A Lie I Believed as a Small Church Leader
Several years ago, I helped develop the worship department for a church plant in a small Southern Missouri town. It was one of those places where everybody seemed to know everybody. And everything seemed small. Especially the church plant. On a really great Sunday we had maybe 30 people. Except for one week. One week we had an outreach event in the city park. We grilled burgers, shared testimonies and played music. We had 60+ people come out! It was the most excitement our church plant had ever seen!
The next week I was recounting the story to another pastor, Ryan. I told Ryan, “We had over 60 people come out. It wasn’t a lot of people, but it was cool to see the excitement. It felt like we were really doing something.” What Ryan responded with helped me let go of a false belief I didn’t realize I was holding onto. He responded to my statement immediately with “you don’t have to qualify the number. Even one person is exciting. It doesn’t have to be big to make a difference.”
Unknowingly, I had been holding to the belief that bigger is better. Or maybe even that bigger ministries are more valuable. I walked away from that conversation kind of ashamed of myself for believing that we couldn’t make a difference until we were a certain size.
Have you ever had a bigger would be better thought? Something like: “If I had a bigger band I could…” or “If only we had an electric guitar player we could…” or “If I had just a little more money I could update the sound system…” Thoughts like that come up all the time in ministry!
Whether it’s the number of people in your church, the number of musicians in your band, the amount of budget your church allocates to your particular ministry, or anything else – it’s easy to think if it were bigger it would be better, more effective, etc.
But the truth is it doesn’t. I’ve worked for big churches. They have their own set of challenges. I’ve worked for mid-sized churches. They have their challenges too. Bigger just means bigger. It doesn’t mean better.
So, what do you do when you find yourself thinking that bigger is better?
1. Remind yourself that bigger is just bigger. Not better.
Remember that big ministries have just as many issues as small ones.
2. Ask God for the next step.
Maybe the budget is really tight, or you’ve been wanting a lead guitar player for some time, or whatever else. Pray about it. Ask God what His desire is for those areas. And ask for His intervention. In my life, I’ve often complained about not having something more than I have asked God for it. Sometimes that’s the problem.
3. Thank God for who is there.
That’s something else I learned from Ryan. Thank God for who shows up because those are the people God has given you to minister to. Thank God for those He’s given you to minister with too! I think sometimes we’re saying “More! More! More!” and God’s saying, “What about the people already in front of you?”
I guess my point is this: Be faithful with what God has given you.
It’s not easy. I still tend to want more. Currently, I serve another church plant. I still fall into the bigger is better trap from time to time. “There’s not enough people.” “We need a lead guitar player.” “If more people would give we could…”are all thoughts I’ve had in the last month! But each time I walk through the 3 points above. It helps to remind me of why I am where I am and why I’m doing what I’m doing. It takes my focus off of the task in front of me, the issue I’m dealing with, or the seeming lack around me and puts it back on Jesus. Don’t believe the lie that bigger is better.