Less is more and more might be less

While we need "more" love, concern, giving, gratitude, Christ reproducing disciples and the likes, I'm also convinced in a consumer driven culture that more is not better. Having more and more stuff is the downfall of American culture. Having more leads to having and wanting more. Having more leads to maintaining more! Sometimes we just buy things we don't need with money we do not have in order to impress people we don't even like.

Has the motivation to have more blinded us from seeing what the more is doing to us? Do we really need more buildings, larger budgets, better programs, and more butts to fulfill the Great Commission mandate of making disciples who make disciples?

Is it possible that there is another angle we should consider. Is it possible that there is another way to mobilize the church to make disciples by being authentic disciples in the world where people live, work and play? Could God be birthing something new in the world to advance the kingdom of God with less?

Instead of owning buildings we are meeting in the homes, parks, coffee shops, restaurants, and office buildings or wherever. As we reach people for Christ we lead them to reach others for Christ in the world. Instead of having more butts in one location, we are scattered all over the community. We meet together as a larger Christ family in parks, office buildings etc. for communion and worship. We also meet together in smaller settings during the week and every week.

Consider starting (churches) smaller with two or three leaders who can multiply themselves quickly instead of larger. Our first Church in St. Louis started with one family (Pastor Terry Goodwin) who made the commitment to make disciples who do the same as the main thing. After four months God birthed our disciple driven Church and now God has raised up two young leaders (Mark and Zac) who are now committed to making disciples by reaching younger twenty something's for Christ. The goal is making disciples (our job) that leads to planting Churches (God's job).

Please pray for our efforts here in St. Louis and for our first team in Kansas City, Missouri! We also would like to ask you to pray for God to raise up more leaders who will make disciple making the main thing. We long for those who are wiling to do more with the less. Could God be showing us that He wants to do more with less, who will start churches with two or three instead of 100 or more. Could God birth 50 churches of 100 or less (who make disciples) without that campus filled with buildings, people, programs and larger budgets to maintain the campus? Can you imagine a Church that is the Church instead of just doing church.

Do I have it backwards? Watch and see for yourself? And if you don't want to just watch, join our wagon train and experience it yourself. You know how to contact me!