CHURCH GROWTH, SHOULD A PASTOR DO IT ALL?
(If "not" then how do you achieve Church Growth?)
 Written by Evangelist Diana Gray
Copyrighted (c) 2,000 All Rights Reserved

THE GOAL:
     To start preparing for the larger picture: "Church growth and expansion."
THE INTENTION:
     Implementation of the progression from a small church, into a Larger church begins today,.... but how?
THE QUESTION #1:
     How can this be done with limited resources such as finances, proper qualified personnel and lack of enough time or pastoral physical energy?
THE REAL FOCUS: WHAT YOU SEE IN THE SPIRITUAL!
     To see things having happened already with "Spiritual Eyes" even though in the natural they may not have "yet."  If your church is say under 100 people then you need to begin to "see" that number as being 1-3,000 people.  Yes that is right, 1-3,000 people.  If that number is scary then lower it to 500.  It doesn't matter, you're seeing it in the spiritual. What does matter is what your are believing for in your life.  If you think big, you will be big and if you think small then you will be small.  Start today refocusing your mind and thoughts.  Start seeing with Holy Spirit Spiritual eyes  what "will be" coming as having happened already.  Let your mind and heart focus upon the bigger picture of what might be.  Visualize  in full belief and faith that this has "already happened." That you are standing in front of a hugh, loving congregation.  (Ask yourself this question, "How does a Pastor of a large "mega" congregation of 3,000 manage it all? The answer, "Delegation and spiritual faith!")

    Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and a evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

     Jesus is teaching that whatever deep thoughts that you strongly believe in your heart, they will eventually come forth out of your mouth.  You can’t hide disbelief, nor can you hide strong beliefs. Actions and speech project our true feelings and beliefs.

    Job 22:28  Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy way.

     Prov. 10:11 The mouth of a righteous man is well of life.

     Prov. 18:4 The words of a man’s mouth are as deep waters, and the well-spring of wisdom as a flowing brook.

     Prov. 12:14 A man shall be satisfied with the good by the fruit of his mouth.

     Let's look at healing for a minute and apply this to our thoughts about church growth.  We pray and believe for healing don't we? The biblical rule that applies here is that what ever you believe, it will eventually come out of your mouth.  In other words your attitudes and beliefs will come forth out of your mouth.  If you have an image or representation of yourself being in unhealthy, sickly, weak, depressing health, you will communicate to others that way.  That’s  because you are seeing yourself sick or hurt and not looking through the eyes of Jesus in your faith. If you have an image or representation of yourself in Good health, (in-spite of the way it may seem,) you will talk that way because you will be seeing through the eyes of faith.  In other wards, you have to "visualize" yourself in "good health" even though in the "natural" since you look and feel like you are not.

     Everything you say out of your mouth and the way you act when you speak are indispensable to your good health!  When you verbalize God’s Word over and into your body, because of the faith of this righteous, positive attitude,  you begin to have a manifestation of healing. Your attitude of being confident in the Lord, believing in his Word will allow you to receive healing into your life.  Remember faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God.  When you speak the Holy Word of God into your life "boldly with confidence out loud being self assured in your faith "your strength of faith builds, and builds.  You are "hearing" your faith in powerful words speak life into your circumstances.  Your hearing you own voice confess life with a good positive attitude into your circumstances.

     When you continually give a pronouncement of God’s Word through Faith, the anointing moves in your body towards healing.  Sometimes healing comes about fast and at other times it seems slow, but you don’t quit or give up until the day you "die." Say this, "I will NOT quit, not matter what, I WILL NOT QUIT BELIEVING NO MATTER WHAT MY EYES SEE OR WHAT MY EARS MAY HEAR!"

     Stand on faith no matter how much medicine you have to take or how many times you have to see the doctor, but don’t give up! God is our healer in the name of Jesus, and through that name we can receive healing when we walk in faith.  Your sincere mouth and tongue must always be used in faith to "speak and convey" God’s Word of healing love into your life. Forget what your eyes see or how you feel. They are not important for this level of faith.  Say "I don’t care what my eyes see, or how I feel or the medicines that I must still take, I believe with my spirit that I am healed in Jesus’ name. I believe that through his blood I am—healed and well!" In other words, "In the name of Jesus’ I am healed, ----in the name of Jesus’ I am healed,----- in the name of Jesus’---- I ----am --healed!" You see you are seeing it with your eyes full of faith even though it may not have manifested in the flesh yet.
THE QUESTION IS, HOW DO I APPLY THIS IDEA TO BUILDING UP A CHURCH?

     Prov. 18:20,21  A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. Death and life are in the POWER OF THE TONGUE; and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

     As you think, so you will be! What you confess with your mouth, life or death, is up to you.  You have spiritual power with the words that you say.  Let life come forth from your words. Don't say I have a little church.  Say I see us as a big church full of people.  Say this prayer to yourself out loud as well as to confess it before God:

A POSITIVE PRAYER OF FAITH!

     Speak and confess life into this prayer everyday until you see the full manifestation of it having happened.  It will happen because you see it and believe it.  Move that Mountain with your faithful confession! (What you say with your tongue, your heart and mind "have" to come into line with the Word and Holy Spirit power of God.  Life and death is in your tongue remember? So confess life!) 

     Mark 11:23 For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea: and shall Not doubting his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

    Through the Holy Spirit God can do anything, but for "His  will" and "His good."  When a believer prays to the Lord for healing "not" holding hate, anger or bitterness against another person his prayers are heard.  With unselfish motives and our desire being more concerned about his will then our own self interests, the "mountains of problems" can be removed.  The same holds true for walking in faith believing that you can take back from Satan and see in the natural what you are believing will happen in the spiritual, Church Growth.  This is the will of God!
WHAT'S FIRST, HOW DO WE BEGIN:

     First of all, the Pastor of a church is "not" superman or woman.  They may feel it and have a strong desire to achieve great things with the office that the Lord has called them to. They "can not" do it all themselves without it beginning to take a hard toll on their bodies and minds not to mention excess stress in your home life and marriages.

     Let me ask you this question.   How do people go about creating a happy marriage?  They have to work at it "together as a team." Without "teamwork" their marriage falls apart.  "Team work" in marriage is each doing whatever it takes to make things right.  Pulling together into a tight strong bond of peaceful coexistence and companionship.  For a marriage to really work well each partner in the "marriage team" have to give 100% of themselves, not.... "I will do my 50% part if you do your 50% part and you do your 50% part... first."  This is not the way Jesus desires us to be, walking around with selfish attitudes but giving in full love, unselfishly to the other person.  Thinking about their needs before our own.

    Now this is where many Pastors begin to get into trouble, they give of themselves and give of themselves but in the "wrong  way." God never intended a Pastor's job to be this overloaded way.  You know in your heart that this is not the will of God.  Pastors trying to do it all till the stress level starts getting too high.  Overload and burnout happens at a very fast pace.  The human nature, (and congregations are people after all full of human nature) sometimes have lazy attitudes like, "let the Pastor do it." Or they may have attitudes in negative beliefs that they can't do things with really they have never tried.  What they should be saying, how can we help or can you teach me what I need to know to do the job?  A smart, wise Pastor will delegate jobs to eager members.  So what if they goof, that is how they learn to do better next time, right?

     A generous loving Pastor quickly gets drawn into too many areas of church life and their effectiveness begins to diminish from overwork and long hours of stress.  (This generous attitude is not always the best way to handle a congregation as their father.) How can this be avoided and yet achieve true church growth? What's a Pastor to do then? Read again Jesus' teachings with new eyes of understanding. Think Teamwork!  That is what we desire here, the church to work as a team.  A finely oiled "smooth running team" with everyone doing their "fair part" to function successfully.
THE NEXT QUESTION #2:

     What is the job of the Church Pastor ?.......... Is the Pastor's job to do it all? Preaching? Teaching? Ministering? Counseling? Hospital Visitations? Congressional Visitation? New Member Visitation? Youth Group Training? Children's School? Adult Education? Nursery? Kitchen Pot Blessings? Maintenance? Yard Work? Evangelistic Endeavors and Revivals? (Call an Evangelist for this one, that is their job given to them by God.)..........ect.....What is the real job of the Pastor of a church? How many jobs are they to take upon themselves? Is it fair to make a Pastor do it all or can people of the congregation do more?

     Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. (Feed the Word!)

     Acts 6: 2-4 Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.  Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.  But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word. (Should a Pastor leave the Word to serve tables? What did the founding Fathers suggest here? Re-read it again!)

     How often do you take yourself off to pray in a quite area? Or does the call to service overwhelm you with too many calls upon your time.  Are people's demands keeping you away from the most important thing in your ministry, "prayer and sermon preparations."  Don't you think it is time to delegate some of this authority as Jesus taught you to? Didn't Jesus send people off in groups of twos?  Didn't Jesus send his disciples to check out the room for the final Passover Supper? Didn't Jesus also send his disciples to get the donkey's colt which He was to ride upon? He could have done any of that himself with a snap of His fingers, but no He taught us how to delegate authority.  You have people in your congregation, give them jobs and make them feel a deeper commitment to the church! Guilt trip no, conviction of the Holy Spirit yes!

     What does a really good Christian father or mother do? Give their children jobs so that they are trained up in the Lord and become model citizens.  Leaders to be proud of.  It is easier to do the jobs themselves and quicker but do their children really learn that way? Well, isn't the Pastor of a church called "father?" Maybe it is time to start thinking like a father. "Train up a child in the way they shall go and when they are old, they will not depart."

******* When I had questioned about the approach to take with some Christian counseling  in a new church, a very wise Pastor reminded me of something.  He reminded me that I'm a very loving mother and person, that I should be a loving mother to.... everyone I see.  That many counseling problems can be solved by just showing my mothers type of love and strength.  This very wise Pastor is 10 years younger than I am, and some ways he is much older.  At least he has been longer in the ministry than I have, full of the experience of many ministry years.  This is someone I am so very, very proud to call my Friend and "Spiritual brother."

     Starting to get the real picture yet? Who can do it all successfully? No one can!  Small church or big church,  "no... one..... person" can!  The answer, "Think Teamwork!" "Think Delegation!" ...."Think like a really good Christian Father or Mother!"

QUESTION: If there is two people in the home and one of them is a child, what should be done by the adult? The child should get a job to do by the wise parent to train them up, right?  Now I ask you, how "Small" did you say your church is? Surly it is bigger than two people!
PROCEDURE:

    This won't be long and drawn out because as you are growing in wisdom and faith so will your congregation grow.

I.  Sit down and write out a couple of lists. (Don't do this in your head but write it down.)
     A.  List how many people you have now in the congregation.
           1.   List their ages
           2.   List whether male or female
           3.   List married, unmarried, or divorced.
           4.   List their reasonable health level (Including up coming surgeries and health problems)
                 a.  Are they smokers?
                 b.  Are they drinkers and or dealing with addiction?
                 c.  Are they in live in relationships?
                 d.  List their weaknesses.
                 e.  List their strengths. (Past childhood abuse can really be a strength to help and 
                      understand others.)
           5.   List their jobs at the present
           6.   List their jobs or career goals for the future
                 a.  List are their goals realistic?
                      Like how many people will "really" be president of the United States?
                 b.  List an alternate goal that they could set using their talents.
                 c.  List their talents which could be utilized in the building up of the body.

II.  Make a list of church jobs such as:  Preaching, Teaching, Ministering, Counseling, Hospital Visitations, Congressional Visitation, New Member Visitation, Youth Group Training, Children's School, Adult Education, Nursery, Kitchen Pot Blessings, Maintenance, Yard Work,

     Evangelistic Endeavors and Revivals, (Call a Professional Evangelist?.... or like this one... read what she is writing to you to help your church grow.   I really care and want to see true spiritual life happen at your church.  Maybe by reading this it will give you some solid ideas.  I'm on your side remember? My goals are to build you up so you can build up others.  I am more interested in your spiritual growth  and how you can grow and walk in spiritual faith.  If I can encourage you and help you do this then I'll really be happy.  The souls you win maybe the Lord will smile my way a little.  His smile has more love in it then you can imagine.   Let's do this together,  win some precious souls into the Kingdom of Heaven,  OK?)

   This is really the most important thing to realize.  What talents and giftings does the congregation  have? Know where your church strengths are.  Go after those people to get them to use their God given talents to do one of the jobs listed above.  Every time a person helps the pastor of a church they will receive a blessing of God. Our rewards are in Heaven.

   By the way remember this, if you want something done..... ask the "busiest, hardest working" person you know to do it.  It will get done! They may say no the first time you ask, but keep asking.  Believe me they will be thinking about it long and hard.  God didn't give them their talents and giftings for nothing now did He?  Also remember this, you are not asking for yourself but for the Lord.  You serve the Lord with your talents and giftings, don't you?  Aren't we "all" called to service by Jesus with the Great Commission? God desires us to all do our part as a "Team." This is God's desire and it is His will! 

II.  Make a few more lists now that you have assessed your congregational strengths.  These will be for "Teams" hopefully at least two or more.  Now "you Pastor" make this list.  Don't just pass a paper around for people to sign up sheets because I will tell you right now, that doesn't really work as I think you have found out.  Oh some people will sign up but haven't you noticed that they are the same people all the time. 

     (Here is a secret, sincere flattery will get you everywhere as long as it is the truth).............People, specially woman love to be "personally" asked to do the Pastor a favor.  It makes them feel special and important.  There is nothing like the prestige and recognition from the Pastor of their church asking them to personally do some kind of job.  I've heard things like this, "Wait till I tell you what the Pastor asked me to do.  He said that I was one of the best house cleaners that he has ever seen.  He really complimented that way I clean my house.  He asked if I wouldn't mind cleaning the church next week because he knows that I will really do a good job.  Isn't that a great compliment?  What a special Pastor we have, bless his heart!"

     What you will be doing is validating or recognizing their talents and giftings for them.  Personal invitations by an "important" person like the Pastor, always make a hugh impact. I know, I know you're too humble to acknowledge this fact, but it is reality.  You  do know it is the truth I speak.  God's Word says that no one person is higher than another person, but we are dealing with people's emotions here.   As we were trained to know and understand our enemy Satan, it doesn't hurt to take a few courses in understanding human emotions as well.)  Remember these are just suggestions in thinking of kind, loving ways to delegate authority here.  Now back to our lists for the "Teams."

      A.  Hospital and sick Visitation  ........
            (This is good for an Evangelist "types" full of healing faith.)
      B.  Nursing home and or the elderly members...... in their homes......
            (Senior Citizens could do this one nicely.)
      C.  Congregational visitation, family by family by family. 
            (This is a good job for the Assistant Pastor to do.)
      D.  New members and Visitors..........
            (OK here is where you need the lovingest couple you have filled with anointing and 
             faith. An Evangelistic type of couple.  People will want to come back if they are loved.)

     A word right here about these couples.........they do not have to be husband and wife.  Two men could go or two woman.  Maybe this is a place where the teens could b used specially in the hospital visits. How about a woman and teen girl or a man and teen boy? Never send unmarried couples to do this kind of work.  It  won't really set well! Keep in mind always that you are now a "Large church in your faith" and what would a Large Church Pastor do? He can't visit everyone and do all the jobs so he does what Jesus taught him to do........  delegates jobs out with the authority of the Pastor.   You see even if you have a small church and get everyone involved somehow, somewhere they will be more receptive to seeing "their" church grow bigger.  Delegation brings life into a church! Gets everyone active and allows fruit of the Spirit "Joy" to flourish.  Church growth begins to die when a Pastor tries to do it "all" including the music ministry.  Utilize the talents in the congregation. Let and encourage everyone to get more involved.  Run some special sermons along this line of thought.

III.  One more list to make, this is the Pastor's personal list. 

      A.  What are your real goals and duties now?  Pick the most important ones and let the rest be delegated to
            others.  What is your very best giftings and talents.  Concentrate on the best ones.
      B.  What are your real goals for the spiritual souls of your congregation?
      C.  What are your real goals for the souls of your congregation and people they come into contact with?
      D.  Be honest with this one.......What can you really "keep and should be doing" without getting yourself sick?
      E.  What should you give up and delegate out..........

   I didn't ask what you want or desire, but what you "should give up" to others.......be honest now.  You're a Pastor who is very human after all.  You are you know, human.  You were human long before you became a Pastor.  Only you know fully what you "really can and should " do.   Only you really know where your limitations lay.  In your weakness you are strong.  Use that strength to build up others as a true servant of the Lord.  Delegation builds churches.  It really, truly does.  Think long and hard.............how do big churches function? Faithful Delegation from Jesus' examples!

     Finally pray about this and pray hard asking the Lord to help you ........let go and let God.  Do what you can and let go of the rest to others.  Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. (Feed the Word!  Sounds pretty good to me.  I "love" to preach, don't you? Now let's start seeing in the Spirit real church growth in a healthy way.)

     I pray that this has been of some help to you.  I thought and prayed hard into the writing of this message.  I sincerely believe that the Lord desires you and your congregation to receive His blessings and spiritual growth.
May the Good Lord bless you richly in love,  health and happiness, (and real church growth) 

Your Sister in Christ, Evangelist Diana Gray

 

   
 

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