15 senior staff, only 4 were at the table when I arrived 7 years ago, so this was a great opportunity for us to build our team. We also had a chance to visit with our own Scott and Wendy Chrostek who are serving on the staff at Resurrection and doing a great job. (Thanks to the Endowment Fund for a grant which made the trip possible.)
Of the many impressions, here is one of the comments by Pastor Adam Hamilton that stuck with me: "Dying churches believe that everything is good enough." In a healthy, vital church like ours it is easy to believe that "everything is good enough". Great music, thriving mission outreach, growing student ministry, creative children's program, vibrant worship...it is easy to believe that everything is good enough just as it is, but that's a sure sign of death. Maybe not today, maybe not immediately, but impending death. Growing churches, on the other hand, are always asking "What next?" "What else?" What now?" "How can we do this better?" The church is always called to "press on toward the goal, the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14)
Our current "Bless This House" stewardship campaign celebrates who we are and where we have come from, as represented by "this house". But no matter what we have done or how far we have come, there is always more in store. God calls us to keep growing, keep stretching, keeping reaching out to what the future might hold. The goal of our campaign represents a 4.9% increase in the budget over 2011. I know that's a challenge, but that's exactly what it ought to be. Our vision and our goals need to challenge us and call us forward. When we settle for things the way they are, when we settle for "good enough", we have begun the slow process toward death. For the church of Jesus Christ, "just good enough" is never good enough.
I hope you are planning to come to the festive evening on Friday, Oct. 14 when former pastor Doug Vernon will speak and the "singing pastors" will sing. Then on Sunday, Oct. 16, come to worship prepared to make your commitment to the future of this great church.
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