I have to blog this article – I cant claim it as mine, I wish I could but I found the article to be very pointed and honest and RIGHT…

 Finally: A Definitive List of Every Essential Element for an Effective Church

by Karl Vaters

 Too many church leaders spend too much time on too many things that aren’t essential for an effective church.

But what are the essential elements of an effective church?

Good news. I’ve found the definitive list, and today I’m going to share it with you.

But first, a few things that aren’t on the list.

A church doesn’t need to be big to be effective.

A church doesn’t need to be small to be effective.

A church doesn’t need a mission statement to be effective.

A church doesn’t need a choir or worship team to be effective.

A church doesn’t need suits and dresses to be effective.

A church doesn’t need to dress casually to be effective.

A church doesn’t need small groups to be effective.

A church doesn’t need a website to be effective.

A church doesn’t need a building to be effective.

A church doesn’t even need a pastor to be effective. (A shout-out to all my house church peeps!)

Our Priorities Matter

None of those things are wrong. Many of them can make a good ministry better. The church I pastor has or does most of them.

 BUT THEY’RE NOT ESSENTIAL.

When we start thinking they’re essential, then our way is right and other ways are wrong.

 Then we start obsessing over them.

Wasting time, money and emotion on them.

Arguing over them.

Alienating ourselves from other believers because of them.

And ignoring real needs because of our obsession with nonessentials.

What Are the Essentials?

There are only two essential elements for a church to be effective:

1. People who genuinely love Jesus.

2. People who genuinely love each other.

Anything less isn’t church.

Anything more is personal preference.

 No personal preference is worse than any other—unless it draws people away from either of those essentials. No personal preference is better than any other—except to the person whose faith is strengthened by it.

 The Relentless Battle

The problem with our personal preferences is that we really do prefer them. Sometimes we prefer them over the actual essentials.

It’s too easy to allow nonessential preferences to take over our lives, churches and ministries. The danger isn’t that we’ll fail, but that we’ll do the nonessentials so well that we’ll accept them as a substitute for successful, effective ministry.

Perhaps the #1 job of a church leader is not to let our guard down in the relentless battle to keep the nonessentials from crowding out the essentials.

So what do you think? How are we doing on the essentials? 

 

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Love God Love People – anything less – IS NOT CHURCH

Anything more is just personal preference…

God, Please don’t let me lose my first love, please don’t let me put my PREFERENCES over loving You and people… Help me to see You, help me to see people the way You do. Where a man-made rule hinders me from doing that, let me break it. Where my personal preference gets in the way of loving – take it from me…

 

  Play Song 

"Where Is The Love?"

 

 What's wrong with the world, mama     People livin' like they ain't got no mamas

 I think the whole world addicted to the drama     Only attracted to things that'll bring you trauma

  Overseas, yeah, we try to stop terrorism      But we still got terrorists here livin'

 In the USA, the big CIA          The Bloods and The Crips and the KKK

 

 But if you only have love for your own race    Then you only leave space to discriminate

 And to discriminate only generates hate    

 And when you hate then you're bound to get irate, yeah

  Madness is what you demonstrate    And that's exactly how anger works and operates

 Man, you gotta have love just to set it straight

 Take control of your mind and meditate     Let your soul gravitate to the love, y'all, y'all

 

 People killin', people dyin'     Children hurt and you hear them cryin'

 Can you practise what you preach     And would you turn the other cheek

  Father, Father, Father help us     Send some guidance from above

 'Cause people got me, got me questionin'

 Where is the love (Love)

 

 Where is the love (The love)

 Where is the love (The love)

 Where is the love, the love, the love

  It just ain't the same, old ways have changed     New days are strange, is the world insane?     If love and peace are so strong      Why are there pieces of love that don't belong?

  Nations droppin' bombs      Chemical gasses fillin' lungs of little ones

 With ongoin' sufferin' as the youth die young     So ask yourself is the lovin' really gone

  So I could ask myself really what is goin' wrong   

 In this world that we livin' in people keep on givin' in

 Makin' wrong decisions, only visions of them dividends

 Not respectin' each other, deny thy brother

 A war is goin' on but the reason's undercover

  The truth is kept secret, it's swept under the rug

 If you never know truth then you never know love

 Where's the love, y'all, come on (I don't know)

 Where's the truth, y'all, come on (I don't know)

 Where's the love, y'all

  People killin', people dyin'   -    Children hurt and you hear them cryin'

 Can you practise what you preach  -   And would you turn the other cheek

  Father, Father, Father help us   -   Send some guidance from above

 'Cause people got me, got me questionin'

 Where is the love (Love)

  Where is the love (The love)?      Where is the love (The love)?

 Where is the love (The love)?      Where is the love (The love)?

 Where is the love (The love)?       Where is the love (The love)?

 Where is the love, the love, the love?

 

 I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder    As I'm gettin' older, y'all, people gets colder      Most of us only care about money makin'     Selfishness got us followin' the wrong direction

  Wrong information always shown by the media      Negative images is the main criteria

 Infecting the young minds faster than bacteria      Kids wanna act like what they see in the cinema

  Yo', whatever happened to the values of humanity     Whatever happened to the fairness and equality      Instead of spreading love we're spreading animosity

 Lack of understanding, leading us away from unity

 

 That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' under

 That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' down

 There's no wonder why sometimes I'm feelin' under

 Gotta keep my faith alive 'til love is found

 Now ask yourself

  Where is the love?  Where is the love? Where is the love? Where is the love?

 

 Father, Father, Father, help us     Send some guidance from above

 'Cause people got me, got me questionin'   -     Where is the love?

  Sing with me y'all:

 One world, one world (We only got)           One world, one world (That's all we got)

 One world, one world

 And something's wrong with it (Yeah)    Something's wrong with it (Yeah)

 Something's wrong with the wo-wo-world, yeah

 We only got             (One world, one world)

 That's all we got      (One world, one world)

  

We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.

1 John 3:16-18

Today – I choose to die.

 I have heard too many people say that. Oh, they didn’t come right out and use those words, but they made a choice to die none the less.

What it boils down to is that they chose to do nothing to change the course, thus they made the choice by not making a choice.

Let me give you an example. My dear mother whom I love dearly, who died almost a year to the day that I write this, died and the cause of death listed on the death certificate reads – “Breast cancer.”

 

She had been diagnosed many months earlier, but once told that she had breast cancer she chose to do nothing. I mean absolutely nothing. Not just “no” to any treatment, but an emphatic NO to anything… no MRI, no CT scan, no Ultrasound and definitely no surgery. She didn’t even want to discuss the fact that she even had cancer.

Yet it was ultimately the cause of death.

I know that the whole discussion of quality of life and effects of the treatment are part of the discussion. BUT, the bottom line falls to the fact that she made a choice. She knew she was dying, she knew what was going on under the surface but refused to acknowledge it. I didn’t agree with her decision, but it was her life and I could not make the choice for her, I could only love her with the time we had until the inevitable.

Now, I see and hear of too many people, too many churches that make the same choice. They loudly proclaim that today they choose to die. Again, not that they actually use those exact words but they say it loudly and proudly when they refuse to discuss that there might be a “cancer” of sorts causing a slow wasting away of it’s body.

They don’t want to discuss it, they don’t want to even acknowledge it, they don’t want to even think about and there is no way, no how that they are going to allow a radical surgery to make the desperately needed changes to ensure not just survivability but “thrivability.”

 

Thousands of churches across the country are declining – one researcher notes that – “Approximately 80% of all churches in North America have reached a plateau or are declining.” (Daniel R. Sanchez, Church Planting Movements in North America (Fort Worth, TX: Church Starting Network, 2007)

Let me define “declining” for you – it really just the nice way of saying – YOU ARE DYING! In my opinion there is no such thing as “negative growth.” You are either growing or you are dying… Thom Rainer is quoted as saying – “According to my estimates, about one in four American churches, or around 100,000 churches, fit the definition of a dying church”

 

I am a young 50 years old. I can tell you that if I went to the doctor and they told me that I had some disease but that if I went through the treatment, as difficult as it might be, and that if I did I could continue to have a life with my family and my grandkids – well, I would ask they how soon can we start!

Yet, in his book “Autopsy of a Deceased Church” Thom Rainer talks about churches who actually get EXTREMELY ANGRY when told they are dying and need change, maybe even radical change. They (the churches) seriously refuse to admit or change – right up to the point that they lock the door and fold the flag.

Rainer, as well as many other church consultants, have said – if you just make some changes you can have a long healthy very possibly thriving life ahead of you… YET they still get angry and refuse the treatment, and instead say – TODAY I CHOOSE TO DIE.

 

I am not suggesting what the changes might be; they are different for every church. What I am suggesting is that every church has to look at itself honestly, even when difficult, and be not just ready and willing to make changes but to actually go ahead and make the HARD choice to LIVE! Even if that requires radical surgery.

Let me leave you with another example. I have an uncle who I love and respect. He was diagnosed with cancer, and might I add not at a “young” age. They (my aunt and uncle) didn’t try to pretend he didn’t have it, they didn’t stick their heads in the sand… they accepted the fact but then CHOSE to go through together whatever it would take to live.

He had treatment, he had surgery, he had more treatment… it wasn’t easy… I am sure that it was scary at times and they had a lot of people praying… but he in essence said – “Today I choose to live!”

And he is enjoying life even today, sure things changed some but he chose to live.

 

I guess the question I would leave you with is this – what will you choose?

I ran across this piece in a Dear Abby column recently and while not surprised I was struck by the content… take a look…

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DEAR ABBY: I, too, am in a "mixed marriage." I'm religious and my husband is an atheist. We agree to disagree on the matter. Religion (or lack of it) is a very personal thing, and however we feel, we owe each other respect for our different views.

 "Coerced" is great for trying to accommodate her husband, but now that they see it didn't work, he should stop pressuring her. She can refrain from going to services, but should consider attending the church's social events. This solution worked well for us. My husband and my church friends get along well.

 Of course, this depends on the nature of the church. Mine happens to be one of the more progressive. It's worth a try. -- KATHRYN IN OTTAWA, CANADA

 DEAR ABBY: I knew my husband was atheist when we married. Our spiritual journeys are different, and we're not going to change each other.

 We agreed I would raise our kids Catholic. I never expect him to be at church with us on Sundays, but on important sacraments (baptism, first communion, confirmation), he is there with the whole family because he realizes these events are important for his kids and me. He has become friendly with some of my clergy and fellow congregants, who accept him for the wonderful person he is.

 Maybe in the future "Coerced" could attend an event like a church spaghetti dinner, something outside of services, and get to know the people her husband spends time with on Sunday. And he could spend a weekend doing a silent hiking retreat with his wife and her friends.

Respecting each other's spiritual path is a first step toward appreciating each other's differences and growing together. -- BLESSED IN OREGON

 DEAR ABBY: "Coerced" is lucky to have a man who attends church and wants her to go, too. She might consider helping in the nursery. That way, she's there with him but doesn't have to listen to the message. Churches are always looking for help so parents can actually attend the service. -- LAURA IN CONNECTICUT

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 Ok, I see a problem here. I am all for relationship evangelism but not “relationship” evangelism. The bible is pretty clear in how it addressed this item of life.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:14

 Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?

There was (and is) a reason for this. When two people are put together and have distinctly different, often diametrically opposed faiths there will inevitably be conflict. This conflict will go beyond “how will we raise the children…”

Our faith system is at the root of how we act, who we are and how we live our lives (well, its supposed to be anyway). God, in His infinite wisdom knows that putting two people together who are at opposite ends of the spectrum would lead to marital conflict.

Some people will say – “But if I date them and if we get married maybe I can be the one that leads them to Christ.” Well, you better lead them there first!

Then they will quote something like 1 Corinthians 7:16

For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife?

BUT they are taking that out of context. This verse is referring to those who are ALREADY married and one accepts Christ and the other has not.. yet… but that in the staying together in a marriage that is ALREADY established the result may be that the other comes to know Christ.

 It comes as no surprise that the believing spouse is writing to Dear Abby about their non-believing spouse.. but for the ones who knew that going into it, they knew better, so they honestly brought this issue on themselves. God told you that it would happen… so it should come as no surprise. What did you think was going to happen?

 IF you are someone who is currently dating, who is looking for that future husband and wife, it is far and away more advisable to find someone who is of the same faith and who has the same love for God as you do. Don’t try to use “relationship” evangelism if you are dating a non-believer. You will be better served by a future spouse who believes in the Biblical tenants of being a Godly husband or Godly wife and who will strive to BE that for you.

Don’t invite, welcome and embrace potential problems into your future relationship.

 

You cant do it ALL….AND YOU SHOULDN’T EVEN TRY…

 

In Philippians 3:13 and 14 Paul wrote…

“Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (bold mine)

 Paul had one intent, one aim…that was to not live in the past of who he was but instead to focus on the task ahead of him. He says – ONE THING. Paul doesn’t say I am going to do these 15 things . He didn’t say that he wanted to start a cornucopia of “stuff” but he wanted to focus on moving forward to what was ahead, toward a goal.

 For the church – it cannot linger in the past, it cannot long for the good ole’ days. It can remember the good times (which by the way also include some bad times that we conveniently gloss over) but it cannot live there.

The church must also make a decision to succeed at that ONE THING – that is to the goal of the call of Christ Jesus. Let me rephrase that – the gospel MUST be central to everything.

Anything that does not have that at its central goal, focus and aim, well it might be a nice thing to do but it detracts from the Christ appointed goal.

You cannot DO everything, nor can the church take on every pet project or passion of every person in the church. Again, not that those things may not be good ideas, but that the question must be asked – DOES THIS HELP THE GOAL?

 At the fear of offending someone; giving blood is nice but does it really help the church achieve the stated goal – pushing an agenda of social justice might be honorable but the church wasn’t called to share social justice… its not part of the stated goal.

The members of a church are full of honestly good ideas, personal agendas and things that are very important to them. But the church must focus it’s energy, heart, passion, resources, etc… in spreading the gospel and sharing Christ.

So the difficult but honest truth is – a church, like a person, CANNOT do it all and it is foolish to even try. Along with that, just because a church is busy doesn’t mean that it is effective. More often than not it just means it’s tired, and most likely NOT effective.

 Horses in a race (often horses pulling carriages) wear blinders or blinkers. These devices are in place to remove distractions from the horse so that they are not thrown off track. Interestingly these blinkers are not to simply keep from distractions on the sides but are also to keep the horse – wait for it – from looking back!

 So in a way, the church must often put on blinders from periphery items that will distract from the goal. To remain focused on the track that they have been given.

No church can do it all, and they shouldn’t even try….

 

 

Mercy triumphs over judgement

There is a world outside the church doors that needs Jesus…there is an internal “thing” that they are wrestling with that is struggling for grace, love, forgiveness, purpose – a reconnection with the God who created them…

What saddens me is that far too often it is the church, the very “Followers” of Christ that will be the greatest hindrance to them finding Jesus.
 
The greatest threat to the Kingdom of God is not satan – Jesus said to a Follower of Christ (Peter) in Matthew 16:18
“I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

So satan cannot overpower the church of Jesus Christ.
SO, what puts the kibosh on a growing , impacting Kingdom of God?

Again – it is the “Followers” that can stunt the growth. The world knows what the church hates, what the church stands firm against… but what if they knew what we loved, what we stood firm FOR, what really mattered to us… what if?????

The Christian band - Casting Crowns – wrote of this very thing in their song –
“Jesus, Friend of Sinners” – and I think we could take a lesson from these lyrics.

We cut down people in your name but the sword was never ours to swing

Jesus, friend of sinners, the truth's become so hard to see

The world is on their way to You but they're tripping over me

Always looking around but never looking up I'm so double minded

A plank eyed saint with dirty hands and a heart divided

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners

Open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers -  

Let our hearts be led by mercy

It goes on later –   “Nobody knows what we're for only what we're against when we judge the wounded -  What if we put down our signs crossed over the lines and loved like You did”

WHAT IF???  The church didn’t PLAY church anymore…

WHAT IF???  Followers of Christ showed mercy and restoration

WHAT IF???  The church crossed over and loved like Jesus

WHAT IF???  Followers no longer pointed fingers but held out a hand of mercy

I dream of that… It makes me sad and elated at the same time – sad that we are not “BEING” this… but elated that it’s possible.

My prayer is that WE, the FOLLOWERS of CHRIST can be what we are called to be… the BODY of Jesus Christ…
Finally in the song from Casting Crowns…

Help us reach with open hearts and open doors

Oh Jesus, friend of sinners, break our hearts for what breaks Yours

Whats going on?!?

1 Thessalonians 5:6 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

“…so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.”
 

Satan is no fool. The full on assault of the Christian faith will not be effective. He knows that and as such will not really attempt it. But, what he does know is that by slowly eroding the liberties, by making the practice of the faith something that is frowned upon, he can impact the whole belief system. 

Little by little the idea of being a Follower of Christ is chipped at, attacked from the side, that before you know it – the Body of Christ has been relegated to a “hate group” and will be forced to either deny the faith or die for the faith…

Here are some instances found on the web, I verified these statements to ensure that they are legitimate.

 

Christian faith coming under attack in the military including:

Commanders barred from disclosing any programs that are tied to the Chaplaincy or any programs involving religion.

 

The Air Force banning the word ‘God’ from an Air force patch logo – even though the reference had no religious connotation.

 

A Navy directive that banned Bibles at Walter Reed Hospital.

 

An Army Reserve training program that listed Evangelical Christians and Catholics as examples of religious extremism.

 

An Army email that listed prominent Christian ministries like the Family Research Council and American Family Association as “domestic hate groups.”

 

I personally have been told, when offering the invocation at a county council meeting that I could not say, mention or elude to the name of Christ or any other religious figure found in the bible. To whit – I closed my prayer – “…in Christ name I pray…” I wasn’t invited back. BUT – neither were several other local clergy when they too refused to abide by the request.

However, in other organizations (non-religious) – I was asked to pray, given no restrictions, prayed “in Jesus name” and was invited back multiple times. Not every institution is so bent on wiping the protestant religion out of the picture.

The issue still exists though, that Christianity is being slowly pushed to the side, and at this rate will be outlawed in the future.  That may sound like an alarmist… but the above statements from the military alarm me. You say it wont happen…but it will, not because the government or other groups force it… BUT WE ALLOW IT.

I cannot fault non-christens for eroding the liberties, the freedom of speech and religion, from the national scene, after all they are not believers, the behave and live as such… who I do struggle with is US!

Is it the fault of those who slowly erode those things or those who do nothing about it?

I believe that GOD has an expectation of us as Followers of Christ – to stand up and stop the slow erosion of faith.

In Acts 26:16 (NASB)

“But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you;”
 

So – BELIEVER – Stand up – get on your feet – find your voice… every Follower of Christ is commissioned a minister, a witness of Jesus Christ. 

We cannot blame the world for behaving like, making decisions like, the world. We who may sit silent are very possibly the culprit of allowing the deChristianing of our society.

Yes, it will make you look radical. Yes, it will make you look strange to the rest of society…

Jesus himself warned us – John 15:19

“If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.”

I would rather be hated for standing for Christ than loved for standing for nothing…

 Wake up – stop the creep…take a look at one pastor who did...


http://radio.foxnews.com/toddstarnes/top-stories/florida-pastor-to-defy-prayer-ban.html