The World Doesn’t Need More Pastors
When I restarted a church in 1969, I shared the following mission statement: “Every member a minister.” In 1982 the statement changed to “Every person a minister.” In 1990 the statement changed again to “Every person a missionary.” When I left that church in 1993, 80 percent of the people were involved in some form […]
Multiplication Ripples
I’ve been writing a lot about church multiplication because I believe it is the way Jesus would want us to lead our churches. At the heart of multiplication is the shift from an addition culture of gathering and accumulating to a multiplication culture of releasing and sending. In other words: starting self-propagating churches that result […]
Obsessions That Have to Go for Multiplication to Happen
The more I study the multiplication movement, the more I realize that for it to be successful, several sacred cows will have to be slaughtered. These sacred cows will be much harder for mainline churches to barbeque than for independents. Let me share the biggest ones. Seminary training. Most of the training of church planters […]
Anatomy of a Movement
History has not been overly kind to most movements. Just reflect on what has happened to the Civil Rights movement after the death of Martin Luther King. It lost most of its momentum. Movements need a strong, charismatic leader. When the leader dies, most movements wane. For these movements to have a lasting impact, it is […]
Churches Committed to Multiplication Part Six: Why It’s Next to Impossible for Mainline Churches
The issue of church multiplication is either a mystery or an unknown to most mainline pastors and denominational leaders. Most of them are simply trying to survive, so the gap between survival and multiplication is wider than the Grand Canyon. But what would have to happen to make multiplication possible for mainline churches? There would […]
Churches Committed to Multiplication Part Six: Why It’s Next to Impossible for Mainline Churches
The issue of church multiplication is either a mystery or an unknown to most mainline pastors and denominational leaders. Most of them are simply trying to survive, so the gap between survival and multiplication is wider than the Grand Canyon. But what would have to happen to make multiplication possible for mainline churches? There would […]