Pastors

One day a preacher said to a friend, "We have just had the greatest revival our church has experienced in many years."

"How many did you add to your church membership?"

"None. We lost five hundred." —Brennan Manning,The Ragamuffin Gospel

When I considered the possibility of moving from Bellingham, Washington, to Tulsa, Oklahoma, the question wasn't just why I would exchange Mount Baker for oil country. I'd come to a fork in the road.

Was it time to plant an emerging type church? Or could I help an existing modern-ish church position itself for ministering to the next generation by developing some emerging sensibilities?

Rather than giving up on existing churches, which is what the prospect of church planting felt like to me, I wanted to believe that an existing church could make the transition. So I came to Garnett Church of Christ and set the transition in motion.

The results have been astounding.

850 members in 2003.

550 members in 2006.

Everyone told me that church planting would be hard, ...

You have reached the end of this Article Preview

To continue reading, subscribe to Christianity Today magazine. Subscribers have full digital access to CT Pastors articles.

Log InSubscribe

Already a CT subscriber? Log in for full digital access.