The Measure of Success
It is often assumed that numbers and growth are a mark of success in the ministry; which I suppose explains why pastors are so often heard asking one another what size of church they serve. That also likely explains why ministers are inclined to exaggerate. But by that standard we would be forced to judge Joel Osteen, TD Jakes and Andy Stanley enormous successes. And by that standard we would similarly be forced to judge the ministry of our Lord an abysmal failure. I have had to think this through recently from two separate angles. Just weeks ago I was pastoring a church that was growing. Our growth wasn’t explosive but it was unlike anything we had ever seen before. Still a relatively small church but growing! Now all of a sudden I am faced with something altogether different. I am no longer the pastor of the church I planted, the congregation is divided, and what remains going forward is at best small, 'insignificant' and irregula...