Isaac Boluwatise

The business of the church is to be busy with the commission given her by the Christ. The present concern and occupation with self organized and campaign for protection can’t be spiritual. I doubt if that fits into WWJD (what would Jesus do?) considering the context in Matt 16:22-27.

Peter rebuked him and gave a “prophetic word” of that shall not be your portion, when christ spoke of the challenge awaiting him.

His response to Peter: “Get behind Me satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

He that loves his life will loose it, he that looses it will find it.

I taught my sons early enough to remember from the words of Christ that finders are losers while losers are finders (Matt 16:25).

I think the church is concerned with the extinction of a religion and how to organize its safety. A religion may go into extinction but not the way. The Christian faith is not a religion; it can’t go into extinction. The history of the church was punctuated with various assaults like the ones being witnessed now globally. The church only gets stronger against the assaults of the gates of hell.

We are His concern (Acts 9:4-5), any attempt against us is one against Him; His work and desires are our concern, He asked us to occupy till He comes. That charge cannot be carried out with self pity and appetite for security.

These are part of the signs of the times. Political calculations and organizational planning cannot change them.

If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

I understand why we are wrongly concerned.

A pastor once told me he dislikes the hymn with the lines: I’ll be a good soldier, I’ll die at my post.” For Him it is not spiritual being negative confession.

I was scared! With this type of thinking we will see more of mixing the preaching of the gospel with political and organized fight for protection.

Let us discern the sign of the times!

#HeThatHasHearsLetHimHear
#IATBoluwatise

How do most churches measure the health of their ministry? Very few leaders have an accurate method. Most rely on an unhealthy test to determine whether or not they are leading well. Have you ever used any of these three tests?

1. The Full Room Test

Ever looked around on Sunday morning to see how many people showed up? Many pastors are asking, “How full was the room?” While I join you in hoping that people attend, your church’s attendance barely provides a glimpse of its true health.

2. The Gut Check Test

Many pastors base their perception of the church on the way they feel at any moment. Unfortunately, our feelings are affected by whatever we most recently encountered. An accurate measure of church health requires something more consistent.

3. The Bank Account Test

Too often, it takes a financial struggle for a church to realize that it is unhealthy. As long as the bills are paid, everything seems fine. But once the bank account starts running low, leaders suddenly scurry to fix issues. Unfortunately, The Bank Account Test reveals problems after it is too late to solve them.

So how can you get an accurate measure of your church’s health? My latest eBook, Vital Signs: Meaningful Metrics That Keep a Pulse on Church Health, offers an objective tool to heighten your perspective. With 12 key benchmarks built on nationwide data, you can quickly get an objective outlook. These Vital Signs will help you see deeper into four key areas: attendance, involvement, finances, and facilities.

Are you ready to get a true measure of your church’s health? Learn more about Vital Signs on Amazon.com

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Can’t wait to measure the health of your church? We’ve created a worksheet to automatically calculate all 12 of your Vital Signs. You can access it for FREE right here! Then utilize the eBook to better understand your results!

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Paul S. Rees said, “Marriage is not an end in itself; it is a means by which we may grow in the Lord, and realize His glory. Selfishness breaks communion, destroys prayer.”

In marriage, you are not just in relationship with each other; you’re in relationship with God. Consider how a husband might guard that trajectory of the relationship:

The Early Church father, Tertullian, wrote this letter to his wife around A.D. 202. It represents for all time the ideal relationship between husband and wife.

“How beautiful, then, the marriage of two Christians, two who are one in hope, one in desire, one in the way of life they follow, one in the religion they practice.

“They are as brother and sister, both servants of the same Master. Nothing divides them, either in flesh or in Spirit. They are in very truth, two in one flesh, and where there is but one flesh, there is also but one spirit.

“They pray together, they worship together, they fast together; instructing one another, encouraging one another, strengthening one another.

“Side-by-side they face difficulties and persecution, share their consolations. They have no secrets from one another, they never shun each other’s company; they never bring sorrow to each other’s hearts … Psalms and hymns they sing to one another.

“Hearing and seeing this, Christ rejoices. To such as these He gives His peace. Where there are two together, there also He is present, and where He is, there evil is not.”

If husbands do not properly relate to their wives, Peter says their prayers will be hindered. Failure to live considerately and appropriately with your wife negatively impacts your relationship to God.

Unlike Tertullian, Sam Shoemaker once talked about the fact we may not find utopia in the Christian home, that “the Christian home is not one in which relationships are perfect … but one in which imperfections are acknowledged and where problems are worked out in prayer and obedience to the light God sends. In such homes there is great freedom for people to say what they think and express what they feel. … People are allowed to grow up, to make mistakes, to be themselves, to laugh.”

Do you allow that of your spouse?

Extend grace to your wife or husband, and you’ll begin to experience an atmosphere of grace in your home.

George Wood is General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God.

by Ryan Stigile, the Unstuck Group

Regardless of your church’s size, there’s no doubt it is built on an organizational structure. To effectively lead a large number of people, you need a way to protect your circle of influence and the decision-making process. This is why most church boards and leadership teams were created.

Over time, however, a structure meant to protect your progress can actually begin to get in the way. When a structure overly-directs which people are involved in decisions, it will box out the new perspectives you need. Eventually, leading strictly according to structure will get your church stuck. You may have experienced one of these side effects:

• You leave staff meetings feeling like you barely moved the ball forward.
• The thought of board meetings creates more stress than excitement.
• You know you need new ideas but you’re not sure what they are.

To keep a church moving forward, leaders must see structure for what it truly is: Structure provides protection but often blocks out new perspectives.

Are you feeling the pains of an overly-directive structure? Here are 3 ways you can let in the new perspectives you need:

1. Promote the best, not the next in line.

The view of organizational structures as a ladder has ruined our approach to promotions. When a position opens up, we naturally look one rung down for a replacement. But the best person for the job isn’t always next in line.

Who deserves to be promoted beyond their seniority?

2. Value leadership capacity over expertise.

Our natural tendency is to put the person who knows the most about a ministry in charge of it. But leadership is more about influencing people than knowing the right decisions to make. High capacity leaders will figure out what they need to know.

Which high-capacity leader deserves greater influence?

3. Build tables for the right perspectives, not the right positions.

We tend to organize meetings based on leadership levels. But same-level leaders often have too much of a similar perspective. If you want to change the way your team makes decisions, you have to change who is seated at the table. It doesn’t matter what title they hold or whether or not they get a “vote” at the end. It matters that you involve people who will push you to see beyond where you are.

Who else do you need to invite to your next meeting?

If you’re starting to feel like your church’s structure is over-directing the people you involve, take steps to break out and let fresh perspectives in. Here are a couple resources from The Unstuck Group that can help:

Take The Lid Off Your Church: This eBook from Tony Morgan is designed to help you build a healthy senior leadership team.

Staffing & Structure Review: This process will help you get the right people in the right roles to move your church forward.

Ravages via Compfight cc

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