Arson (ar-sen) – The burning of a building or other property for a criminal or malicious reason.
Do arsonists exist in church? Speaking analogously, Yes! One of the most common concerns I hear from church leaders is that they are exhausted from putting out all the fires.
It goes without saying, but if there is a fire to put out it had to be set by someone. Hence the existence of church arsonists.
This scenario caused my mentor and fellow Church Doctor, Dr. Kent Hunter, to make the following statement:
“While many church leaders are burning out putting out fires, little is being done to take away the matches from the people who are starting them!” – taken from his book Discover Your Windows
The matches used by arsonists come in the form of words and are many. Here are some of the most common: “We Can’t afford that…” “A lot of people are not happy with that…” “If you keep this up I’m going to leave the church.” Again, there are more, but you get the idea.
While the intent of a church arsonist may not be malicious, the results of their actions often are. They control church decisions, stir up tension in the congregation, and are, in short, destructive to the body.
So why isn’t more being done to take away the matches? Because it is easier to put out the fire than it is to confront the arsonist. Taking away the matches means holding arsonists accountable for their actions
How do you arson proof your church?
1) Change how church “get’s done”. Move away from a system of high control and low accountability to a system of high accountability and low control.
2) Give church leaders permission to confront church arsonists using Matthew 18 as a guiding principal
3) Work with an outside consultant.
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