Last week, Susan and I had the great fun of joining 2600 people at the Best Practices for Ministry Conference in Phoenix. Over the next four weeks, I will share with you the four main points of our session: "Why Missional Living Fizzles” (and how to reverse it).

Why do so many congregations make a good start with missional living, only to see it soon fizzle? It is no longer a mystery.

Congregations are perfectly calibrated for the results they are currently getting in mission, discipleship and multiplication. And most congregations are not getting very good results - no matter what their mission statements may say or how much mission passion they may have.

Why?

There are four unforced errors most congregations are committing that are keeping them from seeing better results. What are they?

1) We think studying what Jesus says is the same as doing what Jesus says.

U.S. Christians have very little impact on the neighborhoods where they live because studying what Jesus says doesn’t benefit our neighbors. Jesus tells us to love our neighbors not so we will study His words, but so that our neighbors will experience His love. Remember, action verbs mean we take action.

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46.

“The entire law is summed up in a single command, ‘Love your neighbor,’” Galatians 5:14.

Remedy: Pivot from studying to taking action.

When teaching the Bible, conclude by asking people to respond to the following question, “As a result of what I have studied today, what does Jesus want me to believe and what does He want me to do for the good of others?” Have them write down their responses and then look for opportunities to put Jesus’ words into action in daily life. The next time you gather, begin by taking ten minutes to have them share the stories of what happened and what was discovered.

If you would like to unpack this more, email me at finkeonthemove@aol.com

[more next week]