Sometimes our greatest opportunities in life are disguised as our greatest problems.
For example, I once visited LifeChurch.tv – of the largest churches in the country. Know how they got so big? It started with a problem. LifeChurch.tv had merged with another church in the area and Craig, the lead pastor was preaching at his church, then traveling across town to preach at the other church. Well, when his wife had her 5th baby late Saturday night Craig had to call both churches and say “I won’t be there to preach!” After some discussion about what to do, someone had the bright idea to simply show the video from Saturday night’s service. The story goes that no one quite knew when to stop the video recording so they just let it play right through the altar call time. And when they did people raised their hands to indicate their desire to be saved – just like they did when Craig preached live! THAT’S when the light bulb went off…Why not do this every Sunday? And why not do it in more than one location? The rest is history! What initially looked like a huge problem was actually a huge opportunity!
Or take another example. When new management took over at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, where New Day met in 2009, we were basically getting forced out (i.e. they stopped listening to our set up instructions, they moved us constantly with no prior notice, they tried to jack up the prices on us considerably, etc.). This appeared to be a HUGE problem. They wanted us out! Where would we go? We knew of no other options! This place was in a great location right off the highway, had ample parking, was affordable, had Sunday morning availability, everyone knew where it was, etc. This appeared to be a big problem. But in the end, it was actually a HUGE opportunity! Through this problem, we ended up looking for a new place to meet, and now we rent out space at The Basketball Hall of Fame! Now we’re in a multi-million dollar facility that is even more centrally located, has more parking, has more seating, is still very affordable, etc. And this new facility even comes with storage, which is every church planter’s dream come true!
Again, our biggest opportunities are often disguised as our biggest problems. So look for the opportunity in your obstacle!
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