There really is no neutral in life! We are either going forward or drifting backward!
When we disengage we actually put it in reverse. When we decide to drift, to coast, we lose ground. I'm not talking about taking time to rest, rejuvenate, or to wait on God. Those are acts of going forward because they are accomplishing something positive in our lives.
I'm talking about becoming satisfied with where we are or have been, deciding to stay at a certain place in life.
Churches can get there quickly and easily! Living in yesterday's accomplishments or memories can become lethal.
That is why we can never get comfortable with where we are... not as long as there are still people in this world that are far from God!
Forward progress involves...
Recognizing and celebrating what has happened to get us to where we are now! That acknowledges God's faithful work in and through us and gives us courage to go on! (By the way, every little victory should be recognized and celebrated. Sometimes it's the smallest things that encourage us on to bigger things!)
Having a vision that is God-sized, bigger than we are! We have to trust God to stretch us. At LifeBridge our vision is to impact the region, to reach the 300,000 plus unchurched around us, to reach the next generation! That is definitely bigger than we are, but not too big for God! A vision is a target we shoot for, one that reminds us that we never totally arrive while on this earth!
Being willing to stretch, take risks, and constantly change! Change is very good even though we tend to resist it. Show me a church with a culture of ongoing change and we will be looking at a church that is going forward! Growth requires change. I'm not very big, but I sure don't wear the same shoe size at 52 years old that I wore at 10 years old! (Some might dispute that!) Some churches are still hanging on to old methods and structures of 50 years ago because it's too risky or uncomfortable to put on a different "shoe"! So, their "feet" aren't growing because they are stuck in the old shoe size! And, sadly, people far from God are being ignored by comfort seeking, change resisting, church members!
Failing! That's a strange one, but true. In the big picture there is nothing but success when we trust God for forward progress. But, as we move forward, we will sometimes "fail". Not everything we try will work well. Anyone afraid of failing will never get out of the boat! You can't walk on water if you never get out of the boat! Peter failed!!! He began to sink. Yet in the bigger picture he succeeded. We learn from failures and get better. After over 800 failed attempts, Thomas Edison finally produced the light bulb! Aren't you glad he failed!
Humbly depending on a faithful God who wants forward progress so much that He died for it!
Even though I've put this in the context of forward progress in the local church, the above can be applied to all aspects of our individual lives!
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May, 2008
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