Quit or Continue?

We started a new outreach program several months ago and have seen only minimal results. Should I just forget it and try something else?

             Some time back, I was with a pastor who had successfully led his small church to renewed growth and revival. In reviewing his techniques, I observed a good number of outreach ministries and programs, all vibrant and producing. When I questioned him as to how he had implemented so much and had seen such great results, he responded like this:

“My pastor gave me some very good advice when I first started out. He told me that it takes between three to five years for any program to begin to operate successfully. I have observed that most pastors give up too easily. If a new outreach is not producing within a month or two, they dump it for something else. They fail to realize that it takes at least a year to simply work the bugs out.”

Good advice! Later, I came across the following paragraph in Kennon L.Collahan’s book, Twelve Keys To An Effective Church,

“Whenever a congregation intentionally decides to develop a specific major program, it is important that the local congregation plan on four or five years of development. It takes a considerable investment of leadership, time and money to put in place the quality and caliber of major programs that are found in successful churches.”

If a pastor is sure that the new program is the will of God for his church (and you don’t want it if it’s not) then it will not fail, for God doesn’t tell you to go a certain direction and then abandon you to fumble on your own. God doesn’t back failures.

(from IBC Perspectives – Volume 2 – Issue 5 – page 6)