Pastor Reveals Successful Church Development Strategy
Wise sayings and welcoming smiles at the Summit
Freda Parker
June 15, 2005
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Dr. Michael D. Moore, better known as Pastor Mike of Faith Chapel Christian Center (FCCC) in Birmingham, Alabama. |
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Debra Blaylock, minister for Faith Chapel Christian Center |
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Abraham Snell, minister for Faith Chapel Christian Center |
He moved before his audience of 160 young and old church administrators, pastors and leaders with the energy of a rock star, smiled and said, "Leadership effectiveness is connected to your mind set. Successful leaders think certain things and know certain things. You can't think low and act high."
He is Dr. Michael D. Moore, better known as Pastor Mike of Faith Chapel Christian Center (FCCC) in Birmingham, Alabama, and he spoke at FCCC's first Church Development Summit.
Held in May 2004, the Summit was a presentation of Pastor Mike's program for successful pastoring, based on what he believes are God's instructions, on what the Bible says, and on his convictions and experiences.
From humble beginnings
In 1978, Pastor Mike, then a law student at Samford University's Cumberland School of Law, was called to the ministry. Three years later, he and just four members established FCCC in Pastor Mike's home. But membership continued growing, so FCCC made several moves to ever-larger facilities -- until 1999.
That year, FCCC purchased 37.6 acres of land and broke ground for a Monolithic Dome megachurch, with a diameter of 280 feet and a height of 72 feet. Its sanctuary, dubbed the Word Dome, provides 61,575 square feet of space, with seating for 3000, classrooms and offices.
Moreover, by December 2002 FCCC found itself debt-free and planning the purchase of an additional 100 acres and the construction of six more Monolithic Domes for its City of Deliverance. With ministries to serve the spiritual, physical, emotional and social needs of every age group in its current membership of 5000, that project should be completed in 2007.
A God-given vision
Pastor Mike believes that he, as well as other ministers, receive what he calls, "God-given visions." He doesn't hesitate to describe the one that prompted FCCC to build their Monolithic Dome.
Pastor Mike claims that he had no intention of building a dome. He wanted a run-of-the-mill structure that would seat 1000 -- until -- walking into his den one day he heard God say, "Dome."
"Not only was the Spirit telling me 'dome,' He was telling me 'dome for 3000 people.' That really scared me," the Pastor admitted. "Where were we going to get the money? How were we going to pay for it?"
God instructed Pastor Mike in what to do. He said, "if you're going to get God to work with you, you must obey all the way and do whatever He says. Don't ever be afraid to teach on finances in the church. For about two years prior to our building project, the Lord had me teaching on money and prosperity. It's okay to teach on prosperity as long as your motives are right. A right motive is that you want God's people to prosper and enjoy all that Jesus died to give them."
According to Pastor Mike, giving is a significant, necessary part of prosperity. He said, "It's wrong to prosper yourself through your preaching. You should prosper yourself through your giving. The Pastor should strive to be the biggest giver in his congregation. Each year, our church contributes a significant amount of money to other ministries and para-church ministries. We were able to pay for our development and become debt free because of our commitment to give."
Perils and cautions
A God-given vision, Pastor Mike warned, must be protected. Three dangers can destroy it and the potential success of any pastor. He named and commented about each:
Comparing yourself to others. "Nobody is as good at being you as you are," Pastor Mike said. "Don't compare. Comparing means you're operating out of fear and that leads to discouragement."
Overextending yourself or being where you should not be. Overextended leadership has no true focus."You must learn to pace yourself and your church."
Distractions or more specifically "accepting assignments that are not from God" which result in wasted resources. "You must come to Jesus, hear what he says and do it."
Positive action
Personal devotion headed Pastor Mike's to-do list."Preachers don't fail because they don't love God or their people. They fail because they grow spiritually weak," he said and followed this by confessing a personal mistake. "I got so focused on people, I neglected my own soul. So I could not prosper, and people needed to see me prosper."
Commitment and priorities: Those should be to God, your spouse, your children, your church -- in that order. Pastor Mike warned against putting the church before family. "Don't save everybody else and lose your wife and your kids."
Establishing God's word as the authority: Evaluate your entire ministry to make sure it's operating according to God's word.
Simple and practical teaching: "People don't need a fancy message. They need the Word of God taught in a simple way that they can apply to their everyday lives."
Commitment to giving and receiving:"You will not succeed if you, your leaders, or your church are stingy."
Commitment to integrity: "God is a God of integrity. With no integrity, a pastor doesn't have influence."
Commitment to excellence: "People are influenced by what they see. So elevate yourself and your people. I'm talking about practical things: personal grooming and cleanliness of your facilities. Excellence attracts, so give them an attractive picture."
Good organization: "Have a written plan that your members and newcomers can follow. You don't want people to feel lost. Folks shop for churches like they shop for clothes, so we lose people if we're not organized."
Assign responsibility, not titles: "Sometimes pastors give people titles too quickly. Instead of titles, we should give responsibility. Responsibilities have a probationary period. It's hard, often hurtful, to take away a title. But a responsibility can be more easily altered, or the person can be retrained."
Other voices
While Pastor Mike concentrated mainly on spiritual advice, Debra Blaylock and Abraham Snell, two other FCCC ministers, gave practical information and tips.
Minister Blaylock stressed the importance of properly documenting tax deductions and allowances that a nonprofit church may be entitled to. "As far as the IRS is concerned," she said, "a church now is big business. It's not a small, mom-and-pop operation anymore. So, in a timely manner, you have to properly document everything." Not doing so could jeopardize a church's tax-exempt status.
She provided her attendees with a Reference List of helpful books and government publications and urged them to seek help from professional accountants and tax experts.
In his presentation, Minister Snell concentrated on the practical side of church administration. "Create a team environment," he urged, "and give your team a focus. A focus helps you finish a project."
Minister Snell believes that successful church administration includes a rotating cycle of seven phases:
- Phase 1 - Definition - "Create a Mission Statement that will guide you, determine your core values, and keep yourself open to change and what the Spirit wants you to do."
- Phase 2 - Planning - "Commit your plans to paper. Write down the policies, procedures and processes you plan to follow."
- Phase 3 - Teaching - "Maintain open communication and allow time for people to process what you have said."
- Phase 4 - Recruiting - "When you assign a responsibility, give that person a six-month probationary period."
- Phase 5 - Training - "Provide continual training. Stay abreast of the latest techniques. In your training, stress customer service."
- Phase 6 - Operation - "Keep fine-tuning everything you do."
- Phase 7 - Evaluation - "Evaluate continually."
Future plans
According to Minister Blaylock, FCCC is still committed to helping other ministers and church leaders improve their administrative skills. To that end, they are planning another Church Development Summit for 2006.
Related Links:
- Faith Chapel Christian Center Breaks Ground: Six new domes to benefit congregation and community
- Plans Continue for Major Expansion of Faith Chapel
- Eye-Catching New Exterior for Faith Chapel
- Faith Chapel Christian Center-- Dome News Fall 2001
- Catching the Vision-- New churches rise across the nation
- How to Buy a Church
- Monolithic Dome Church Pricing
- Risky Business: Hiring an Architect
- Free Evaluation for Church Facility
- Catching the Vision-- New Dome Churches Nationwide
- Is that a church that just landed?
- MDI's Commercial Feasibility Studies: Schools, Churches, Gymnasiums, Office Complexes, Storages and more...
- Downloadable Information Pak (PDF)
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