Reflections on global church planting from our network church in Berlin
September 16th, 2009 by Dan
This is Christian, pastor of Berlinprojekt in Germany, for Dan:
This week, brainstorming together with Dan and others about the future of our church-planting in our cities, my college Konstantin and I put down a daunting sentence. It’s the first one heading our vision statement for the next 15 years in Berlin: “We want to see a number of new churches planted in the very city center where we are present with Berlinprojekt that grow to have at least the size and influence of Berlinprojekt and beyond our influence.” This was a difficult sentence to write because am I really ready for this? My pride? My desire to be this important person with this important church in the network – all the sudden there are all these thoughts coming up that are pretty embarrassing, but pretty real at the same time. But the more I reflect about this important goal for us in Berlin, a goal to deliberately dwarf us in the midst of others for the sake of the kingdom, I’m realizing: this it is that we have to be all about. I need a new attitude of service. A new dedication to the goals of God’s kingdom that surpass by far my little activities. I think this all has to do a lot with a spirit of servanthood in which, a bit surprisingly, again is so much gain. Not only for the other – but for me as well in very real terms. Just as Jesus said (about): Those who want to keep his church will loose it – but those who are willing to loose it will gain it and with it so much more. I gues that goes not only for church but for many areas as well… Greetings from New York and Berlin to Toronto, Christian from Berlin
