manupthebook

It is really easy to look at the work we are doing in our church or ministry and pat oneself on the back, thinking I’m doing my part. But if you look at the trends of the last few decades it is really obvious that whatever we are doing really isn’t working.

We get involved in our church or ministry and have a tendency to focus on the task we choose to work on. We study scripture or run the food pantry. We serve as ushers or lead the women’s council. It doesn’t matter what the task is, there are volunteers that fill the task.

And then there are those that come to church but don’t appear to be engaged in anything beyond being in the pew. Perhaps they do charitable works outside of the church, perhaps they don’t.

The thing we all seem to forget is that Jesus never said, go make ushers or council members or study groups or group leaders. He said, “Go make disciples.”

All of the tasks that we busy ourselves with are means to an end. They are all avenues for us to build relationships and help lead others to discipleship. If our efforts aren’t really making disciples then perhaps we need to rethink the efforts.

It is estimated that the early church grew by 40% per decade, around 3% per year. So if your church or ministry isn’t growing by 40% per year, maybe its time to stop and wonder. Are we performing a task or are we really seeking to make disciples.