Jump Start # 3435

Luke 8:15 “And the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.”

Hard soil. Thorny soil. Seed stolen by birds. And, good, productive soil. That’s the makeup of the parable of the Sower. There are three components to the good soil.

• They heard the word in an honest and good heart
• They hold fast the word
• They bear fruit because of the word

And, those three simple steps make all the difference. Two people can hear the same sermon and one leaves the church building unchanged, unmoved and none the better. The other person, leaves convicted. He makes promises to himself to do better. The sermon touched him and moved him. Same service. Same sermon. It’s the three components that make all the difference.

Recently I was preaching for a congregation in Ohio. It was my first time to that church and I really didn’t know anyone there. In making the arrangements and details about that meeting, it was suggested that I come early and spend three or four hours on Saturday talking to the church about leadership, the Biblical picture of shepherding, and changing the culture in a congregation. We did that and it was well received.

And, right there I saw two amazing things about that group of people. And, it’s those qualities and characteristics that make all the difference in the future of a congregation.

There are two qualities that go together. First, is  the willingness to try something different. Most times, meetings start on Sunday. But this group was willing to spend a rainy Saturday listening to someone they had never met talk about principles, applications and suggestions about leading a church. They wanted to know. They wanted to learn.

Second, is having the heart that is willing to learn. And, whether one talks about leadership, excellence in worship, or just a one-on-one talk with your teen, unless there is an openness of the heart to listen and learn, nothing will be accomplished. In the Lord’s parable of the Sower, the good soil is described as a good and honest heart.

When you have a conversation, but the other person doesn’t want to be there, doesn’t want to hear you, and his mind is made up, nothing positive will happen. This kind of attitude frustrates parents, and it makes preachers wonder what they are doing wrong. Having a heart that wants to learn, wants to grow is where it begins.

Whenever the Word of God intersects an open and willing heart, great things will happen. It is when a person has a closed mind that nothing good is accomplished. How does one develop that honest and good heart?

It begins with humility. It is a heart, like this Ohio congregation, that was willing to listen and learn more. When we think we have heard all that can be said on a topic, then the door shuts. I had someone tell me a while back, “Do you think after doing this for thirty-five years, you can teach me something I don’t know?” And, with a spirit like that, I couldn’t. Be open to growing. Be willing to learn. Never get to the place where you think you have learned all that there is to know.

Sometimes we can get so stuck in our ways and become so accustomed to the way things are that we fight hearing and doing anything different. And, when that happens, change will never take place. Improvement is built upon growth, learning and changing. When that little puppy grows into a dog, and that little tree sapling grows into a large tree, change has taken place.

Some are afraid of change because it means doing things differently and some are afraid that they may be headed down the slippery slope of error. So, they stay the course. And, by resisting and fighting any change, they keep from growing. Everything  not only stays the same, but everything seems stuck.

Churches today are doing more than they ever have, very likely doing most in the history of the church. The message circles the planet. The classes, blogs, podcasts are reaching thousands of people who will never be a part of that congregation, but they are out there somewhere in the kingdom. It takes finances, personnel and vision to engage in these global efforts. It takes open hearts and a willingness to try something different.

The attitude within a person or a congregation can make all the difference.

Roger