Work the Soil

So, God gave me this great epiphany a month or so ago when it comes to church planting. Here it is: The goal of church planting is to plant a church (duh!), but you don't plant a church by working on the plant. You plant a church by working the soil.

Okay, so here's what I mean. The tendency in church planting is to focus on issues related to the plant itself: having the right music, getting the chairs set up the right way, making sure the logo looks right, having the right "look" and "feel" to our meeting place, getting all the stuff loaded and unloaded on the truck in the right way, having the right food and coffee in the cafe, all the little details that you have to get done and you have to get right.

But I got to thinking about how planting in the agricultural world actually works. My grandfather was a big gardener. Each year he spent lots and lots of hours working in his garden. Now, the hard work of gardening is not so much invested in the plant. It's getting the soil ready to receive the seed. If the soil is properly prepared, if it is kept free of rocks and weeds, if it is properly broken up, if the right fertilizers and nutrients have been applied to the soil, good seed will produce a healthy, fruitful plant.

Jesus said that spreading the message of the kingdom was like a farmer who went out to sow his seed. The fruitfulness of the seed was in each case dependent on the type of soil it fell on.

So, here's where God spoke to me. The real work of church planting is not in working on the plant. It's in working the soil, doing everything possible to give the seed the best opportunity to take root. Working the soil in church planting is about working relationships, getting to know people, cultivating opportunities to talk to people. The most important stuff about church planting is not all the cool stuff we do at church, it's not how neat our next sermon series is, it's not how great our music is. Don't get me wrong, all that stuff is really important and deserves our best efforts and energy and creativity. But the most important thing is working the soil so it will be ready to receive the seed.

Do all the stuff that has to be done, but remember that you are the greatest resource in a church plant, and the relationships you develop with other people are vitally important. Work the soil, sow the seed, and the plant will grow and produce an incredible harvest. Good seed sown in good soil will produce a good harvest.