James 3:16

It's good to have ambition, right?

How do you tell (as a pastor or leader) when your ambition is sin?
Here are a few questions to get you started:

1. Do I use ministries to get people done or do I use people to get ministry done?
2. Do I look at other church websites, blogs, etc. in a desire to be more like that church, pastor, ministry etc.
3. Do I expect congratulations for things I do well? Do I feel down when not recognized for something I did well?
4. As an organization, do we hold on to our best people or are our best people departing?
   
5. Am I trying to be like someone else? Am I trying to make my church look like some other church?
   
6. How much time do I spend thinking about the giving levels at my church?
7. Do I really want to grow the church for Christ's sake or is that just what I tell others while I really want to increase the number of potential servers and givers?
8. Do I think more about what Christ is doing in the lives of the members or about what I (we, the "church") could do if we had just a little more (money, attenders, volunteers).
9. Do I really think what members financially give to my church is a good measurement of their commitment (or lack thereof) to Christ or do I just realize the pragmatic reality of our need for cash?
10. Does personally making more money ever come to mind when I think of what my church needs or improvements I would like to see?
11. Do I feel like I don't have enough control over what happens in my church and would I like to have more?
12. Am I a perfectionist?
13. Will I make a course correction if it means personal loss (money, prestige, ideas, control, etc)?
14. Do I use the words, "I, me, my" a lot from the pulpit?
    

Here is a quote from a book by Dan Allender to think about:

If you don't have the capacity to confess; acknowledging in real time how much you mess up, the result will be a workplace that becomes more cowardly and staff members that grow more self-committed, more closed to you and to one another and more manipulative. They will look out for themselves; not for you or the organization or their colleagues.

That's the strange paradox of leading. To the degree that you attempt to hide or dissemble your weakness, the more you will need to control those you lead; the more insecure you will become, the more rigidly you will impose; prompting the ultimate departure of your best people.

Be Afraid

I listen to an absurd number of podcasts.

Recently, a pastor from Acts 29 Network named Darrin Patrick said some things worth thinking about.

He was addressing pastors and leaders at a church-planting conference. His talk was on the topic of being centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ and not centered on buildings, programs, numerical growth and other secondary things that many pastors spend so much time on. He was pressing the importance of confession of sins, faults, frailties and weaknesses and our being able to recognize when we are trying to hide them.

Here are the quotes:

"I am afraid that my gospel proclamation is better than my gospel application"
"I am afraid that my skill growth is outpacing my character growth"
"I am concerned for myself that my pastoral passion is yielding to professionalism"
"I am concerned for you that you will settle for a church instead of a movement"

What are you afraid of?

Where's Waldo?

You've heard of "Where's Waldo?" right? Well, this image is called "Where's The Church?"

Can you see it? If you squint your eyes just right and rotate the image it's easier. Can you see the steeple? How 'bout that small cross on the side wall? The open doors with the pews inside?
Still can't see it?

Well, that's because it isn't there. Furthermore, that's not a church. It may be a building where a local church gathers for some purpose or other, but it is not a church. A church may do some type of ministry in a building like that but it is not a church. Repentance, salvation, the person and work of Christ may be preached in a building like that but it is not a church.

The reason it is not a church is because they are the church. Church is not an it, it's a who. That's right. It turns out that the best place to hide is in plain sight.... Where's the church?

You're looking at it.