What does it mean to be Kindom-minded? Simply stated: We are all on the same team! The goal is to help people find and follow Jesus. And it's going to take more workers to harvest the billions of people out there who have not experienced a relationship with Jesus Christ.
... the more the merrier! Last month, I visited our Skyline Church Kansas location. It was great to see the work that God is doing there. And while we love our Skyline Church Kansas location, we know it takes many different kinds of churches to reach many different kinds of people. That's why we have helped others plant different kinds of churches. All of these churches teach the relevance of scripture like Skyline, but each approaches how they do it in slightly different ways. For example, we've sent out three church planters and a campus pastor in the last three years.
We've come alongside Pastor David Ordaz with One Church, who specializes in bilingual, Spanish and English services. We also sent Pastor Weston Stutz to launch Captivate Church, who focuses on doing life together in a community. More recently, we've helped Pastor Scotty James plant The Village Church, who is rooted in simplicity and scripture. Others, like Pastor Jason Sneddon in Kansas, relocated from Skyline Church Lakeside to build the same kind of church ... Skyline Church Kansas. Whether people leave the current body to build a new church or the same church, we continue to expand the Kingdom of God!
Over time, I’ve seen certain churches with an unsaid (or said) philosophy that says “Keep ‘em and if they want to leave guilt 'em, coerce 'em, or threaten 'em if you have to, but they better not leave!" This philosophy just doesn’t work. Everyone says they're “kingdom-minded” ... until ... they’re tested... And we’re ALL going to be tested in that! Because God is never concerned with building our kingdom. His focus is on building the Kingdom. If we try to compete with His Kingdom building we're going to lose every time.
If someone is called by God to plant a church, they’re called BY GOD! You might as well support that person because they’re going to go if God is the one telling them to go. We have to remember that it’s all about GOD'S work, not our work. When you let people go to do God’s will, THAT says you are Kingdom-minded. I truly believe that at the end of the day we get Kingdom credit, not Skyline Church credit. I’ve learned that when you have your hands open, God can get a lot more to you than when your hands are closed.
We need to be asking ourselves, “How are we advancing the Kingdom of God?” I want to see people experience the freedom of Christ. THAT is my passion! And the reality is, Church planting is brutal. I’ve been there! You are LITERALLY face-to-face with Satan because he does NOT want new churches being planted.
By deciding to plant a church, you enter a strategic war. Your heart has to be in the right place. Your process also has to be right. I’ve seen hundreds of church plants die. And, I’ve also seen hundreds of churches succeed! That's why I lay out a church planting formula for those who feel called to navigate those difficult waters. It fires me up and I'm ready to jump in with you. Still ... some people want to do their own thing, and that's okay. But when someone wants to plant a church, there are some key strategies that can help a new church have the best chance to succeed. I love helping people do that!
When I hear someone say they think God wants them to plant a church, my goal is to help that person figure out EXACTLY what God is leading them to do. With that being said, one of the first things I ask a potential church planter is … "Why?" The reason I ask this is because their answer says a lot about God's calling and their motivation.
The number one reason that you plant a church is to reach new people. Your primary motivation should not be because it’s a beautiful area or because you can pull people from another big church nearby. Your mindset should always be to seek and save the lost. That means we need many different kinds of churches (all grounded in the Word of God) to reach many different kinds of people.
Lastly, I want to know from the church planter what God has specifically been putting on their heart. I want to help them get to the bottom of their motivation. Some may think that they can do it better than their current church. While that may be true, it’s never good to plant something with an attitude of strife and division. If you're not called to plant the church, you won't last in planting the church. You want to plant a church with good intentions, a good heart, and a Kingdom-mindset. It’s not about building your own little kingdom or wanting to speak more or be the guy upfront or call the shots or anything other than having a heart for lost people. I like to get to the bottom of the church planter's motivation to give them their best chance at making a difference for the Kingdom.
We recognize there are many different ways to do church and that ultimately, we are called to serve the Lord Jesus Christ, not a building. At Skyline, we have a very specific way we believe church should be done because we're intentionally zoned in on our purpose statement. It's not how every church does it, but we believe in giving you practical ways to apply the Bible on Sunday so you can use it SEVEN days a week. We're going give you something on Sunday you can use on Monday. We believe that growing people change, you can't do life alone, saved people serve people, you can't out-give God, and found people find people! We believe that being Kingdom-minded means helping people plant churches in order to expand the kingdom. The bottom line is this ... we serve a BIG God. To be Kingdom-minded, you have to wholeheartedly believe ... the more the merrier!
JANICE MCMURRAY said:
Amazing word Pastor!! So proud of how the Lord is using you in growing the body of Christ!
Jeff B said:
Hey just a heads up that this study has no connection to Stanford… And was not written by a scientist. https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/apr/21/blog-posting/paper-about-mask-wearing-was-not-stanford-and-make/
Jeremy McGarity said:
Thanks Jeff, however, Politifact is a far left organization- another propaganda machine….as I mentioned in my post they are burying this study.. same with Snopes Snopes is far left same with any of the main stream media outlets that are claiming this is false. take a look at all the cited sources in the study that is the main information that is worth following up on not what the far left media is saying
Jeremy McGarity said:
See Stanford researchers cited here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7680614/
Jeremy McGarity said:
Jeff what is your last name? It only says Jeff B? Also read the study directly from the NIH (a government website) and notice the Stanford researchers that are cited — just b/c it doesn’t fit a comfortable narrative doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your honest research — it is true that the liberal left own those organizations and they push propaganda— it’s sad but that’s our world – it’s why we need truth more than ever — here’s the link https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7680614/