Discerning the Spirits

After feeling called and then sent by my Bishop to plant a church I had what is called an "O S" moment. You can translate. What did I get myself into? Was this really God's call?

My inclination when faced with a challenge is to gain wisdom from those that have blazed the path before me. Thankfully, there was a lot of people with a lot to say about this thing called church planting. I set to reading guys like Aubrey Malphurs, Ed Stetzer, Ralph Moore, Peter Wagner as well as leadership gurus like Maxwell, Hybels, Andy Stanley, Bob Russell and more. Man, they had good stuff to say.

Yet, by the grace of God, what I learned is there comes a time when through prayer and discernment you have to go the way God has for you. As many good things and great principles you can glean from these pioneers we cannot defeat the enemy with Saul's armor.

My coach, Jim Griffith, who says to read none of that stuff by the way, says it best: "No one knows your community like you." We do not have the same community as any of these great men and women of God.

In the end, I think it is valuable to do this reading. Leaders are readers! Yet, in order to not get schizophrenic about it- you have to spend time figuring out where and what the church planter extraordinaire- Jesus Christ- wants the church you are coming along side him to start to look like. There's no short circuiting that process.