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A Visit to New Life Church
This past Sunday, Pam and I had the privilege of visiting with Michael Longfellow, pastor of New Life Church in Chanute, Kansas, and cluster leader for that area. The New Life Church (formerly Highland Avenue United Brethren) had been stymied in growth by a very limited building. An opportunity came up last year for the congregation to purchase the Alcott Elementary School that was relocating to a new school complex.
The whole story of the purchase, renovation and first Sunday is a magnificent account of the grace of God. First, the school was purchased for $25,000. It is a two-story non-combustible building. The school left a centralized fire alarm system, a centralized communication system to every room, a number of tables and chairs, plus some other supplies and materials.
Through six weeks of hard work in renovation/construction, all done by the congregation, the place was transformed into a wonderful house of worship and fellowship. Funds were suddenly offered for special carpet in the former gym (now the worship center). Skilled professionals (electricians and plumbers) had just recently started attending and provided their skills and labor. Even a few eighty-somethings gave of themselves cleaning up both inside and out.
Michael (right) estimates that with some extra, unplanned projects that were done based on donations, that the total renovation costs amounted to around $21,000. That means they got the property and renovated for under $50,000. And the joyous thing: they are in their new facility debt-free.
This congregation that averaged 105 two years ago had an Easter attendance of 267. Previously, Easter attendances were enlarged by visiting family members. Not this year. Not this year. While some visitors were family, a good portion of them were from their neighborhood and other parts of the community.
Michael says that their desire is for the church to become the focus of the community once again. They have the beginning stages of an exercise room that will be available to the community. They plan to use the hallways and stairs as a walk/climb track.
With economic challenges hitting this community of 9400 very hard, Michael and the congregation see increasing opportunities for sharing the Gospel. This newly renovated facility will provide them the space to reach many people for Christ.
When Relationships Trump Spiritual Health
Two days ago, I mentioned some things Bishop Ron Ramsey and I have learned during the past four years. Here is one more: People value historic relationships over spiritual health.
In a number of churches, one or two individuals or families use gossip, slander, or position to either attack the leadership or cause division in the church. Rather than stand up and address the sinful actions of these folks, the people tolerate the sin and watch to see how long the pastor can survive it.
My question is, "Why do you tolerate this?"
The church is unhealthy because cancer is ignored or tolerated. The Body, not just the pastor, must be willing to stand up.
Jesus' desires for his Church should take precedence over how long someone has been in a church or what your personal relationship has been with them if they are acting ungodly. Scripture says to warn a divisive person once, warn them a second time, and then have nothing to do with them (Titus 3:10). Where people have stopped tolerating such actions, freedom and blessing have come.
I've Learned a Lot
It is hard to believe that almost four years have passed since the Bishop Ron Ramsey and I began this journey together. In our travels and interactions, we have learned (or been reinforced in) many truths about churches. Here are a few.
God can and will bring transformation to the willing.
It has been thrilling to see the power of the Lord released into the lives of people who humbly sought his desires over their own comfort and previous traditions.
Discipleship produces evangelism.
Many churches are trying to do evangelism but are not equipped to walk with people through what it means to be a disciple. But where churches are creating environments where people are truly growing in "grace and knowledge of the truth," evangelism is the natural outcome. That brings long-term, sustained growth.
People can't do what they have never seen or experienced.
We can't assume people know what to do just because they have been told. If they have never seen it, experienced it, or done it, how are they supposed to do it? That is why mentoring and exposing them to other patterns is vital. People do more what they see than what they are told.
There is no power without personal and corporate prayer.
We have found where the pastor and leaders are busy doing rather than being, there is no power. When there is no corporate emphasis on prayer and personal study of the Scriptures, there is no power. Methodologies may change, but the basics never do. Craig Groschel's book "IT" captures this truth.
People confuse forms and functions.
Some have asked us when God ordered the church to change. As far as functions, he hasn't. Worship, prayer, study of Scripture, using our gifts in ministry, preaching, evangelism, and giving as stewards are all functions that will never change.
But God has called us in Psalm 78 and other places to effectively communicate the great truths about the Lord to the next generation. And to do that, our forms and methodologies must change. We must not confuse the non-changing functions with the need to change forms.
What truths do you see?
Do You See the Distinction?
I am reading through the Scriptures once again following a chronological plan. Several things struck me as I am reading through Exodus and the accounts of the plagues. For example, the interplay between God saying he sovereignly hardened Pharaoh's heart and Pharaoh hardening his own heart.
But the key thought that struck me most this time had to do with the Lord saying several times, "I make a distinction between my people and your people." At least three times when he brings a plague on the Egyptians, he protects the Israelites and the land of Goshen from that plague. The people of Egypt see the distinction, and because of that, they are favorably disposed to Moses and the Israelites.
A distinction. To mark someone or something out as different. To make a comparison between. To use as an illustration that is apart from the norm. To separate out as something admirable.
What a great description of God's people. We are illustrations. We are protected from the consequential disasters that fall on others because of our relationship with the Lord. We are shown by the Lord as different, holy. When the Lord uses our lives to reflect the difference, people will see and hear and give him glory.
Do you see the distinction? Do you acknowledge how the Lord protects? Do you find that people are drawn by what they see happening in your life?
We have a loving Father who keeps watch over us. His purpose is to show everyone himself through us. He distinguishes us from those around us. And the ultimate end is that people will be apt to revere him because of what they see in our lives.
I'm grateful for such a wondrous God.
Planning Vs. Being Led by the Spirit
When I became pastor of Devonshire UB church (Harrisburg, Pa.) in 1988, I laid out my six-month plan for preaching. A couple ladies approached me.
"We don't think you're being led by the Spirit."
"Oh?" I said. "Help me understand why you think that."
"How can you be led by the Holy Spirit if you're planning things out six months in advance?"
I asked them, "When did God lay out the plan of salvation? It was before the foundation of the world. He created this plan, then Jesus came 2000 years later and implemented it.
"If God can plan 2000 years in advance, are you saying he can't lead me to know what to preach about six months from now?"
To them, being led by the Spirit was flying by the seat of your pants.
A Christmas Thought
I woke up to this amazing thought and had to share it. While there is nothing new in it, my heart was blessed to contemplate it all in a new way. So here is my new, old Christmas thought.
The One who created all things, left that which was comfortable in order to take on a form that was unnatural.
The Creator became created.
The Omnipotent One became dependent.
The One who owns the cattle on a thousand hills was born in abject poverty.
He who knew no sin became sin for us so that we may have life.And He simply asks that we be willing to leave our position of comfort, enter into the zone of unknown, and tell the world what He has done for us. All by the power of His Spirit living in us.
All I can do is say "Thank you" and "Here am I, Lord, send me."
Who Owns Your Church? (Part 3)
In the previous two posts:
- We examined the deception of thinking, "This is my church."
- We substantiated that the church, including the church you attend, belongs to Jesus.
Now: how can you properly say, "This is my church"?
Now that we our attitude is straight, we can rejoice in the following:
- It is MY church because I get the privilege of worshiping there with other believers.
- It is MY church because I can honor the Lord with my finances and sacrificial giving there.
- It is MY church because I get to use my spiritual gifts there to build up the body of believers.
- It is MY church because I have the privilege of speaking things that build up others there.
- It is MY church because I come under the authority of those who are exercising spiritual leadership there.
- It is MY church because it's where I have chosen to join with others in transforming my community for Christ by reaching lost people with the Good News.
There are many more ways we could celebrate being a part of a church, but notice that they all involve a privilege and responsibility--and not a right of control.
So enjoy your church. Love the church in which you serve. But always acknowledge the ownership of the Lord over your church and don't allow yourself to get deceived.
Who Owns Your Church? (Part 2)
Yesterday, I asked you to consider the question, "Do I feel I have a shared ownership of the church I attend?"
I hope you wrestled with that question and did not easily fluff it off. It is an important question to ask. Your view of what happens at the church is based on your answer to this question. Today, I want to share a Scriptural defense of who truly owns and should control the agenda of the church.
The church belongs to...Jesus Christ
- He is the head of the Church (Ephesians 1:22).
- He died for the Church (Romans 5:8; 1 Thess. 5:10).
- He determines the gifts each person receives through His Spirit (1 Cor. 12:11).
- He freely gives us all things we need (Romans 8:32; 2 Peter 1:3).
- He is the Savior of the church (Ephesians 5:23).
- He holds every church in His hands (Revelation 3:1).
- He gives the mission to the church (Matthew 28:19, 20).
We could give many more proofs. But the point is made. It is HIS church. His blood bought it; His Word established it; His Spirit fills it.
So how much do you think about His ownership and seek His direction about what happens at your church?
On Thursday, we will finally look at how we can say, "This is my church."
Who Owns Your Church? (Part 1)
I've been amazed to see so many people living in deception when it comes to their relationship with their own church. When disgruntlement raises its head, or when people resist change that will bring about greater effectiveness in fulfilling the mission of the church, it's common to hear statements like these:
- "But this is my church."
- "You're not going to do that to my church."
Generally, the term "my" implies not only identification with, but also ownership. My computer. My home. I own them. And I determine what happens with them.
There is the deception. Did you catch it?
Continue reading Who Owns Your Church? (Part 1).
Update on George Rhodifer
I visited George Rhodifer last week. As we mentioned previously for prayer, George has been diagnosed with a fast-moving form of leukemia. The doctors are using chemo to address the cancer and try to slow it. Currently, George's white count is almost zero, so he must guard against exposure to anything that would bring infection.
George is pastor of the Olivet Church in New Lebanon, Ohio, also cluster leader for churches in the Dayton and central Ohio area. Albert Roland, pastor of Park Layne UB church in New Carlisle, Ohio, will be taking on responsibility for the cluster while George is in treatment.
Please be praying for George and his wife Beverly.You can contact George by email or by writing to:
George Rhodifer
109 Solar Drive
Tipp City, OH 45371
Leaving UBDom
The South Mountain UB church in Dillsburg, Pa., has withdrawn from the United Brethren church. They do so with our blessing.
Some connections existed between people at South Mountain and at Celebration Church, a local Assemblies of God church plant. Celebration needed a place to meet, and there were conversations about sharing South Mountain's building. After senior pastor Greg Helman left to become pastor of Blue Rock UB church (Waynesboro, Pa.) earlier this summer, some leaders at South Mountain began pursuing the idea of becoming part of Celebration. I did some checking. Celebration is a good church with a highly regarded pastor.
Bishop Ron Ramsey and I both met with people from South Mountain. We told them, "If you want to withdraw, here's the proper way to do it." They followed those steps, which culminated in a congregational meeting on Sunday night, September 28. I was present during that meeting.
Five options were presented:
- Remain United Brethren and let us find them another pastor.
- Remain United Brethren, but become part of a circuit with another UB church.
- Remain United Brethren, but sell the building and become a house church.
- Remain United Brethren, but hire a bi-vocational pastor.
- Join with Celebration.
Of the 52 votes cast, 43 were in favor of joining with Celebration.
South Mountain took all the proper steps. So as of September 28, we consider them to have properly withdrawn from the United Brethren denomination.
The Language of the Community and the Next Generation
The Chinese church is trying to figure out how to impact the community the church is in when:
- None of them live in that community--they all drive in.
- None of them speak the dialect spoken in that community (Mandarin, I believe it is).
Many of the adults do not speak fluent English, but all of their children do. They're trying to figure out the most effective way to train their young people when they don't by nature speak Chinese--they go to American schools and speak English. They want to reach their community and the next generation, but they don't speak the language of either.
Right now, they're looking for some English-speaking people to work with their youth. I appreciated the spirit I saw when I visited them last year.
On Sundays, the Chinese people make a day of it. They come for worship in the morning, usually do lunch together, and have worship later in the day. They have rooms in their building where kids can watch TV, study together, and do activities. A lot of fellowship happens on Sunday. It's a cultural thing for them. It reminds me of the old days when you had service, stayed for lunch, then had an afternoon or later service.
George Rhodifer: Diagnosed with Bone Marrow Cancer
George Rhodifer (right) is one of my cluster leaders. In addition to pastoring the Olivet UB church in New Lebanon, Ohio, he leads a cluster of churches located in Ohio and Indiana. I've appreciated working with him over the past three years.
Today, George was told that he has bone marrow cancer. He's been given three months to live. He sent me an email about this a short time ago.
"My blood count has been low for several months and they could not find a reason for it," George wrote. "They sent me to a blood doctor and she wanted to do a test on the bone morrow which makes blood. She read the report to us today in her office. It seems that I have bone morrow cancer--luekemia of the bone morrow. She told my wife and I that I have about three months to live. With low-dose chemotherarpy, I could possibly live six months, but that is not a guarentee.
"This came as a complete surprise to us. I have a pinched nerve in my back which has affected my right side. I was getting ready to go on pain management, but the doctor told me I may as well cancel that and just take pain medicine."
George asked that we remember him in prayer, and he states, "I believe that God is able to touch me and take care of the problem."
You can contact George by email or by writing to:
George Rhodifer
109 Solar Drive
Tipp City, OH 45371
Voting in the Church
When I talk to churches about the governance model, several questions typically come up. One involves voting.
In many of our churches, 10-25% of the people are on the board, and you vote for people on those boards. The issue of American democracy and having a vote is vital to people-- they want to have a say in who sits on the board. But as I talk to people, I look at them straight, and say, "Would you agree that your voting doesn't necessarily put the best people in the best spots?" Their answer is generally "yes."
Voting is not a biblical model for putting leaders into place. It's an empowerment issue. Under the governance system, we encourage letting people nominate persons for various positions. But your leadership team makes appointments to put gifted people in proper places. This follows the Acts 6 model. Deacons were "nominated" by the people but appointed by the Apostles.
God-Sighting in Logan, Ohio
Here is another "God sighting" report, this one about a community outreach event by Shepherd of the Valley UB church in Logan, Ohio. Doug Stull, the senior pastor, sent me this brief note:
The Festival turned out at least 200 unchurched people. Food, free school supplies, carnival games--all brought a lot of the community to the event. I believe we planted a lot of good seeds and hit the right button. Economically, people are hurting. We're thinking now to keep the ball rolling by offering a free Thanksgiving dinner to families.
The Cluster System After Three Years
We adopted the cluster system at the 2005 National Conference. At that time, two competing philosophies were at work:
- We need to do everything at the cluster level, including who leads the cluster and what they do. Don't appoint cluster leaders.
- We want clear direction. Tell us what to do, and appoint our cluster leader.
We've tried letting clusters develop the way most helpful to them, with the basic focus of churches becoming outward focused and healthy. But some structure works better for many of our pastors. So I'm working on ways to have more structure, but great flexibility, basically telling them, "Here are some things we'd like you to consider, but you figure out how to do it."
Every group is unique. I sent out surveys to see if pastors felt their cluster was effective and helpful to them. I found that a majority of the pastors enjoy their cluster and enjoy getting together, with a few guys wanting more instruction and leadership development. We've had people change clusters, because they wanted a more intentional approach and a nearby cluster was doing that. For the most part the clusters are working.
Leading With Boundaries
Huntington University works on a governance system. If we have an issue with the university, we don't go to a staff person, but to Dr. Dowden. He's responsible to the board of trustees. The trustees establish the guiding principles and boundary principles for the University, but they let Dr. Dowden and his staff handle day-to-day things.
In a church, the governance board operates the same way. The pastor is given authority to lead, but the board sets certain boundaries (such as, he can't spend more than one percent of the budget at a time without getting permission). The staff work under the direction of the pastor and are accountable to him, not to the board. The board then holds the pastor accountable.
A governance board doesn't need more than 3-5 people. Some churches have made their elders group their board. Some call it the Executive Leadership Team or Church Leadership Council. Whatever the name, this group focuses on two things:
- Make sure the big boundaries are being followed.
- Monitor how goals are accomplished.
Thinking of Building? Stop!
In our travels I have heard rumors of a few of our smaller to medium sized churches discussing plans to build. That concerns me. Having led one church through two major building projects and another through major renovations, I know a little about the processes and impact such a move can have.
Several factors suggest that building more buildings is not always the wise decision to make as a steward of the Lord:
- The state of today's economy.
- The fact that most of our churches, even those who are discussing building, are virtually stagnant or in decline.
- The availability of creative new solutions that were not available even a few years ago.
1. Have you done all your homework?
Can you present a clear rationale that answers these questions:
- Why are you building?
- What are you building?
2. Have you exhausted ALL avenues of meeting the need for which you are building?
Many churches only look at one solution for their need.
- Could you double use your currently rooms with some flexibility in meeting times?
- Are there other facilities nearby that could be used or rented to meet the need?
- Is there a way to do a video venue to another part of your building to solve your over-crowding in worship?
- Is there any way to do something short of building another building?
The Body of Christ (all believing churches) has literally billions of dollars of assets sitting woefully underused across this country. If turf wars could end and barriers between fellowships would cease, we could work together to accomplish something great. Church is about relationships and transformational change, not buildings. So could you use a resource another church has that they would make available to meet your goals and needs?
There are other good questions to ask but these can get you thinking. Remember, people draw people. Relationships, not buildings, are the most important thing. And the only reason to build something is if that building will provide the most effective means of accomplishing your goals.
With Dalton Jenkins in Yonkers
In June, Pam and I spent some time with Dalton Jenkins, pastor of our small Jamaican church in Yonkers, N.Y. We had supper with Dalton and his wife, Jacqueline (right), and then they showed us the 600-square-foot building where the congregation--about 22 people--hold services.
Dalton's mother-in-law is Mrs. Larimer. She and her husband served in ministry in Jamaica. She's very much a prayer warrior and preaches some. When I attended Jamaica Conference two years ago, she was invited to pray at the installation of Winston Smith as General Superintendent and the members of the Conference Council. They live with Dalton and Jacqueline.
The city of Yonkers is being upgraded. It is totally different from the Bronx, where we have another Jamaican church. Yonkers has a more upscale feel. They have a whole waterfront area that looks pretty upscale. Within a few blocks of the church are people from five or six nationalities--Mexican, Polish, Jamaican, and others. They are trying to figure out the best way to reach people in this type of community.
What is the Governance System?
We encourage churches to adopt a governance system. What does that mean?
In a management model, the board says, "Pastor, you're responsible to lead, but you can't do anything without our permission." When you're given responsibility, but not authority to act, it's called a bureaucracy.
One pastor needed board approval before he could buy something which was already in the budget. "That doesn't make sense," he told them. They said they honestly hadn't thought of it that way.
The governance system (which is explained in the book "Winning on Purpose"), follows this pattern: the board governs, the pastor leads, the staff manages, and the people minister.
The pastor is given responsibility with authority--but there is accountability. Most boards control how the pastor does ministry. But in churches that have adopted the governance system, we've heard pastors say, "I've never been more free to lead, but I've never been held this accountable."
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