What Is “Success” For A Church?

May 11, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

“How’s it going,” a fellow pastor asked me. “How’s your church doing?”

If you’re a pastor, you probably get asked this often. How do you answer this question? Do you tell them what your attendance was on Sunday morning? Or about the newest program you’ve started?

When you look in the mirror and ask yourself, “How’s it going,” is your answer related to nickels and noses (offerings and attendance)? Is it how many people complimented your last sermon?

Listen to these sobering words:

Worldliness is not the trap that most endangers us as Christian workers; nor is it sin. The trap we fall into is extravagantly desiring spiritual success; that is, success measured by, and patterned after, the form set by this religious age in which we now live. 

…We have a commercialized view—we count how many souls have been saved and sanctified, we thank God, and then we think everything is all right. (Oswald Chambers)

We need to be very careful about how we define “success” in a church setting. Let’s use Jesus as our example:

  • How big was His congregation? Twelve men. One betrayed Him, nine ran away when the going got tough, and one denied he even knew Him. Even after being raised from the dead (!) there were only 120 people in the upper room.
  • How much money did His church have? Not even enough to buy a gravesite for the Messiah.
  • What did people think of His sermons? Some of His sermons made people so mad they wanted to stone Him. And after one sermon the Bible says: From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him (John 6:66).

Maybe “success” in the church is more like…

  • …people being reconciled to God. Remembering that “our work is not to save souls, but to disciple them” (Chambers).
  • …seeing disengaged people becoming actively involved in engaging others with the Gospel.
  • …“Never seek[ing] after anything other than the approval of God” (Chambers).
  • …to say with Jesus, “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19).

These are just some of my thoughts. What else should be on this list? How would you define “success” in the church?

I have also shared some questions that can help pastors and ministry leaders better gauge the level of effectiveness in their ministry.

UPDATE: This post was one of the seed thoughts that went into fashioning my book Shepherd Leadership: The Metrics That Really Matter.

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Mother’s Day 2012

May 9, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Where would we be without our mothers? I know that seems like an obvious question, but it’s one that is worth pondering again and again.

Mother’s Day is this Sunday, and we want to celebrate our moms the right way.

  • All of the songs our worship team will be leading have been selected by moms in our church
  • We’ll have a special message about the value of mothers
  • And there is a special gift for every mom in attendance on Sunday morning

“I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians in England.” —John Wesley

How true this is! So it’s time to celebrate our moms. Join us this Sunday at 10:30am.

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Service Sunday

May 7, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Usually when we go to church on Sundays, we think of going to be served (“I’m going to a church service”). But a group of churches in Cedar Springs are flipping that around: We’re going to go away from church to serve our community.

On May 20, Calvary Assembly of God is joining with other churches in Cedar Springs to leave our churches in order to serve our community. Basically we’re showing up at our individual churches just long enough to pray together and get our work assignments for the day. Then we’re heading out to do things like:

  • Visit the residents of the Metron nursing home and pray with them
  • Clean up our parks and city streets
  • Top off the washer fluid, check the oil, and pump gas for people at Wesco
  • Wash the windows of the businesses along Main Street
  • Deliver cookies to people who have to work on Sundays and cannot attend a church

“We’re not saved by good works; but we’re not saved without them” —T.M. Moore

Let me give credit where credit is due on this. The Service Sunday concept was already being done by Solon Center Weslyan Church and The Springs Church. But I liked the idea so much, that I asked these guys if they would consider doing this on the same Sunday and allowing other churches in Cedar Springs to join with them.

As of now, there are at least five churches participating in Service Sunday on May 20. If your church is in Cedar Springs, ask your pastor if you can join with us as well. If you live in a different community, perhaps this is an idea you can implement in your city. Let’s show people our good works so they can glorify God!

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven.” —Jesus Christ

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My Prayer For My Blog

May 6, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

“Oh! that the power of God would set my heart and pen at liberty while writing, and fill your hearts while reading, that we may rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory!”

John Newton

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You Do Not Make Use Of Christ As You Ought To Do…

May 5, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

“Believer, you do not make use of Christ as you ought to do. When you are in trouble, why do you not tell Him all your grief? Has He not a sympathizing heart, and can He not comfort and relieve you? No, you are going about to all your friends, save your best Friend, and telling your tale everywhere except into the bosom of your Lord. … There is nothing Christ dislikes more than for His people to make a show-thing of Him, and not to use Him. He loves to be employed by us. The more burdens we put on His shoulders, the more precious will He be to us.” —Charles Spurgeon

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Keep Your Eye On The Ball

May 1, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

My son is playing baseball for his high school this season. Whether I’m at a game or a practice, whether the Red Hawks are up to bat or out in the field, I hear the phrase over and over again: Keep your eye on the ball!

Pretty good advice.

It’s awfully hard to field the ball when you are distracted by something else. It’s next to impossible to hit the ball when you don’t watch it all the way from the pitcher’s hand.

As a pastor, people tell me frequently about a stumble into sin, a failure in their marriage, a relapse into their addiction, a slip of the tongue. And I want to repeat the phrase over and over again: Keep your eyes on Jesus!

It’s awfully hard to say no to sin that seems so attractive when you aren’t looking at the surpassing beauty of Christ.

It’s really hard to stay committed in your marriage when you don’t look at the perfect Bridegroom.

It’s almost impossible to stay morally clean unless your eyes are fixed on the perfect Savior.

Charles Spurgeon gave this warning—

“Some creature steals away your heart, and you are unmindful of Christ upon whom your affection ought to be set. Some earthly business engrosses your attention when you should fix your eye steadily upon the Cross. It is the incessant turmoil of the world, the constant attraction of earthly things which takes away the soul from Christ.”

I love the chorus of the old hymn:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace

Keep your eye on your Savior!

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Revelation Or Speculation

April 23, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

In answering questions that have been submitted for The Q Series, I noticed a recurring trend: How much of our “conventional thought” in church circles is not revelation, but speculation.

Yesterday I had some tough questions on Heaven, Hell, suicide, our resurrected bodies, the after-life, and so on. In answering these questions, I used many passages from the Bible, but I also quoted from Charles Spurgeon, Charles Dickens, and C.S. Lewis. There’s nothing wrong, per se, with quoting from extra-biblical sources, but we have to be very careful what we do with those.

I once heard renowned evangelist C.M. Ward say something like this:

“The Word of God is completely good; you can devour all of it. But reading anything else is like eating chicken. There is some meat that’s good, and there are some bones, and gristle, and fat that you should spit out. Be very careful of what you take in, unless it is the pure Word of God.”

The Bible reveals so much for our lives, and we put ourselves in a place God can bless us when we are obedient to the revelation of His Word. But we put ourselves on shaky ground when we live by speculation of what we think may be truth.

The Apostle Peter said it this way:

For no prophecy ever originated because some man willed it [to do so — it never came by human impulse], but men spoke from God who were borne along (moved and impelled) by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21 AMP)

So whether you are looking for an answer yourself—or you are asking someone for an answer—make sure you are getting revelation from God’s Word, and not the speculation of man’s opinion.

Check out other questions in our Q Series by clicking here.

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What Are You Exchanging?

April 17, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

In Romans 1, the word exchanged shows up three times in just one passage (Romans 1:22-32). Quite simply, this means every encounter with God’s presence requires me to make a choice, to exchange something.

I cannot remain neutral. The interaction with God is not static, but dynamic.

There are two forces at work in my life: sin and the Holy Spirit.

Sin wants me to exchange…

  • …the creation for the Creator (Romans 1:23)
  • …lies for truth (v. 25)
  • …pleasure for purity (v. 26)
  • …depravity for holiness (v. 28)

One exchange toward sin makes the next one that much easier. Soon the downward spiral can be pulling me faster and faster until: it’s not as if they don’t know better. They know perfectly well they’re spitting in God’s face. And they don’t care—worse, they hand out prizes to those who do the worst things best! (v. 32, The Message)

C.S. Lewis said it this way:

“Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of. An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible.”

The Holy Spirit also asks for an exchange. He wants me to exchange…

  • …the momentary for the eternal
  • …self-gratification for God’s glory
  • …my desire for God’s will

You will encounter God today. The choice is yours: What exchange will you make?

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? My Patreon supporters get behind-the-scenes access to exclusive materials. ◀︎◀︎

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Now What?

April 9, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Easter is over. Some people may have come to a church yesterday and may have even stepped into a relationship with the Risen Savior Jesus Christ. Wow, what a day!

Now what?

Is it back to church as usual?

What’s different because Jesus arose?

More specifically, what’s different about my life because I encountered Christ?

I don’t think Jesus suffered, died, and arose from the grave so we could maintain the status quo, or so that we could return to our normal humdrum lives, or so that church could become ‘the usual weekend routine.’

Dorothy Sayers said it this way:

“To do them justice, the people who crucified Jesus did not do so because He was a bore. Quite the contrary; He was too dynamic to be safe. It has been left for later generations to muffle up that shattering personality and surround Him with an atmosphere of tedium. We have declawed the Lion of Judah and made Him a housecat for pale priests and pious old ladies.”

Although Easter is over, I pray my life with Christ is never tedious, never boring, never predictable, never as tame as a housecat.

I want to know and see firsthand in my life that the Lion of Judah is not safe, but that He is good (thanks to C.S. Lewis for that wording)!

Jesus conquered death so that you and I could really live. Don’t ever settle for the boring, humdrum, usual routine. Discover the exciting life Jesus has for you!

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“Too Long”?

March 31, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Check out these words of insight from Seth Godin:

“Too long.” You’re going to hear that more and more often.

The movie, the book, the meeting, the memo… few people will tell you that they ran short.

(Shorter, though, doesn’t mean less responsibility, less insight or less power. It means less fluff and less hiding.)

As a pastor, I laughed when I read few people will tell you that [your sermon] ran short. That is so true!

But Seth’s conclusion is right on target. In the attempt to keep our message at just the right length, we must be cautious of reducing the insight or the power. Instead, get rid of the fluff and the posturing.

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