"I don't even like to use the word success anymore," commented a pastor friend at a recent meeting. "It means so many different things to people, you never know what they're hearing when you say it.''

As we asked church leaders what they'd like to see in a LEADERSHIP issue on success, we heard the same thing over and over. Depending on who uses the word, success might mean a big salary, a private secretary, a huge organization, or faithfulness to an ideal.

But what is success for church leaders? What's personal success? Does it mean a large, growing church? A large budget? An influential voice in the denomination? A television ministry?

And what's a successful church? A church that's growing in numbers? In the commitment of its members? In achieving established goals?

We asked John Huffman, pastor of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, California, to assemble some church leaders from California and talk about the question. John met with Larry DeWitt, pastor of Calvary Community ...