Lessons I've Learned over the last 10 years (part 3)

Here's another lesson that I have learned. Planting a Church is the hardest thing you will ever do!
My background is business. I have started and owned and operated 2 businesses, and I can honestly tell you that that was a piece of cake compared to planting and pastoring a church. There are many reasons that this is true.

First there is the pressure of knowing that there are lives literally hanging in the balance every week.If a business doesn't "make it", they just shut the doors and go home and do something else. If a church doesn't "make it", there are many people that have devoted their lives into that church, and then they have the burden to find another family of believers do life with.

There is the pain of people you love, leaving to go to a new church. In business if someone leaves, you've only lost a customer. In a church you've lost a friend.

There is the difficulty of getting most of your work done by volunteers instead of employees that you have the leverage of a paycheck to keep them going.

In a business you close up at 6:00pm and you're done until tomorrow. In a church you are always on call. Every Pastor has gotten the phone calls in the middle of the night from a person that is in crisis.

I meet people all the time who want to be a church planter. I think that's great IF God has called you to it. If you want to plant a church because you think it would be cool, or because it looks easy, or because you are a disgruntled staff-member, or because you want to be the next Steven Furtick or Perry Noble then don't do it. (I know both of these guys, and they are amazing leaders who work HARD)
It's not as easy as it looks. Contrary to what you may think, it's not hanging out at Starbucks everyday and preaching on Sunday for an hour. It's hard, disciplined,getting dirty in the trenches type work. And the Sundays come with amazing regularity!

Please understand, I'm not complaining. And I'm not looking for sympathy. In fact, I'm having the time of my life! There is nothing I would rather do. I am saying that there are many potential church planters that are called by God, and I want them to know what to expect so it doesn't blind-side them.