Prayerful Balance is the Key

Here’s the question of the ages…do we (the Church) spend the brunt of our time and resources reaching out to the lost or to growing and maturing ourselves in the faith? Are we to focus on others or on ourselves? Can we be true to our calling by concentrating on either one or the other? Fact is, Scripture compels us to do both and if indeed the Church is going to thrive, we must do both. Problems arise when we concentrate on one totally neglecting the other. At times we can lean so hard toward evangelism, putting all of our resources on reaching out to the lost, totally ignoring the spiritual growth that must occur if we are to maintain physical growth for the Kingdom. More often we become so focused on ourselves, not necessarily for the sake of growing spiritually, that we fail to reach out to the lost, or even to those who wander into our churches seeking a fellowship to be a part of. So how do we maintain a healthy balance? Scripture repeatedly calls us to do both. I am sure it is different process for most churches, but if we fail to start with heartfelt prayer, we are certainly doomed to failure.