Just a Thought

Every church, every pastor approaches Easter in their own way. I've been to the workshops from the mega-churches and learned enough to help me dream bigger dreams and feel like more of a failure. It's a tough spot: there's so much to learn from the 2-300 pastors at the top of their game. Problem is, it's like the guy from the corner computer store going to a seminar led by Bill Gates, he's probably going to be in awe by the time Bill's done talking but he won't walk away with much that's really practical for his situation. The same thing can happen for a pastor in a church that's yet to crack 500 or maybe even 50 in attendance, when they wander into the shadow of the mega church pastor. Lot's of inspiration- these guys didn't build great churches because they're bad at what they do -but not a whole lot that the rest of us can really relate to. Regardless of what they say, leadership that's asking their members to attend other churches on Easter Sunday so the one time attenders can find a parking spot, have a hard time remembering what it's like for the rest of us. It's not their fault- it's our reality - their's and ours. It is what it is.

Don't believe me big church pastor? Just watch the video of our staff meeting- that's our entire pastoral staff -and when you're thinking, "How do they keep their doors open with guys like that!?" Remember that there are pastor's watching thinking: "Wish our church had a video camera." "Wish I had a staff to have a meeting with." Pastor, if that's you... this is your staff meeting. Dig in. What we're doing works, for us. We won't have 3,000 for Easter, but we know how to get you to 300. We're still looking up to the big guys to figure out the rest of the way up for us.

I filmed our last staff meeting and asked staff to go over their ideas for Easter. Not ideas from a book but just plain old normal ideas for pastors in churches that have yet to break 1,000 at Easter- but would love to with their whole hearts. When I've had the opportunity to share with pastor's, I reccomend 3 books to build their ministries- to build God's church: 1. The Purpose Driven Life, Pastor Rick Warren, 2. The Purpose Driven Church, Pastor Rick Warren, 3. Your First Two Years in Youth Ministry, Pastor Doug Fields. If you don't have these books in your library, buy them, read them. I've given these books to pastors in Nairobi who owned no books other than their Bibles- and firmly believe that these three books are a great foundation for building a great church whether you're in California or Kenya.

Final word of advice- should you ever decide to video tape a staff meeting, wear a baggy shirt and don't slouch in your chair -watching this thing made me feel like Jabba The Hut! Apparently there are certain areas where growth is not a problem for me. Next week, I'll post a shorter video with our pre-Easter pointers, I'll be wearing a baggy shirt, untucked... and I promise to sit up straight!

Blessings for your best Easter outreach yet, wherever you're working. May God build His Kingdom through you this Easter.

Eric