A few weeks ago, I visited the doctor for my annual exam. It was the usual routine – check weight, blood pressure, heart, lungs, and lab work. I felt fine going in, so why go through all that?
The main reason is that while I may generally feel fine, there could be signs under the surface to which I might need to pay attention. Signs that can lead to early interventions before minor things become major ones. The doctor’s questions, probing, and lab tests have one objective: to assess my real health.
To determine that, the doctor needs to asses how well-balanced the different components of my body are. I can’t sense my cholesterol level, but if it is consistently high it could be progressively leading to something serious.
What’s true for us as individuals is true for organizations also. Many seemingly healthy churches are undone with astonishing speed because no one stopped to check for the warning signs of imbalance beneath the surface.
The churches in the Encounter with God Movement are by no means perfect. But I am convinced that one of the things that have set them apart is a mindset that seeks balance in the major components influencing church health. None of the 10 historic principles of Encounter churches are revolutionary, but what often sets Encounter churches apart is their emphasis on holding these principles in balance with one another.
CMI developed ENCUENTRO360®– a church wellness diagnostic tool to help churches do this even more effectively. Like an annual well-check with a doctor, church leaders are finding great value in taking the vitals of their church regularly.
They are discovering strengths worth celebrating and areas that need attention. Most importantly, they are finding a framework to have conversations on the essential areas impacting the balance and health of their churches.
Our prayer is that these conversations lead to progressively healthier congregations. After all, flourishing churches inevitably lead to many more people experiencing life-giving encounters with the love of Jesus.
Thank you for your prayers and support, which contribute to the ongoing flourishing of dynamic, multiplying churches in Latin America’s strategic cities.