LEADING A CHURCH YOUR TOWN CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT

by PAUL BARTLETT

I’ll never forget the day we had just finished painting our church building after it had been brown brick for thirty years. It was 21 years ago, and we had only been senior pastors of Lighthouse for a year.

I stood outside as people walked past to catch the train nearby. Being friendly and wanting to connect with my community, I began greeting people. Before long, people would stop and exchange pleasantries with me.

To my shock, many people who had lived nearby for some 30 years, asked me, 'How long has the church been here?'

This encounter jolted me into focus; I was determined that from then on we were going to be known for more than a paint job!

Over the next 12 years, we began to think of ways we could be known as a church of humans, not a church as a building.

We focused on being generous and bringing dignity to people that others overlooked.

We turned up to other people’s community events rather than waiting, expecting them to come to ours.

We began to love what our community loved! Twelve years later, I wanted to check out our influence, so we hired a research company and they surveyed our city Wollongong, the tenth largest city in Australia.

Our community was asked, 'What do you think of when you hear the word Lighthouse?'

Bear in mind, Wollongong has two physical lighthouses at the ocean front. Surely, they would answer, 'The two tall buildings with flashing lights!'

To our amazement, 73% of people said, 'Lighthouse is a church that helps people.'

We had learnt a secret: being amongst our community and loving them gives you a currency, and currency enables your community to want to have you in their lives.

Proverbs 22:1 says, 'Choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.' (NKJ)

We didn’t know it at the time but going in and being the help, the support, the sacrifice our community needed meant we had become 'that church' – the one they can’t live without!

PAUL BARTLETT is the NSW State President and National Director of ACC Community Engagement.