Bring me your broken, worn out, sucky church planters yearning to…

I love how any combination of “church failure” “church plant failure” “church sucks” or the like bring people to my blog. By far the most popular thing I have written for internet perusal is Church Planting Sucks. I know writing about it will make it even even more common, but whatever. It’s about time someone started writing for those who feel like they’re failing.

Anyway, if that’s how you got here, and you are crappy church planter who is wondering if you’ll be working at Taco Bell in six months, or you think church sucks and are frustrated that nothing is happening to change it, I have a word from the LORD for you.

I don’t say that lightly so take me with all the weight that the all caps implies.

Thus says the LORD:”Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.” – Jeremiah 9:23 – 24

God isn’t asking you how big your church is, or what your format is, or how your giving is going, he’s asking you how well you know him. Get your priorities straight church planter. Get to know God and who he is, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The same goes for you jaded church friend. You are perfectly right in your frustration with the church and her foibles, but are you getting to know God better? Is your frustration leading you to a place that frees you and builds the Body?

God has got some joy for you when you invest the time in knowing him. He promises that.

fathers

I haven’t posted much lately, mostly because I haven’t got anything to say and the book project is taking up a lot of my mental energy. I just haven’t had anything interesting to say.

I was re-reading Robertson Davies‘ Deptford Trilogy to immerse myself in great writing. I probably read it once every couple of years. There was a part of the Manticore that inspired me. Dunstan Ramsay is speaking with David Staunton about Staunton’s father Boy and Ramsey says something to the effect that every man has many fathers in his life, and what may be more important than his biological fathers are the ones he chooses for himself.

So the next couple of entries are going to be about fathers, specifically the fathers I’ve been blessed to have.