The Cell Driven Strategy
I coined the term “the cell-driven strategy” to conceptualize the need to make cell ministry the driving force of church life, rather than an extra
ministry or program. I noticed so many pastors consumed with Sunday celebration services to the point that they lost their concentration on cell ministry. Take Pastor Mark, for example. As I coached him over the months, I found that he naturally spent more time trying to attract people to the Sunday celebration service. He focused on sermon preparation, visiting, and dreaming of a crowd on Sunday. Cell ministry received leftover attention. When I challenged him on this, he acknowledged that he got a high from the Sunday crowd and didn’t get that same excitement from cell ministry.
This problem is not only on a pastoral level. I recently talked to someone who confessed to me that she loved the idea of cell ministry but simply didn’t have the time for it. She volunteered for children’s ministry in her church and had to make a concerted effort to go to a worship service to receive teaching. She just didn’t have time to attend one of her church’s home groups. Most church people follow a similar paradigm–involvement in a cell group is “extra.”
I”m asking this question because here at Wellspring we’ve been talking about moving to weekly celebration services. This has alwasy been our goal but as the cells grew stronger and more people were gathered. Currently we meet weekly in cell groups and prayer meetings but all the cells celebrate together once per month on Sunday and once per month during the Saturday half-night prayer meeting. Our current schedule assures that the cells drive all we do as a church.
What would you recommend to help us prioritize cell ministry? For you who have both weekly cell and celebration, what do you do to prioritize cell life and to keep it from simply becoming one of the many options?
Joel Comiskey
Ian Knight said,
April 28, 2008 @ 5:04 am
Hi Joel,
This is a very interesting perspective, since I find myself more in the opposite experience, where the tradition of a weekly celebration.. plus other congregational events, represent a steady pressure to focus on serving those needs. Our elders have determined that cell drives everything we do, but our reality is far from that ideal.
I think that, if you’ve managed to thrive in a cell orientation, supplemented with a bi-monthly congregation event, that sounds like a good balance. The real question, in my mind, is “what enables you to be in balance, without getting out of balance?”
Ian
Joel Comiskey said,
April 28, 2008 @ 7:07 am
Hi Ian, I’m coming from a chruch planting perspective of stating with one cell and multiplying. Our goal has been 100 adults in cells before starting weekly celebration and we’re not there yet. We’re talking with a pastor who might be coming on staff with our church who has a great heart for cell ministry but also really like to start weekly celebration services right away. Thus, in my BLOG I’m just reflecting on how to maintain the cell-driveness in the midst of increased ministry due to cell and celebration. Am I making sense?
David Kueker said,
April 28, 2008 @ 7:22 am
The priority of worship in the Temple over the Great Commission in the cells is the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Mt 16:6).
While I say the following with a smile, it is not really a joke. Both in the originial John Wesley class meetings and at Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, Korea, offerings are a fundamental part of the cell group meeting. The Wesleyan class meeting actually began as a means of raising funds to pay off a building program.
Therefore, another way to keep things in perspective is to take no offerings in worship and receive donations ONLY in cell meeting.
When you are done laughing, think about it. This would ensure that cells are given the proper priority in ministry energy, time and resources. Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
David Kueker
Michael Sove said,
April 28, 2008 @ 3:24 pm
We do all we can to keep the balance between cell and celebration including…
a) Senior Pastor Dinner and Discussion - He tells the story of being called to the cell vision and what it means.
b) All our printed documents and web page focuses on the fact that we are a cell church. Nothing gets mentioned or printed that takes away from those two equal elements. (Cells & Celebration)
c) Nothing competes with cells in our calendar. We only hold about four major all church outreach events a year. (Comedy Club, Golf Outing, Theater, Etc)
d) We hold monthly Connect Sunday and Connection Week events. (Connect Sunday is like a monthly invite your friend emphasis followed by all our cells throwing parties the following week. This creates great momentum and unity.
e) We’ve started a weekly paqe called Cellular Sound Bytes where we share stories of people involved in cells and our equipping track as well as stories of cell leaders.
f) Cell members wear tags on Sunday morning that say “Ask Me About Neighborhood Life”
It all comes down to what gets air time and attention. We give cells prime attention in all we do.