The Purpose of Developing Church

Hello.

(Sound of crickets)

As I write, no one has yet seen this blog. Quite understandable. As of this morning, it's brand new. And while grassroot-efforts rarely lead to highly subscribed blogs, I certainly hope this one gets some pub. Here's why: people do not know how to most effectively communicate.

What does this have to do with church? A better question may be "what is a church?" My answer will be different than most pastors. Not because I am anti-church or disagree with what most pastors would say, but because I view churches first and foremost as organizations.

Before you cry heresy, let me qualify that I DO believe the Church is the people of God, whose first and foremost mission is to glorify Him, show the love that He first showed us, and to produce disciples. To me, this goes without saying. I view church from an organizational standpoint because without such a view, any given local church will never be as effective as they can be.

Bold words, considering I've never had the sole responsibility of leading a congregation. As I have grown up, been involved, and led ministries in churches, I have been able to see many of the moving parts that make up a church. But it wasn't until grad school that I began to adopt this "organizational" view. From this vantage point, I came to believe that in many ways, a church is not that different from a corporate business, non-profit foundation, or other organizations that require the focus of many moving parts for one over-arching purpose.

Of course, the mission of a church is different. As stated above, the church has a holy mission - a mission ordained by God Himself. But more than just this mission, every local church needs to ask themselves "How can we most effectively carry out this mission?" And I wonder how often churches fail to identify their best way to glorify God, show His love to the world, and produce committed disciples of Christ. If an effective way to do this does not infiltrate every aspect of a church, opportunities will be missed.

Like other organizations, however, churches need to be strategic in producing results. And while we can't forget the guidance of the Holy Spirit, churches must not ignore their strengths, weaknesses, culture, surroundings, or goals. In other words, churches must intentionally plan to run successfully.

Back to my purpose for this blog: that people don't know how to effectively communicate. What does this statement have to do with a blog about developing churches? Communication is much more than what we say. Our actions tell people something about us. Even the actions of an individual tells a story, but multiply that by 30, 50, 100, 1,000, or more, and you've got a loud message from an organization. This could be a great message, or it could be a lousy one. It might be a message that stays within the church walls or that goes beyond them. Either way, the actions of a church communicate who they are and Whom they follow.

I believe that by equipping church leaders to communicate competently through their organization, the church will be as effective as the world needs it to be. Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek Community Church outside of Chicago, calls the local church "the hope of the world." I believe this too, but only if it brings an effective message that will change lives. This happens when we develop effective organizational communication plans for local church bodies. Be it issues of conflict, crisis, change, motivation, interpersonal or public relations, the church needs to be better trained.

My hope is that this blog will help. Thanks for reading, sharing your thoughts, and I look forward to learning with you.