Seeking to build a healthy church…
From the time I received the Lord in 1982 (a freshman in college) to the time I planted New Life in 1994, I have had the privilege of serving in six churches. My church experience during those years was not good – much pain, many disappointments, and deep wounds. In spite of all the difficulties, I had an undying desire to build a healthy church where God’s people would laugh, support, and heal the wounded.
I concluded that the single most important element in building a healthy church is godly leadership. At New Life, we strive to build godly leadership through four main pillars of ministry: Membership, Leadership Training, Ministry, and Soul winning.
“Why membership? Other churches don’t do it!” I hear this objection often. People in our generation live with a non-committal spirit. They say, “Leave all options open.” That cannot be a biblical attitude. Jesus loved the Church and gave Himself up for her. At New Life, people are taught to have ownership of the church through MEMBERSHIP. Although it wasn’t the case at first, most people are now convinced that membership is good for building a healthy church.
The second element in building a healthy church is LEADERSHIP TRAINING. In most churches, leaders are chosen by a “popularity contest.” Sadly, their understanding of and training in the Bible is not seriously taken for leadership. They might have some seasonal training for deacons and elders but most training is neither systematized nor structured. LEADERSHIP TRAINING courses must be systematically structured, like Math: general math, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Calculus. At New Life, LEADERSHIP TRAINING courses are laid out in three levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. This way, people are challenged to grow according to their individual maturity. It is never the “one size fits all” approach. How thankful I am that all the leaders at New Life have grown tremendously through our LEADERSHIP TRAINING courses! They have grown intellectually, but they remain humble-hearted.
Ministry is the third element through which people grow into spiritual maturity at New Life. According to Ephesians 4:11-13, pastors are called to equip the saints and members are called to serve the body of Christ. How often this is ignored at churches! Studies show that only 10-30% are involved in ministries of some sort in most churches. The Pastor is the equipper and the members are the ministers. The Pastor is called to preach-teach, pray, oversee, and equip the body of Christ. The members are called to serve one another. At New Life, most members are involved with cell ministry through which they serve and hold each other accountable. Through cell ministry, leaders are being trained to shepherd the flock of God. Cell leaders and deacons at New Life are my ministry partners and fellow soldiers for Christ.
Lastly, our passion is winning souls for Christ. We must all have the heart of Christ. Jesus’ passion and mission was to seek and save the lost. At New Life, the very first step to leadership is an Evangelism Training Course called Evangelism Explosion. My greatest joy and glory these past ten years has been winning souls to Christ. I pray that all leaders at New Life will have the same passion for souls. The Church is bigger than we think. Christ’s Church is universal. Christ commanded His followers to preach Him to the utter ends of the earth. For this reason, we are committed to missions. We currently support ten overseas missionaries and three church plantings in America. What honor and glory God has bestowed upon us.
How blessed I am that through Membership, Leadership Training, Ministry, and Soul-winning more than thirty leaders are being developed to serve the body of Christ. They are all able and mature leaders for Christ.
The Psalmist declares, “Forget not all His benefits.” I want to thank the Lord for all His unending grace and mercy to New Life Mission Church.
Glory to Him alone!
Pastor Sam