» Foundation

Christian Center Development and Spiritual Family Growth Program
Developing a Healthy Growing Fruitful New Hope

Jesus: “I will build my church.”
Matthew 16:18

Paul: “By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder.”
1 Corinthians 3:10

A few years ago I bought some property in the mountains behind Yosemite National Park and built a log cabin. Even with the help of my father and some friends it took two years to complete, since I couldn’t work on it full-time. When I began building, it took me an entire summer just to lay the foundation. First I had to clear a pad in the forest by cutting down and uprooting thirty-seven towering pine trees. Then I had to dig up over sixty feet of five-foot-deep French drains and fill them with gravel because the ground was wet from a nearby underground spring. After ten exhausting weeks, all I had to show for my effort was a leveled and squared concrete foundation. I was very discouraged. But my father, who has built over 110 church buildings in his lifetime, said, “Cheer up, son! When you’ve finished laying the foundation, the most critical work is behind you.” Rick Warren

The foundation determines both the size and the strength of a building. You can never build larger than the foundation can handle. The same is true for organizations, associations, unions, groups, teams, community centers, ministries, churches, temples, tabernacles, sanctuaries, chapels, shrines, and houses or places of worship. New Hope Christian Center’s foundation will determine both its size and strength.

If we (New Hope Christian Center) has an inadequate or faulty foundation, we will never reach the height that God intends for it to reach. It will topple over, once it has out grown its base. If we want to build a healthy, strong, and growing Spiritual Family (community) we must spend time laying a solid foundation. This is done by clarifying in the minds of everyone involved, exactly why our ministry exists and what it is supposed to do. There is incredible power in having a clearly defined purpose or mission statement. If it is short enough for everyone to remember, our statement of purpose or mission will yield five wonderful benefits for New Hope Christian Center.

Benefit 1: A Clear Mission Builds Morale

Morale and mission always go together. First Corinthians 1:10 (LB) says, “Let there be real harmony so that there won’t be splits in the church. Be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.” Notice Paul says that the key to harmony in a spiritual organization is to be united in purpose or mission. If our mission is unclear, our morale will be low.

How can we get an unusually high morale and atmosphere of harmony in our House of Hope? People working together for a great mission don’t have time to argue over trivial issues. When you’re helping to row the boat, you don’t have time to rock it! We will be able to maintain a warm fellowship in spite of the enormous growth our Ministry will experience if our members are committed to a common purpose.

Proverbs 29:18 (KJV) says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” But it is also true that where there is no vision, people just quit and disappear! Many religious organizations are barely surviving because they’ve lost sight of their purpose for continuing. A place of worship without purpose, without mission, eventually becomes a museum piece of yesterday’s traditions.

Nothing discourages a group more than not knowing why it exists. On the other hand, the best way to begin New Hope Christian Center (fruitfully) is to reclaim God’s purpose for it and help our members, associates, affiliates, constituents, disciples, and/or apostles to understand the great tasks New Hope Christian Center has been given by Christ to fulfill.

Benefit 2: A Clear Purpose Reduces Frustration

A purpose statement reduces frustration because it allows us to forget about things that don’t really matter. Isaiah 26:3 (TEV) says that God “gives perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in Him.” A clear purpose not only defines what we do, it defines what we do not do. I’m sure you’d agree that New Hope Christian Center does not have time to do everything. The good news is that God doesn’t expect us to do everything. Besides, there are only a few things really worth doing in the first place! The secret of effectiveness is to know what really counts, then do what really counts, and not worry about everything else.

All religious associations have one very significant thing in common: “Everybody has their own agenda for the religious organization.” To rephrase the first spiritual law: God loves me and everybody else has a wonderful plan for my life! People are always saying “The place of worship ought to do this” or “the temple ought to do that.” Many of these suggestions are noble activities, but that is not the real issue. The filter must always be: Does this activity fulfill one of the purposes for which God established New Hope Christian Center? If the activity meets that criterion, we must consider it. If it doesn’t pass this test, we must not let it distract us from God’s agenda for New Hope Christian Center.

Without a purpose statement it is easy to be frustrated by all the distractions around us. Isaiah said: “I have labored to no purpose; I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing” (Isa. 49:4). Trying to lead a Spiritual Family without a clearly defined purpose is like trying to drive a car in the fog. If we can’t clearly see where we’re headed, we are likely to crash.

James 1:8 (PHILLIPS) says, “the life of a person with divided loyalty will reveal instability at every turn.” When a religious association forgets its purpose, it has a difficult time deciding what’s important. An indecisive religious organization is an unstable group. Almost anything can get it off course. It will vacillate between priorities, purposes, and programs. It will head in one direction, then another, depending on who is leading at the time. Sometimes religious groups just move in circles.

In a purpose/mission-driven Spiritual Family, once our course is set, decision making becomes far easier and less frustrating. Define our roles then set our goals. Once our Christian Center’s purpose or mission has been clarified, any goal that fulfills one of those purposes or missions gets automatic approval. Anytime someone suggests an activity or event or a new ministry we should simply ask, “Will this fulfill one of our purposes? Will this help to accomplish our mission?” If it does, do it. If it doesn’t, don’t even considerate it.

Benefit 3: A Clear Purpose Allow Concentration

Focused light has tremendous clarity and power. Diffused light has no power at all. For instance, by focusing the power of the sun through a magnifying glass, you can set a leaf on fire. But you can’t set a leaf on fire if the same sunlight is unfocused. When light is concentrated at an even higher level, like a laser beam, it can even cut through a block of steel.

The principle of concentration works in other areas too. A focused life and focused church will have a far greater impact than unfocused ones. Like a laser beam, the more focused New Hope Christian Center becomes, the more impact it will have on society and those we intend to serve.

The reason for this is that a clear purpose allows us to concentrate our effort. Paul knew this. He said, “I’m bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing, forgetting what is behind and looking forward to what lies ahead” (Phil. 3:13 LB).

One of the common temptations many religious associations fall into today is the trap of majoring in the minors. They become distracted by good, but less important agendas, crusades, and purposes. The energy of the religious organization is diffused and dissipated; the power is compromised and lost.

If we want New Hope Christian Center to make an impact on the world, we must major in the majors. It is amazing how many Christians have no idea what the main objective of their spiritual group is. As the old cliché says, “the main thing is keeping the main thing, the main thing!“

Believe it or not, most religious groups try to do too much. This is one of the most overlooked barriers to building a healthy Spiritual Group: We wear out people. Too often, small groups of worship involve themselves in all kinds of activities, events, and programs. Instead of concentrating like Paul did, they dabble at forty different things and miss being good at any of them.

The older a religious organization gets, the truer this becomes. Programs and events continue to be added to the agenda without ever cutting anything out. Remember, no program is meant to last forever. A good question to keep in mind when dealing with programs in New Hope Christian Center is, “if we were not already doing it, would we begin this activity today?” A bloated calendar of activities diffuses the energy of a group. It is essential to the health of New Hope Christian Center that we periodically ‘clean house’, abandon programs that have outlived their purpose. When the horse is dead, dismount!

For the first year we might offer a worship service on Sundays, a study service on Wednesdays and family reunions in both services. We will not attempt to be a full-service church yet. But, we might have a limited children’s church program available. Or, start a second service on Sunday if our attendance grows beyond 50+ people. Also we can start a youth program, but do we have an identifiable leader? Or, should we start a youth service when the youth attendance grows over XX number of people.

We would never begin a new ministry without first having someone to lead it. If no leader emerges, we would wait on God’s time before beginning a ministry. When the right leader appears on the scene, we would be encouraged to initiate the new ministry. This plan helps us to concentrate on doing a few things very well. Only after we get a ministry to an acceptable level of performance would we consider adding another one to our venue. We should never try to do everything at once.

Being efficient is not the same as being effective. Peter Drucker says: “Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things.” Many religious associations are efficient in that they are well organized and maintain a full slate of programs. But while they generate a lot of activity, there is little fruitfulness. Energy is wasted on trivial issues. It’s like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic; everything may look nice and organized, but it doesn’t matter because the ship is still sinking! It is not enough for a Spiritual Group to be well organized; it must be well organized to do the intended activities right.

God wants Spiritual Groups to be effective. Those few Spiritual Groups that are really effective concentrate on their purpose. By continually reviewing our purpose, we can keep our priorities straight and our Ministry focused.

Benefit 4: A Clear Purpose Attracts Cooperation

People want to join a group that knows where it’s going. When a Spiritual Group clearly communicates its destination, people are eager to get on board. This is because everyone is looking for something that gives meaning, purpose, and direction to life. When Ezra told the people exactly what God expected them to do, the people responded, “Tell us how to proceed in setting things straight, and we will fully cooperate” (Ezra 10:4 LB).

The apostle Paul was always clear in his purpose. As a result, people wanted to be a part of what he was doing. This was especially true of the church of Philippi. The Philippians were so captivated by Paul’s mission that they gave him ongoing financial support (see Phil. 4:15). If we want our members, associates, affiliates, constituents, disciples, and/or apostles to get excited about New Hope Christian Center, actively support it, and generously give to it, we must vividly explain up front exactly where our Spiritual Family is headed. People will always freely give to a clear mission.

Have you ever boarded a wrong plane? Once I got on a plane and I thought was going to St. Louis but instead was headed to Kansas City. I learned an important lesson: Check the destination before the plane takes off. Bailing out later is painful! You wouldn’t dare get on a bus without first knowing where it’s going, so neither should you expect people to join your church without knowing its destination. Rick Warren

People might join New Hope Christian Center without attending a membership class or signing a membership covenant. But we need to make certain they know exactly where New Hope Christian Center is headed. So we need to clearly show who we are and what we do, and [maybe most important] what we don’t do, to every person who comes to our House of Hope, for very first time.

Proverbs 11:27 (TEV) says, “If your goals are good, you will be respected.” If we demonstrate to people where New Hope Christian Center is headed, they will feel attracted to cooperate and minister with us in our projects that support the mission. We need to spell out the New Hope Christian Center’s purposes and priorities as frequently as possible. And we need to clearly explain our strategy and structure when people ask. This will help keep people from making incorrect assumptions about us, and our goals.

If we don’t allow the people to know and to understand our purposes, we’re asking for trouble. Most who come to our Christian Center, will carry cultural baggage from their previous religious experiences. All new members, associates, affiliates, constituents, disciples, and/or apostles often have personal agendas and preconceptions about what a Spiritual Group must/should be. Unless we deal with this up front in a forthright manner, their issues eventually could cause problems and conflict. Unfortunately, the smaller a Spiritual Group is, the more influence the most negative member has. Avoiding the ’squeaky wheel’ syndrome, will go a long way. This is a leadership must. Showing and explaining our Christian Center’s purpose to people when they are first coming to our House of Hope will reduce potential conflict and disappointment in our Spiritual Family.

Benefit 5: A Clear Purpose Assists Evaluation

Second Corinthians 13:5 says, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in faith; test yourselves.” How does a Spiritual Group evaluate itself? Not by comparing itself to other Religious Organizations, but by asking, “Are we doing what God intends for us to do?” and “How well are we doing it?” As Peter Drucker says, “What is our business?” and “How’s business?” These are the two most critical questions for evaluating New Hope Christian Center. New Hope Christian Center’s purpose statement must become the standard by which we measure our Spiritual Family’s health and growth.

There is absolutely no correlation between the size and the strength of a Spiritual Family. A religious organization can be big and strong, or big and flabby. Likewise a religious organization can be small and strong, or small and wimpy. Big is not necessarily better, nor is being small necessarily better. Better is better!

Please, try not focusing on attendance numbers or the amount of the offerings. We should remain focused on people and their spiritual needs. The strength of our Family will be much healthier, when we remain focused on other people’s needs, and our stated purpose/mission. Becoming a purpose/mission driven Spiritual Family takes time, it doesn’t happen all at once, or even over six months. It may even take us several years to accomplish it. If we want our Spiritual Family to become purpose/mission driven, we have to lead it through four critical phases:

1. We must define our purposes.
2. We must communicate those purposes to everyone in our Spiritual Family.
3. We must organize New Hope Christian Center around our purposes.
4. We must apply our purposes to every part of New Hope Christian Center, our House of Hope and our Spiritual Family’s Activities.

And when we walk through these four phases, please also be reminded of these three significant principles:

• We can never build a larger Spiritual Family than New Hope Christian Center’s foundation can handle.
• A clear purpose not only defines what we do, it defines what we don’t do.
• Evaluate our advances and performance not by comparing ourselves to other religious organizations, but by asking, “Are we doing what God intends for us to do?” and “How well are we doing it?”

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