Category / Church

Fall is here, and in some parts of the country, the leaves will soon begin to drop. Autumn always brings a sense of change in the air.

More than the seasons, we all know change has been brewing for more than six months now, and considering all the challenges, overall, I think churches are doing a good job adapting.

We don’t fully know what the post-COVID church will be, but as each month passes, we have a better understanding of what that reality might be.

I’d like to drill down a little in this post and talk about how we are changing as Christians. Even more specifically, How are you and I changing as spiritual leaders?

It’s not possible to experience what we have all gone through with the Coronavirus and not change at all. How have you changed?

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Do you love your church?

That’s an important question.

Your answer has a significant bearing on how you participate, grow in your faith, serve and lead.

This is especially true when life is challenging, stressful, divided, and honestly, sometimes, a little crazy.

I love my church.

Yes, I’m on staff. But hey, do you love your job? You are blessed if you do, and I sure love mine.

If I weren’t on staff, I’d still be part of this church. 

Is 12Stone a perfect church? Nope.

No church is perfect.

Similar to a church, there is no perfect marriage, but there are countless vibrant and healthy marriages because the couple decided to love each other and build a great relationship.

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We’ve all been in uncharted waters for the past six months.

Uncharted waters include:

• Unfamiliar territory
• Little to no experience navigating those waters
• Can’t foresee what will happen

No leader is immune.

Young leaders are wide-eyed, and veteran leaders are weary-eyed, but we are all in the same COVID boat together.

We’re navigating:

• An uncertain economy
• A COVID environment
• The upcoming elections

When the waters are choppy, what do you hold on to?

My Father-in-Law, Pete, was a Master Chief in the Navy and served our country well. And if you know much about the Navy, the Master Chiefs were the leaders who made things happen on a day to day basis. “Pop,” as we call him, spent a lot of time at sea and gained great wisdom about navigating rough waters. He says it’s all about people and sticking together to get the job done.

That’s good advice.

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How will we lead in the post-COVID era?

Is it possible that we are all becoming church planters with buildings?

Perhaps that’s exaggerated, but not by much.

If you adopt a church planter’s mental, emotional, and spiritual disposition, it’s an exciting time to lead right now.

Church planters:

• Live in the realm of the unknown
• Have no guarantees
• Are not sure how many people they will have when the dust settles
• Have a clear and passionate vision
• Possess unbounding faith and hope

Hmmm… sounds a lot like most of us.

Yes, we have buildings, some resources, and a number of people.

However, most church leaders admit they don’t really know how many people are still part of the congregation, their buildings are not full, and many of their best leaders are not ready to come back.

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