How not to waste $100 Billion Dollars.

Last week we looked at the $100 Billion dollars that the church in America spent on buildings with only negligible results.  How do we make sure that we do not contribute to that pattern?   How can we avoid reckless spending for buildings that may not accomplish anything?

There are two things we need before we even begin to talk about any spending of God-given resources.  These come to us in the form of two questions.  Question #1: Why has God put us here?  Question #2: What are we doing about it?

That first question is about the mission of the church, which generally speaking is to make disciples. We must develop, teach, and live an understanding of the Mission of the Church as the God-given calling for the church. A conviction that the church and therefore any funds will fulfill God’s calling is profoundly powerful.  Or more simply put everyone in your congregation needs to be able to explain why you exist.   That statement needs to be repeated frequently and talked about often.  If your mission statement is small, tepid, weak or selfish your giving will be as well.  A well- developed mission statement is not a luxury it is a necessity.  It is not enough for this sense of vision to be in the heart and mind of the leaders it must permeate the congregation.  “We exist to accomplish this in the kingdom of God, if you are not fully committed to that perhaps you need another congregation” is not too strong a statement. 

The second question is about what we are doing to accomplish God’s calling and purpose for us.  We need folks to say, “Here is what God is doing in my life and I am going to share it.”  That will create in your congregation an authentic excitement and enthusiasm for the church.  It is evident that the will of God for this people, at this time, is being fulfilled.  What tools do we need for EVERY PART of the congregation to be effective in accomplishing God’s calling for the whole congregation?

This leads us to a fundamental shift in the way we think about our buildings and for that matter everything else about the congregation.  If we see all the assets of the church to be dedicated to the purpose of equipping the people of God to go and make disciples that function will result in a different form.  But for the last few generations we have seen the objective as having people come to our building to be entertained and/or educated with the goal that they might become disciples.  This has resulted in our current situation. This second option is neither Biblical nor effective. 

Making disciples can be done in ways that do not require us to pander to the latest fad in the church-industrial complex.  Focusing our resources to maximize our disciple-making efforts for kingdom impact is the only way we can reverse the trend of the declining church in our culture.