“If you build it, they will come.”
It may have worked in Field of Dreams, but it probably will not work for your church.
Growth necessitates structure, not the other way around. It is not usually wise to attempt to jump start an organization, economy, or church by getting into another program or more debt. This is called a stimulus. Stimuli are often harmful in the long term and usually only beneficial in the very short term.
Think Keynesian economics. Doesn’t work in America and won’t work in the Church. By the way, what did you do with your government stimulus check? Do you remember? Well you may not, but it continues to keep the federal government up at night because they are still paying for it.
This is unfortunately the model in many churches and organizations. They go the short term stimulus route and are left holding the bag long after the results have been forgotten.
Stick with the three or four things that you do well; things that got you this far and then branch out from them wherever they may take you. But never neglect those three or four things. They are the trunk of your tree.
Offshoot programs may produce fruit, but ultimately they are only branches off of the trunk. The branches can never grow larger than the trunk can sustain. Sometimes branches rot and must be cut from the trunk to preserve the life of the plant. The trunk is the lifeline of your church or organization. It draws from your roots and sustains your branches.
If you have a program that is sucking your bank account dry, cut it off. If you are thinking about what to do next, ask yourself this question: Is the core able to sustain growth at this point? If the answer is yes, your growth may necessitate a new project. If it is no, keep building the trunk by solidifying those three or four things that your organization does well.
