Have you ever had to drive in THICK fog? I mean fog so thick that it rivaled pea soup? There's very few things that make us as uneasy as that while we drive. It's not necessarily your ability in driving that makes it nerve racking, but the fear of the unknown. It's the confusion of not seeing the big picture.
Far too often we are guilty of the same catastrophic scenario within the church. We drown people in the confusion and chaos of overly wordy visions, strategies, messages, and lessons instead of setting them free in clarity. Now, don't get me wrong here. I have preached a few long sermons before and I believe in casting vision and doing the work necessary to discover and implement strategy in the local body of believers. However, we often cripple new believers and rediscovering old believers by our big words, confusing expectations, and chaotic ministries.
Several years ago I read a book that compared the church to two major establishments in American culture today, Walmart and Starbucks. Far too often the church tries to act as if they are trying to accommodate everyone and everything. The problem with this is that the church gets so spread out and their eggs in so many baskets that it is no longer effective in the main things, namely evangelism, discipleship, and missions. Complexity isn't always better. Take Starbucks for instance. Starbucks is notorious for one thing and one thing only, coffee. Yes, I understand that they have alot of variations of coffee, but the point is the same. You can't buy cheeseburgers, fries, toilet paper, and electronics from Starbucks. It's simple. And, whether you like coffee or not, you recognize they do a pretty decent job of sales and service.
More doesn't necessarily mean better! Perhaps the church should recognize that and focus on things that God has specifically called and equipped that body of believers to do! I believe that God has called some churches to great student ministry, some for great music ministry, some for great benevolence, some for great children's ministry, and so on. Churches can do more than one thing well, and do it effectively. The problem lies when the church wants to do everything at the cost of effectiveness. We should sometimes be more like Starbucks than Walmart.
I am all for doctrine and good Biblical theology and it SHOULD BE taught and preached in every pulpit across the globe. Preacher, if you aren't teaching Biblical theology from your pulpit, then rethink this. People need to know what they believe and why they believe it! They must "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" as Paul says in Philippians 2. However, don't muddy the water with excessive use of big "religious" words. They have a place in scholastic discussion, but may not be the best for the every day believer. Be clear. Preach and teach the whole truth with clarity.
I like to read! If you aren't reading something every day, you are limiting your spiritual growth! That's a truth. I recommend Andy Stanley's "Next Generation Leader". Great book for this generation's next catalyst! One of the main points he makes is in the area of clarity! Be clear in your message, your expectations, and your implementation of ministry.
As most of you know, I just moved from a very prominent ministry in Mobile, AL as an associate pastor who dealt primarily with student ministry. A couple of years ago, we worked back through our "vision frame" and discovered that our mission statement was too long and too confusing. If you asked our students what our hope for them would be, you got 250 different responses. So, we searched and prayed and brought it to one word.... DISCIPLE. The goal of the Christian life is to be a disciple. And that word could be CLEARLY described in just three other words.... GROW, LOVE, and SHARE. These words bring clarity to expectation and vision. The students knew it, embraced it, and the youth ministry itself was stronger for it!
All that to say this, in CLARITY we find freedom. Let's free people from the suffocation of chaos and confusion in the church by bringing clarity to everything we do. If you are a little bit foggy, leader, then you get guarantee that they are foggy too!
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