I never thought I would see the day when there would be television commercials that were promoting drugs for men who have…uh…well, you know…problems!
Why are they doing this? Well—I guess they identified a need…and they now have millions of dollars to prove that they not only identified the need—but then they provided a solution to the problem.
I know some of you are wondering what in the heck this has to do with the church…and I am about to connect the dots. :-)
I once heard TD Jakes says, “Impotence is when you posses the equipment but you lack the passion to perform.” Like it or not—one of THE main problems in the church today is spiritual impotence. The church has ALL that it needs…an empty tomb, the Bible, the Holy Spirit…and combine those with the technology that none of the Apostles had and—DANG—we should be making noise!
BUT the stats on the church in America are sobering. Over 80% have hit their max and are now declining. Around 3,500 churches every year are shutting down…and over 80% of church plants fail within the first three years. NOW putting this into business terms…if a business operated like this then it would go BANKRUPT! Is that where the church is heading?
Once again I ask why! The church has SO MUCH and yet is doing so little. WHY? It’s simple really—impotence—we have the equipment but lack the passion to perform.
And let me challenge my fellow pastors—this one is on you bro! If you have no passion then your church will follow suit. If your biggest desire is to “keep the sheep happy” and draw a paycheck…then your church will reflect that. If you are carrying around resume’s in your briefcase & looking for the next best thing—you are an impotent leader…and your church is suffering because of you!
I look around the world today…and THE ONE THING I can identify in great leaders is PASSION! Folks, it is not a leadership style—it’s passion…passion for Jesus…passion for the Bible…passion to see the disconnected get connected to Christ. PASSION!
God has given us all we need! It bothers me when I hear a church pray, “God, we want more of You!” I can’t prove this—but I’ll bet God often times replies, “More? Why don’t you use what I’ve given you!!!”
Pastors—let me warn you, if you develop passion…you begin to lead with conviction…you allow God to develop a vision in your heart and then you begin to take risks to accomplish that vision—satan will try his best to attack your passion…and he will do it MOST of the time through people who claim to know Christ.
Pastors with vision are usually called “cocky” and “arrogant.” AND they are called this by religious people who, at the core of their criticism, think that you should be doing things their way. Which bothers me because…well, isn’t what they are actually criticizing?
Also keep in mind that the people who usually say these things are from churched background and most likely have never encountered a man with vision and passion…and so it is new to them. They are used to pushing the pastor around…threatening him with money and/or his job.
Don’t let these people steal your passion. If you are God’s man—BE GOD’S MAN and lead with passion.
The other area in which satan will try to steal your passion is through the internet world—through people who do not know you or have never met you—yet they will lob critical remarks your way.
You just need to decide if you are going to lead with passion…or are you going to cater to the very people who, if they had been alive 2,000 years ago, would have taken place in the murder of Jesus!
Keep something in mind about the internet…it is a place for cowards to hide. People will say things on the internet that they would NEVER say to your face. If you begin to listen to people who are not even at your church and let them govern the direction of your church—PASTOR—WHAT THE HECK IS THAT? Those people will render you impotent in a heart beat!
My advice…get alone with God—develop a vision…a GOD SIZED vision. Share that vision with people—challenge them to get on board. The ones that can’t—let them leave—it’s ok, people walked away from Jesus, they will walk away from you as well. AND then continually cast that vision over and over and over again.
One of the things that sets NewSpring Church apart is that we have vision! We want to impact Anderson for Jesus Christ. We have a plan…a strategy…and we are following it…and it drives SOME people crazy! I say often that I don’t give a rats rear-end what people say—this church is GOING to follow God’s vision—we are going to do things God’s way…and there isn’t a man on the planet that can change my mind. That isn’t cockiness…that isn’t arrogance…that is simply a pastor who is not impotent and who has a backbone!!!
I always tell people, “Like it or not—NewSpring is here to stay!!!” We have thousands of names written on the walls of our sanctuary right now of people who need Christ—and we are going to REACH EVERY ONE OF THEM! We will NOT get bogged down in church politics! We will not form a holy huddle and lick the lint out of the navels of “fellow believers!” We are going to STORM the gates of hell…and we are GOING to see lives changed.
Pastors—are you impotent…or are you filled with passion? Your church is a reflection! GO FOR IT!!!