Our church planters often ask me, “What’s the one secret to building a great church?” They look at me eagerly, notebooks in hand, ready for my answer. I know they want a technique, a plan, or a guarantee. But this is what I give them:
Put your hope for success in God’s mercy and not your ability.
A successful church has nothing to do with the ability to lead, direct, or innovate. Literally nothing at all. It has everything to do with who God is and his mercy for us.
To prove this, just look at God’s preferred metaphor for his people—sheep. That’s a metaphor with some bad news and some good news.
The bad news? Sheep aren’t bright. With poor eyesight and drooping heads, they usually have no idea where they’re going. They step into streams and drown, fall over and die, or eat in the same circle over and over until there’s nothing left but their own waste. If a sheep ever gets where it’s supposed to go, it sure isn’t because of the sheep’s savvy.
The good news? We have a Shepherd who loves to lead sheep when they are dependent on him. The best ideas, the greatest gifts to the church never come through careful planning or brilliant strategy. Don’t get me wrong: There’s still value to planning and strategy. But when I look back at the history of the Summit, where I pastor, I have to be honest: The greatest moments weren’t the ones we planned for. They were unexpected interruptions, gifts of grace God put into our path because we, as a church, have trusted in his mercy, not our abilities.
A successful church has nothing to do with the ability to lead, direct, or innovate. Literally nothing at all. It has everything to do with who God is and his mercy for us.
Here’s another image the Bible uses for this truth—rock, shield, and stronghold. In Psalm 18, David put it this way:
The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies. The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. (Psalm 18:2–4 NIV)
