I can't hold it in!

I've tried to just give a little description about this book I'm reading, but I can't hold it in. I've just got to share some of my highlights. It's too good!

Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Jim Cymbala
(Regarding the early days of his church with just about 20 people in attendance.)
Some of the members we inherited were so out of step with the flavor of the church, so set on their own agenda, that I actually began to pray they would leave. One man informed me that he, too, was ordained and should be allowed to preach on Sunday nights. What I observed in his spiritual life, however, indicated just the opposite.

Confrontation came hard because we could ill afford to lose people. But if these members were to stay, the result would be ongoing discord-and I knew the Lord would never bless that kind of a mess with the spiritual power we so desperately needed. One by one, these people made their exit. On a couple of occasions I even had to help answer my own prayers by suggesting that members consider another church. I was learning that in pastoral work, as in basketball, sometimes you have to confront.

(Regarding his church's growth as a result of prayer).
After we had some Sunday night times of prayer around the altar, when people got into the habit of calling on the Lord, our attendance grew to fifty or sixty. But I knew God wanted to do much more...and he would, if we provided good soil in which he could work. I was tired of the escapist mentality I had witnessed since childhood-always glorifying what God did way back in some revival, or else passionately predicting "the coming great move of God" just ahead. The truth is, I new there were countless churches across the city and the nation that had not baptized a hundred truly converted sinners in a year, and most not in several years. Any growth came simply through transfers from one church to another. New York City was a hard mission field, but transfer growth was not what God had in mind for us.

Just a couple of nuggets to chew on. I think Jim makes a great point in saying that just because someone is attending your church, it doesn't mean they have to stay there. There may be another church that would suit their beliefs better, or several other factors. We must not be afraid to confront, we must lead our churches. Of course, just walking up to someone and asking them to leave is probably not the best approach. We should always practice the charitable assumption, giving them the benefit of the doubt, discipling them, walking closely with them to try and fix the problem. Only if this doesn't work, and after much prayer, should we suggest the last option.

The other good point Jim makes is that prayer creates an atmosphere of good soil for the holy spirit to work in. His church is called a house of prayer, not a house of worship or a house of preaching or a house of fun or good stories. As we go through the book a little more, you'll see what making prayer a priority in the church did in his congregation.

Blessings on this sunny, breezy Saturday.