“Then Saul took 3,000 of the best-trained men from all Israel and went to search for David and his men on the Rocks of the Wild Goats.” 1 Samuel 24:2

There were three things we see in this verse that David encountered as a young leader in his quest to obey God. Rocks, wild goats and a king named Saul. Each has application to the building of a new work for God.

The walls are now up on our new facility at Northstar Church. It won’t be long now before we have a home and officially move from being a church plant to a church planted. To me, the commitment it requires to build a home from both pastors and congregation declares to the community we are here to stay.

As we move towards completion, I can’t help but look back at our journey over the last 3 years.

Church planting can take you into some pretty rocky and treacherous territory. There is a lot of rocky ground and it can be a challenge to find stability and a foothold. Often, you are in a new city where you barely know a soul. Meeting in places like hotel ballrooms takes a small army of pioneering hearts to set up and tear down an entire church operation each and every week. You are working with a lean staff team and limited resources in the first several years. Of course, there is also the personal cost. Sacrifices are made financially and family relationships often feel the strain as well.

New church plants attract three kinds of people… at least ours here at Northstar has.  First, you get the strong, committed sheep who have a desire to build the kingdom of God from the ground up.  Wow - where would we be without these?  As I am writing these words, I am seeing the faces of dozens of families along with single men and women who showed up at the very beginning of Northstar and have never left us.  They have prayed, worked, given, loved, welcomed, evangelized, encouraged, strengthened…. there aren’t enough verbs to describe their contributions to what God has built.

Secondly, there are the prodigals and lost sheep.  This may well be the most rewarding part of the journey for all of us. They are brought by friends, family and neighbors. Every so often, they just show up uninvited and unannounced.  Some discover Christ for the first time. Others are “de-churched” believers and rediscover church in a way they never imagined possible. I remember one of the first young men who came gave his life to Jesus at Northstar during our first Christmas service.  God completely transformed his heart. He had new questions every week about the Lord. His conversion gave us all new oxygen for the rocky climb ahead.

Then there are the wild goats.  Goats are believers who tend to “butt” into business that really isn’t theirs and just love to show up at church plants to see how far they can push their way into position and authority. They never arrive willing to roll up their sleeves and pick up the servants towel. They want center stage and are more interested in a title than a task.

Part of being a Pastor is learning how to properly handle each of these new settlers.  You must value the faithful sheep and be ever grateful for all they do.  You must protect and disciple the prodigals. And you must provide truth and grace to goats while making sure they are not allowed to hurt others. Sadly, many goats when confronted with servanthood just turn tail run for another pasture… oh well.

Then there is Saul. Saul is the past. Saul oftentimes isn’t even a person… just the old way. As pastors and church builders, many of us have come from different churches to this new, fresh work called Northstar.  There is always a season of time when the voice and influence of Saul weighs heavy in the first stages of a newly birthed church. While we should be thankful for the people and places the Lord brought us from, we must remember that God is establishing something completely unique. While holding true to our foundations and first love, it is important that we forge the identity the Lord desires to establish for each one of us and of course this, His work.

Beloved, we are conducting serious business.  We are building the very thing that Jesus came to establish on the earth… His Glorious Church!  Don’t think for a moment that the enemy won’t raise his ugly head to try to discourage and dissuade you from this mission.  The easiest time to destroy anything new is during it’s infancy.  Satan tried to take the life of Jesus while he was just a small child.  King Herod ordered every baby to be killed that was Jesus’ age.

But God supernaturally protected Jesus from harm and He will do the same for us as we continue to build what Christ died for.  Each of the attacks we face during this battle are different. Your attack may be financial… it may be health related… it may be a through a relationship with a friend or family member.  But know this, according to scripture, “there is no weapon formed against you that will prosper.” (Is. 54:17) When we stand our ground, trust God’s Word, walk in grace and maintain a life of prayer, we can’t be stopped!

This is our finest hour.  God is on the move. Together we can!!

Categories: Building •Church •Church Growth •General •Leadership
Tags: northstar • church • life • mission • time • grace • building • courage • times • god
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