This weekend Mike Erre, one of the lead pastors at my church Rock Harbor, announced that after plenty of time praying and listening that he was going to have to do another mission.  And he did an excellent job at defining the situation.  He and his wife had approached it with great care and analyzed the opportunities carefully, and as a result, felt God calling them to do something extraordinary.

I got to thinking, this is actually a breakthrough in my mind.  I have talked to people, and they always go to see Mike teach, they prefer him over anyone else…  This goes the same for any of the major pastors: Greg Laurie, John Piper, Rick Warren, etc.  But it hit me pretty hard: this is a wakeup call for the church itself (not only Mike and his family).  What happens when you take the name, the pastor, the leader, out of the church?  What do you have?  Will the church be in scrambles to fill the shoes? Will it be able to sustain itself within the mission and collaborative elders?  What will come of the transition (bitterness or growth?).

I have applied it to several churches, and it seems apparent that a true church can sustain itself without the presence of the named leader.  With Mike leaving it has only sparked interest into what God is doing as it means someone else will get to experience Mike’s teachings, and it is also allowing someone to step up and become a leader in Rock Harbor who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity.

Change is amazing, sometimes it is more difficult than fun.  But in the end, you can look back and see that it was quite a progressive step into what you would consider an unexpected future.

I want to say that I have learned a lot from Mike, but I am at the point in my faith where I need to get the word for myself.  It is time for Mike to begin his outreach (wherever that may be), while I (collectively as a church) branch out in mine / ours.  Growth is inevitable in change.  And I would venture to say that change is the only constant variable in life.

What kind of love.