Reveal
I finally had the chance to read through the Reveal booklet for myself. If you haven’t, I would strongly encourage you to grab a copy and give some honest reflection to where you are as a local church body. Willow has done us all a favor by being transparent in their learnings about their own ministry while also challenging all of us to consider whether or not we’re really encouraging people to experience spiritual growth.

This is my take after reading the document. Most churches in the country have failed to impact the lives of people who are in the early stages of spiritual growth. These are the folks the book describes as "exploring Christianity" and "growing in Christ." This is Willow’s strength, and most churches would do well to model their learnings. Where Willow admits they are still looking for answers is with the groups that are further along in their spiritual growth–those the book describes as "close to Christ" and "Christ-centered." Willow may not acknowledge this, but it appears they tried to model the more traditional, program-driven churches to impact these groups of people, and that tactic isn’t working for everyone.

Here are some quotes that grabbed my attention:

  • "The church and its myriad of programs have taken on too much of the responsibility for people’s spiritual growth."
  • "When it comes to spiritual growth, we need to be able to measure the unseen."
  • "Does increased attendance in ministry programs automatically equate to spiritual growth? To be brutally honest: it does not."
  • "Spiritual growth occurs as one’s love for God and for others increases." [Tony's note: I think it's important to recognize the Jesus identified love for God and others as more important than acquiring knowledge. Just because you know more, doesn't necessarily mean you're more spiritual. In fact, some of the most biblically knowledgeable people I know, are also some of the meanest, most bitter and divisive people--folks I would classify as spiritually immature.]
  • "God ‘wired’ us first and foremost to be in a growing relationship with him–not with the church."
  • "The church is most important in the early stages of spiritual growth. Its roles then shifts from being the primary influence to a secondary influence."
  • "While personal spiritual practices are crucial at all stages of spiritual growth,…they become most important for those who are more spiritually mature."
  • "The people who are most unhappy with their church tend to come from the segments that are more Christ-focused."
  • "At the heart of their unhappiness may be the fact that neither segment seems to realize that much of the responsibility for their spiritual growth belongs to them." [Tony's note: This is the big  challenge that program-driven churches face--they make people reliant on the church rather than on Jesus. That's a Willow challenge, a NewSpring challenge and a challenge for just about every church in America. It should also cause every "spiritually mature" Christ-follower to ask: Am I more concerned with how the church is serving me or am I more concerned with how I can love God and love others?]
  • Regarding small groups, "Meeting the need for connection and genuine spiritual relationships is crucial to spiritual growth. Yet organized efforts to create these environments appear to be effective only in the earlier stages of spiritual growth."
  • "We want to move people from dependence on the church to a growing interdependent partnership with the church… Our people need to learn to feed themselves through personal spiritual practices that allow them to deepen their relationship with Christ."

The original Reveal study included data from Willow and six other churches across the United States. They are now in the process of surveying hundreds of U.S. and international churches. To follow their findings and to order the Reveal booklet, you can visit RevealNow.com.