Starting Over with Change....

What’s it look like?

How much change is possible?

Am I qualified to answer the questions?

My church is looking to the future. To see what the body thinks, the group of people in charge of this project has randomly sent out anonymous surveys. We did this a few years ago and as far as I can tell, nothing happened – no change occurred -- which leads me to believe one of four things happened. Either no one answered the survey, everyone was happy (or afraid to “complain”), no one proposed anything new or challenging, or leadership wasn’t interested in implementing any of the changes suggested. No matter which one of those is actually true…how sad.

I’m pretty sure the first isn’t true because I know several people who did fill out a survey and turn it in, me included. Odds say that there is no way everyone was happy with the status quo and I’m guessing a few people had to have enough gumption to throw a few new ideas into the ring. So that leaves the other two…the ideas weren’t seen as good or the leadership wasn’t as interested in shaking things up as they thought they were.

I’m not sure what the answer is since I was not a part of the group who got to read the surveys nor was I a “decision maker”. But either way, it’s a bit disturbing that I am either a part of a church that is completely without ideas or the leadership is lacking what it takes to step out in faith and do something new for the Lord.

Both will dry us up as a church body.

I don’t want anything God doesn’t want and I believe He uses opportunities like this to get His ideas down on paper so I’m going to prayerfully hold on to my survey for a time and re-read the book of Acts. Every church body should come as close as they can to being like the churches in Acts. Those were the ones that set the world on fire and if ever the world needed fresh fire, it’s now.