Wednesday, February 18, 2004
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Wednesday, February 18, 2004 |
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The miracles of ‘purpose’ By JOHN HATCHER As you drive around Fayette you may notice church signs promoting “40 Days of Purpose.” Founder and Pastor Rick Warren of the Saddleback Church in Southern California says that when churches use this track called 40 Days of Purpose, worship attendance climbs 20 percent and small group attendance increases more than 100 percent. What pastor in his or her right mind would not welcome those stats? You might want to know that Saddleback Church is located in Lake Forest, California and has an unusual history, beginning its phenomenal success story on Easter Sunday 1980. Before building a permanent facility In Lake Forest, they were a mobile church, setting up church every Sunday morning in school buildings, larger and larger, to accommodate their growth. Today the church has an average attendance of 18,000 people every Sunday. Pastor Warren is one of the top authors on the New York Times Best Seller List. His book, The Purpose Driven Life, has been purchased by the millions by people who want to get a handle on some purpose bigger than yesterday and their prospects for today. Even though “40 Days of Purpose” is being utilized by churches from various denominations, I think it is interesting that Warren’s church is a Southern Baptist Convention church. They don’t use the word “Baptist” in their name, nor do they act and sound like a traditional Southern Baptist Church. Personally, I thank God that a Baptist church is having world-wide impact by helping people get Godly purpose in their lives. But let me share some of the wonderful success stories coming out of the Purpose Driven Movement: • Looking for ways to spur the spiritual growth of their church, Roxbury Presbyterian Church in Boston partnered with other members of the Black Ministerial Association of Greater Boston to go through the 40 Days of Purpose in the fall of 2003. The church responded to the campaign with amazing results by growing both spiritually and numerically. RPC averaged 125 people a week for their weekly worship services. During the last five weeks of the six-week campaign the church topped the 200-mark in attendance. The church also grew from six small groups to more than 45 and added 28 new members! • According to one of its elders, New Life Christian Church of Paragon, Ind. was dying before starting the 40 Days of Purpose campaign last fall. The worship service attendance was slowly dropping, eventually falling to between 80 to 90 people. Twenty people did most of the work of the church. The church leadership still doesn’t know why they received an e-mail inviting them to be a part of the 40 Days of Purpose campaign, but they are glad they did. As the campaign started, Pastor Rick encouraged all of the participating churches to expect exponential results for the campaign. Against all odds, New Life Christian Church did just that. By the time Celebration Sunday (the official finale to 40 Days of Purpose) rolled around, the church had nearly doubled its attendance. The church had less than five small groups at the start of the campaign. When the church was challenged to start new groups, 17 people stepped up to the task of hosting them in their home. And 50 people in the congregation signed up to help around the church during their ministry fair. “We are no longer a dying church but a growing church, hungry for God’s will to be done,” said one of the church elders in an e-mail to Saddleback. • After five years of staff terminations, declining attendance and a lack of trust within the congregation, Ridglea West Baptist Church of Fort Worth, Tex. looked to be nearing the end of its ministry. God used 40 Days of Purpose to change that. Before the campaign the church had 25 people attending their Sunday evening worship service. Trying to think big, Pastor Kris Barnett made a goal of 50 people joining in-home small groups — doubling the amount that attended the Sunday evening service. To everyone’s surprise, they more than doubled that number! More than 110 people attended in-home small groups during the campaign. Maybe the most important transformation during the campaign for this small church was the improved fellowship and the wounds that God healed. “[40 Days of Purpose] has provided fresh air to our church!” said Pastor Kris. • The stories coming from 40 Days of Purpose haven’t simply been on a church-wide basis. Regularly, Purpose Driven is hearing stories of individuals whose lives have changed through 40 Days of Purpose. Dawie, a member of Sannieshoff Christian Church in South Africa, had become very critical of his church before the campaign started. But as Dawie read the “The Purpose Driven Life,” God began to soften his heart. When the campaign was over, Dawie ordered three more books. When asked why he was so excited about the book, Dawie said it had made a bigger impact on his life than any book other than the Bible. He realized through 40 Days of Purpose that although he isn’t designed to knock on doors and share his faith with people, God has gifted him with the ability to easily share his own spiritual story with seekers. Now he does that on a regular basis, often using “The Purpose Driven Life” in the process. To learn more about “40 Days of Purpose” just log on to an internet search engine. Information is more than abundant. John Hatcher is pastor of Outreach International Center, 1091 South Jeff Davis Drive, Fayetteville, Georgia 30215. 770-719-0303
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