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4 Things Every 20-Something Church Leader Should Know

Are you a college grad or about to be? Looking for a church-based internship or residency? Check out the  Austin Stone Institute… well, it’s more than an internship or residency program. It’s a church-based training experience designed to develop those called to lead in the home, church, city and world. impact wherever they go. Click here to find out more:

https://www.austinstoneinstitute.org

Recently I was able to be a part of a beautiful reconciliation between a number of churches in one of the largest cities in our state. Here are 4 things I learned from that experience that every 20-something church leader should keep in mind when doing mission.

If you want to seek peace and reconciliation in your city throughout the days, weeks and years to come – if you want Jesus to be glorified and his Bride to be magnified – you will want to keep these 4 things in mind:

1.  There is nothing new under the sun.

You may think that you have the best and newest idea about how to reach people in your city. However, you need to know that it’s probably been tried before – probably 100 times over.  If you’re a 24-year-old Church planter and you are walking around your city thinking that you have the best ideas in town, chances are you are not going to attract much unity around Jesus.

Be humble and know that the same Holy Spirit that is alive and well in you is also alive and well in the other pastors in your city.  Knowing this will allow you to be able to hear other peoples’ ideas, thoughts and insights with humility and generosity.

CLICK TO TWEET: “Know that the same Holy Spirit that is alive in you is also alive in the other pastors.” @John_Quick

2.  There is only one Church, Jesus’s Church.

Think about this – How many churches are in your City or town? The most common answer is 50, 200, or even 500 churches – but those are all wrong. There is only one Church, Jesus’s Church. Jesus only has one bride, not 50.

CLICK TO TWEET: “There is only one Church, Jesus’s Church.” @John_Quick
 
With this in mind think about how much more could be done together! You just went from having 50, 100, or 1000 people in your church family to thousands and thousands in your church family in your city or town.

Now, you will need to be intentional about being on mission together.

3.  Do mission with other churches.

If you are at a place where you value other peoples’ ideas, where you want there to be one church in your city working together, where you want to be on mission together, most of the time the momentum stops there. People get this far and then decide to just get together and pray, which is great, but that’s all they ever do.

CLICK TO TWEET: “There is nothing new under the sun.” @John_Quick
 
If you only ever just get together and pray with churches around your city, you are missing a huge opportunity.

Jesus took his disciples along with him and they all ministered together. They were on mission – TOGETHER.

So don’t just PRAY, go be ON MISSION with other church families in your city.

CLICK TO TWEET: “Jesus took his disciples along with him and they all ministered together.” @John_Quick
 

4.  Look to give instead of receive.

As you are on mission together as one Church in your city offer to help other church families out without any expectation of getting anything in return? This year, the church family that I am a part of, Soma Tacoma, had to move out of our gatherings space. To make a long story short, the building was not up to code and we did not have the money to get the building up to code.

I was in a city meeting when they told us the bad news. I immediately texted a good friend of mine who is a pastor at another church in town. This church also happens to be one of the largest churches in the Northwest. Because we had been on mission with this church over the last year – because we were really trying to act as ONE Church – he called me back within 5 minutes of reading my text.

CLICK TO TWEET: “Jesus only has one Bride.  So we should all be in this together.” @John_Quick

He told me not to worry. He offered the use of their space – for free – however long we needed. Not only that, but he would dedicate a couple of his staff to make this transition as smooth as possible for us. And not only that (!!), but he also offered for his team to help provide all the Nursery and Kids Church needs as well.

This is just one example of what can happen when churches work together.

Jesus only has one Bride.  So we should all be in this together, living on mission in the everyday life, in order to make disciples who make disciples. Anything short of this dream falls short. Of course there is room for failure and grace.

But it is a dream worth striving towards each and every day.

Are you a college grad or about to be? Looking for a church-based internship or residency? Check out the  Austin Stone Institute… well, it’s more than an internship or residency program. It’s a church-based training experience designed to develop those called to lead in the home, church, city and world. impact wherever they go. Click here to find out more:

https://www.austinstoneinstitute.org