We're Just Trying to Help

......and yet another person's take on the same passage from Supernaturally Pure. I love these Life Journal's!

I am probably taking this a little out of context, so you can write me back and let me know. Ezra 4:1-5 explains that when the people where trying to build a temple to God that “well wishers” and “do gooders” came by to offer a hand. They even explained that they seek God and that they have been making sacrifices to Him for quite some time. Well, the people who were building kinda said, Nah, we’re o.k., we got this. We’re going to build it according to the vision given to us.

Now I think that it was great for the people to come and offer a “helping hand” to the temple construction company, but as it turns out, they were only there to push their own agenda/vision on the workers. They were not there to assist in the vision of the new temple, they were there to run things the way that they saw fit. How do I know, read on: “Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.” What? I thought that they just wanted to lend a hand. They did, as long as it was in accordance with what they wanted, and not the vision that was given to the people building the temple.

How does this play out in modern day church planting? Easy. Whenever a new church is planted, the church planter will inevitably have scores of “Christian” people come from various churches in that area. Why? Well the reasons vary. It could be that they genuinely want to help with no agenda (yeah right), they could be dissatisfied with their current circumstances, and be seeking a new environment as well as a plethora of other reasons. Here is where the problem comes in, the “Christian” that comes to a new church plant situation often comes with a set of values and thoughts about how things should be. They often come to change rather than to get on board with the vision that the church planter has. A vision given to him by God. A vision for the church and people that he is supposed to raise in that community.

When the “Christian” comes from an established church to a church plant in order to change things to their slant/bent it ruins the plans that God has given to that Church planter. In our situation, 99% of the troubles that we have gone through have been because of “Christian” people who either have their own agenda, or who want to force their ideologies onto a new church situation. Bad idea, bad situation.

So if you are a person who thinks that he can circumvent the vision that God has placed on someones heart, please check yourself. Figure out if you are seeking your own will, or God’s will. God, please don’t let us get in the way of what you want to do through your servants. Amen.