DAVID MCKNIGHT | PRESIDENT
Recently a layman asked me, “What affect does building have on the leadership of the church?” As I thought about the proposed question I had to frame it within the context of their story. They had been through a few rough years of dealing with some in-fighting and strife. They have come through it and now they are more unified and their effectiveness is improving.
My response to the question? “A building program will amplify the leadership you already have in place.” As I thought about it I realized this is true of any church.
A church whose leadership is not unified will develop deeper divisions as the project develops. A church that has ineffective leadership will end up with a costly and mostly ineffective building. You see, a church that does not have a clear and defined vision for their future ministry will not be able to have an effective building program. There will be too many people to please without a vision to help define the most important thing. These are the kind of projects that get people upset.
A church with good leadership will increase their effectiveness during a building project. Even if things do not go smoothly, unified leadership will show their strength together and come out stronger than ever. They will be focused more on others and the people God wants them to reach. They will be willing to sacrifice their needs for the greater good and their credibility will permeate the congregation. These are the projects where God gets all the glory.
For these reasons it is very important that leadership be unified, focused, and buying into the ministry plan. What we bring to a building project will be amped up during the process.