Mars Hill Visit (part III)
Matt Krick has been on staff at Mars Hill for 7 1/2 years…and for the first year and a half, he was a key volunteer. Some of you may recognize the name — he spoke in the “God is Green” series that they did last summer. Matt met with our team for about 45 minutes and just answered questions. I’m not going to put everything he said here, but judging by head bobbing and later conversations, here’s what resonated with our team:
- Mars Hill will never do a building campaign, unless it’s to build something for the kingdom.
- From the very beginning, they took 25% of the offering and put it aside to be used for International needs…meeting the needs “of the least of these”
- They do not direct or manage house churches…most of those communities develop in a grass-roots fashion.
- It’s estimated that about 10,000 people come to Mars Hill every weekend (they don’t count). And they have about 70 staff. (FYI: that’s about a third of the ratio found in most churches)
- Someone on our team asked how they manage the “Rob phenomenom.” It was cool to hear Matt talk about how the elders work with Rob to establish his schedule for the year. He is first and foremost a pastor of a church in Grand Rapids.
- Their elder selection process begins with “What gifts are not real strong on the elder board at this time?” “What kind of person are we looking for?”
I let other people that were in the room comment on what jazzed them…
It’s interesting that the more that you study the word of Jesus and his revolutionary message (Thank Brian McLaren for that in “The Secret Message of Jesus” & “Everything Must Change”
and you actually see it being done at Churches like Mars Hill it makes you start to question what your Church could be doing less of.
I specifically chose to say “the less of” in two terms. One of which is how can they simplify the process to get more? Two when I say “the less of” I also mean “the least of these” which I think is the key to the message of Jesus. Helping those who don’t have enough. This is not just the poor as most would think, but those who don’t know how to handle money, have addictions, need love, education, ect……..
Simplicity is the key. Simplicity and small groups. People who as Charlie has said so many times “Do life together”. They are their own accountability partners, the atoms that spin around the nucleus - The Church.
Hmmmm - what Church is and what it can be is so vastly different at this point - but WE can be the ones that close the Gap, and in that pull ourselves closer to the real message of Christ. Church can be a beautiful thing if we just follow the instructions given to us.
Mars Hill has a glimmer of that. Even without the RB phenomenon, but he certainly helps.
just a minor correction…the 25% of the tithe is not just International…it is also local…
also kingdom may need to be defined a bit…
I am sure that churches who have building campaigns have in mind to build the big “K” kingdom…but what happens more often is the little “k” kingdom benefits…
Also how do you have a building that builds the Kingdom? what does that look like?
in the words of Darrell from the Warehouse…
“let it happen capt’n”
this is what Mars does well…the get out of the way and grant freedom!!!!
Pippity poppity, give me the zoppity.
mars to the hill TOTALLY fleeced it out!