Willow Creek Community Church recently released Follow Me, the follow-up book to their Reveal study of what really affects spiritual growth in people. For me, one of the most interesting aspects of the data is one they didn't discuss!

It will come as no surprise to Church Volunteer Central members that a commitment to serving those in need is a key indicator of spiritual growth. In fact, their study shows that a growing commitment to service outside the church is one of the distinguishing characteristics of those who advance to the upper two levels of Christian development. Serving within the church is the key activity for moving people from the first to the second level, but serving external needs through the church is the key activity for moving from the second to third, and third to fourth levels.

So far, so good. Next, they present a “gap analysis,” showing the difference between how important people think things are and how satisfied they are with how well their church is addressing that issue. They studied 11 different activities of the local church, and the analysis showed that people were overall not sufficiently satisfied with how well their church was doing on 10 of those items. The only exception? People were completely satisfied with how well their churches were providing opportunities to serve in ministry!

This raises a significant question. If serving others, especially outside the church, is key to reaching spiritual depths, and people feel like their churches are providing adequate serving opportunities, then why are so many people stuck at the lower levels of spiritual growth? Or to put it more simply, if people need to serve and the church is providing adequate opportunities, then why aren't they serving?

Anything this important to spiritual growth deserves careful consideration, and I suggest the following possibilities to start the discussion:

We haven't told them serving is important. Though the data shows that serving is the greatest key to spiritual growth, that doesn't mean the people know that. Are we consistently proclaiming—from the pulpit, in our classes, and in our small groups—that being a disciple means being in service to others? To expand on Romans 10:14, if we don't tell them, how will they know?

Perhaps we need to rediscover Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship. Perhaps we need to rethink concepts like altar calls when Jesus so clearly risked scaring people off by telling them to count the cost before following Him. The message of John 6:22-69 is that Jesus wasn't afraid to tell people up front what was really required of his followers—even if it meant driving away thousands of people we would consider seekers.

They don’t know there could be more. A person who has never tasted steak can be perfectly satisfied with Spam. The only reason the Israelites complained about manna was because they had experienced so much more in Egypt. Could it be that people are satisfied with their church’s opportunities for service because they don’t realize how expansive those opportunities could be?

Thousands of church leaders have read The Externally Focused Church. But what would happen if the millions in their congregations read that book? Would our people still be satisfied if their eyes were opened to the incredible wealth of ministries being undertaken by other churches?

They are content. Spiritual growth requires change, and many people don’t like change. It’s true that much of the work of spiritual growth is done by the Holy Spirit, but 1 Thessalonians 5:19 lets us know that we can stifle the Spirit’s work. God is a gentleman and rarely forces people in directions they are unwilling to go.

The legendary Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry once said, “The coach’s job is to get a lot of men to do things they don’t want to do in order to become what they’ve always wanted to be.” Football practices aren’t fun. No crowds cheer players in the weight room. But if the coach doesn’t motivate them to spend time in those areas, the players will never wear a Super Bowl ring.

Some of the things identified as important to spiritual growth in the Follow Me study aren’t easy. Taking time for additional education classes can be difficult. Meeting with a small group and being transparent enough that people there can hold you accountable for the uncomfortable aspects of your life isn’t always fun. But isn’t it our job as leaders to be the coaches that get them to do those things so they can become the true disciples they want to be?

Or haven’t we explained to them that some work had to be done by the man before he heard, “Well done, good and faithful servant”?

“Thank you for the wide variety of issues you cover. I always learn something, or am reminded of something, that's pertinent to my situation. ”

— Katie Peken,
     Carlton, Victoria,
     Australia