Partnering with other churches…
I talked today with a guy with a real passion for God. He was a good guy and I enjoyed talking to him. During our talk he turned our conversation to RSC partnering with an event he runs in town. It is a Christian event and they are trying to get other churches to be part of it.
I told him I was for him and was excited God was using him but that we don’t normally partner with other churches in town. I could tell he was a little surprised by my answer but he was cool.
That got me thinking, how many of you guys and your churches partner with other churches for community events?
Let me say that I am not against doing events with other churches but I feel we are a VERY focused church on reaching unchurched people. We have a certain way we do things. Our environment is a certain way. Our music is a certain way. My teaching is a certain way. This is all with a purpose in mind and that is to connect with the people God has called us to reach. I am in no way saying our way is the only way but it IS the way we do church.
Therefore it is hard for me to partner with other churches that do things different then that. We have a level of excellence I want things to be at, I want things done the “RSC” way (whatever that is), and I want to know that if our name is attatched to it that it will be done in a way that lines up with our vision.
I’m a local church guy. I believe the local church is the agency God left to spread the Gospel. I always get confused when churches “partner” with each other which vision is getting pushed and whos church these people are getting ushered into. Therefore we have chosen to do our own thing.
This allows us to stay focused on what we do best: Sunday morning and it allows us to lead the things we do with the vision God has given us.
For this reason we don’t bring in outside speakers. I do have a list of pastors I would bring in and hope to bring in but the time is not yet. I feel no one knows our people better then me and our staff. I am the one who talks with them and understand and has a hand on what they are going through. I have learned that outside preachers can many times destroy in one sermon what you as the pastor have spent a year building.
For this reason we don’t attend youth camps that other people lead unless it is a local church we know and have partnered with. There are some GREAT camps out there but I want us being the ones teaching our kids. Who knows our kids better, our staff or some camp speaker who is teaching his sugar stick? I think we do.
I feel due to the people we reach it is very important that they are discipled and grow in the Lord but I also feel I have a responsibility to make sure they are being taught in a way we find biblical and lines up with our vision.
We have been asked to be part of some GREAT things in our community by other churches but we feel God called us to plant RSC and do all we can to make it impactful in the community. God didn’t call us to partner with other churches in what many times are ineffective events just so I can say we are kingdom minded.
I will pray for these events, I will lend a hand in anyway we can, and I will root for all these events but in the end I am called to RSC.
I think far too many church planters spend their time hanging out with other pastors and partnering with other churches for the sake of the “kingdom,” that they have no time focusing on the church God called them to plant.
I really am open to the fact that I might be wrong in this attitude, so if you have any thoughts, fire away?