Language Matters: Keep God Central

The image of evangelism as harvest is both beautiful and biblical, but, like any metaphor, imperfect.

by Christina Van Eyl

A college professor once recounted this bit of wisdom offered by an author (whose name I am unable to recall). "Some stories are built like bridges," he said, meaning that the author constructs themes with deliberate forethought. "And some are born like babies," meaning that the story seems to be delivered whole to the page, and the author is merely a conduit for getting the words on paper.

Similar phraseology has been used to describe church multiplication. There is the concept of planting churches, the thoughtful process and methodology of developing a schedule, working the plan, deciding if the plan is really working, and then either scrapping the thing or declaring it a success. Then there is the "birthing" of churches, which might give the impression that the church emerges fully formed, but in truth birthing a church still involves plenty of planning and preparation...

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