I tweeted this earlier this week: there is a fine line between "my kingdom come" and "Thy kingdom come."
Can I be blunt? I think it's easier for some pastors to pray for a church that is four states away than a church that is four blocks away.
I feel like I'm living in the tension between two verses this week. They are stretching me like one of those medieval torture devices that dislocated the limbs. I think they were actually called The Stretcher. Sorry for the visual image but that is what is happening in my spirit. Two verses are pulling in opposite directions.
How do we "increase" as in I Cor 3:6 and "decrease" as in John 3:30?
I desperately want God to increase NCC as we plant and water, but I also know that I need to decrease like John the Baptist. Bottom line? I want to stay out of the way of what God is doing at NCC. It's just hard to do both of those things at the same time! Thus the tension. I want us to grow but it cannot be about the numbers.
Word to pastors: it better not be about you. In fact, I think we need to find ways to intentionally decrease. How? For starters, we better not take any credit for what God is doing. God will not be robbed of His glory! Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain! I think one of the greatest dangers that growing churches face is this prideful temptation: "look at us." Why? Because we've been saying "look at me" since we were two years old. That is our default setting. But when we follow Christ there is a paradigm shift: look at Him.
May His Kingdom come. May His will be done.
Can I be blunt? I think it's easier for some pastors to pray for a church that is four states away than a church that is four blocks away.
I feel like I'm living in the tension between two verses this week. They are stretching me like one of those medieval torture devices that dislocated the limbs. I think they were actually called The Stretcher. Sorry for the visual image but that is what is happening in my spirit. Two verses are pulling in opposite directions.
How do we "increase" as in I Cor 3:6 and "decrease" as in John 3:30?
I desperately want God to increase NCC as we plant and water, but I also know that I need to decrease like John the Baptist. Bottom line? I want to stay out of the way of what God is doing at NCC. It's just hard to do both of those things at the same time! Thus the tension. I want us to grow but it cannot be about the numbers.
Word to pastors: it better not be about you. In fact, I think we need to find ways to intentionally decrease. How? For starters, we better not take any credit for what God is doing. God will not be robbed of His glory! Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain! I think one of the greatest dangers that growing churches face is this prideful temptation: "look at us." Why? Because we've been saying "look at me" since we were two years old. That is our default setting. But when we follow Christ there is a paradigm shift: look at Him.
May His Kingdom come. May His will be done.
6 Comments:
Great reminder, Mark. Spot-on. Lord, help me pass the (daily) test of success. Help Your church increase glocally and me decrease being less of a distraction (and thief) of Your glory.
Great word. This is a constant struggle for anyone in ministry. And Proverbs 27:21 just adds to the tension by saying,“Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being PRAISED.”
So how do we pass the test? Jesus told/showed us how- SERVE.
It is easier for people to see Him if we are bowed in servant-hood washing feet of those we are leading.
If we take seriously Jesus' words then the greater the leader we become should be in proportion to our level of serving (Matthew 20:28; Luke 22:24-30).
So maybe when we think something is below us that is the very thing we need to do in order to keep our hearts right...and grow the Kingdom.
Mark, I think they called that device the "Rack". Many early Christians were subjected to its torture. Always right on in your analysis.
Great words Mark! Thanks for the chain-yanking.
In the communication world, we call that tension relational dialectics. As humans we long for autonomy, while also longing for connectedness...We need/want privacy, but we know relationships also need a great deal of transparency.
These tensions, while difficult, are actually catalysts for incredible growth when confronted with honesty.
Great post!
Amen, Mark, amen.
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