It was fall quarter in my fourth year of bible college when I had to make some hard decisions. Most of my experience in ministry up to this point had been with youth ministries. The focus was more on entertaining and making Jesus exciting for young people. I was ministering more and more with adults, but I was struggling with what I was learning in bible college and from the Holy Spirit. I was starting to have questions, I was starting to get ministry job offers and did not know what direction to go.<\/p>\n
Personal Questions<\/strong><\/p>\n As I started applying to universities for my Masters program, I had selected Northwest University. I was sure to have a seat as my biblical counselor teacher sat on the board at Northwest. However she had to go back to Florida for an unexpected emergency and she asked her son to come teach the class. Her son had a strong Apostolic anointing and we connected right away that day in class. He asked me what the spirit of the Lord was saying to me. I replied that the Spirit was saying “don’t sell out.” He became very intrigued with my response and asked me more questions. I responded that I did’t really know exactly, but I am becoming aware of things in ministry and I am afraid of my ministry not lining up with the bible. He offered a job as an associate pastor that day in class. I accepted the position. I withdrew from Northwest University and spent the next three years in Seattle being mentored in the ways of Jesus, to be specific the Jesus model of ministry.<\/p>\n Catalyst for Change<\/strong><\/p>\n In Spring of 2021 my spiritual father passed away unexpectedly from cancer. As he had just graduated from George Fox and was going to teach in the fall at Portland Seminary, I once again took a step of faith and applied for the doctoral program and was accepted. I was hesitant with enrolling in the program with having a new church plant, food ministry, and a daughter with down syndrome. I was obedient to the Lord and enrolled not knowing the why? But I have come to find out that Dr. Clark and the staff at Portland Seminary are continuing what the Lord said to me years ago “to not sell out!”<\/p>\n Dr. Clark takes Weber’s ideas accompanied with David Bebbington to show us how much capitalism drives the church.[1] We see how much the world has influenced the church in becoming a place of commerce in hopes of supporting ministry and salaries. We see the molecule of more and ego is continually driving the church for bigger buildings and more programs.[2] The focus seems to always be increasing influence or expanding the Kingdom of Heaven. However we have to ask the question is this working? Is this what Jesus wanted for us? Are we really fulfilling the Great Commission in the Western Church? Why do we come up to a new threshold and not step through the door?[3] Have we sold our souls to the devil trying to build the church in America? Have dopamine driven pastors taken over and kicked out the Holy Spirit from leading the church?[4]<\/p>\n Personal Application<\/strong><\/p>\n These are all questions I have wrestled with planting a church and our food ministry. I remember six years ago standing before a board of a mainline denomination where my head pastor was being reprimanded for allowing me to start the Well Church. That this church was not an economic advantage to the denomination.\u00a0 Worse, I was invited to go to Las Vegas to study how the casino’s set up their foyers to make as much money and create excitement so a new visitor would want to come back. Leaving that meeting I knew I was done. The board asked me if I had anything to say, I replied with, “Since when has it been so wrong to love and help people. To share the Good News of Jesus Christ?” The board looked at me and said nothing, they asked me to sit down and they would let me know their decision.<\/p>\n What is the Problem with Revival?<\/strong><\/p>\n We see in Bebbingtons book how each revival challenged the present system and status quo.[5] This is the real problem with any move of God, because it challenges the present status quo. Through the Great Awakening and other revivals that each move of God seemed to shake and restructure the current system or way. We also see how revival and the lack or revival affects our economy. Even at our college George Fox was a man of uncompromising faith. He often upset the religious leaders and system of his time. He had few friends, but the ones he had such as William Penn and Oliver Cromwell stood with him. These were all people who would not sell out for personal gain or more numbers in the pews.<\/p>\n We see in Matthew chapter four that the Devil offered Jesus many things of this world if Jesus would bow down and worship Him. Jesus replied with the Word of God (it is written). Ministry is difficult, and sometimes we have to make hard financial choices. But those choices can be rooted in Jesus and His Kingdom and not in greed and covetousness. We can make financial choices without selling out, especially for personal gain.<\/p>\n Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n At first I really questioned if a rural pastor with a food ministry with a bunch of foreigners needed a doctoral program. Now, I am forever grateful for this program and what I have learned. The peace to say no to how bigger more successful churches and organizations do things. But just like every revival started with a small group of people praying and fasting and wanting more of Jesus and a little less of this world. Just like the great leaders in Bebbingtons book, we also can take what we have learned and be that self differentiated leader and taking those perils and turning them into pearls around our necks.[6]<\/p>\n [1] Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism<\/em> (Wilder Publications, 2015).<\/p>\n [2]Daniel Z. Lieberman, and Michael E. Long. The Molecule of More:<\/em> How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity and Will Determine the Fate of the Human Race. Reprint Edition (BenBella Books, 2019).<\/p>\n [3] Breaking Through: Threshold Concepts as A Key to Understanding:<\/em> Robert Coven;<\/p>\n [4]Daniel Z. Lieberman, and Michael E. Long. The Molecule of More:<\/em> How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity and Will Determine the Fate of the Human Race. Reprint Edition (BenBella Books, 2019).<\/p>\n [5] David W. Bebbington, Evangelicalism In Modern Britain: A History From the 1730’s to 1980s (Routledge,1993).<\/p>\n [6] Eve Poole, “Leadersmithing|Eve Poole| TEDxDurhamUniversity.” October 16, 2018<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It was fall quarter in my fourth year of bible college when I had to make some hard decisions. Most of my experience in ministry up to this point had been with youth ministries. The focus was more on entertaining and making Jesus exciting for young people. 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