Resisting The Purpose Driven Life

Highlights from Dealing with Resisters by Berit Kjos

"I have been forced out of two churches for being such a 'resister.' I am a normal wife and mom and teacher who would not conform and, as you stated above, have been shunned and vilified. This has caused me considerable heartbreak and torment. For years I have struggled to cope with the shock of losing my church family and being branded as divisive."

In order to transform churches from the old ways (where pastors preach and everyone learns the Scriptures) to the Total Quality Management model, "transformational leaders" must find ways to curb resistance to change. The popular church management manual, Leading Congregational Change (LCC), promoted by Bob Buford's Leadership Network, offers a well-used plan.

"This is a book you ought to read before you change anything," said Rick Warren in his hearty endorsement. Ponder its definition for resistance and the tone it sets:

"Address Specific Pockets of Resistance. Resistance is the 'opposite reaction' to change.... [It] can come in many different forms—confrontational or passive-aggressive, from known troublemakers or loyal supporters, as a result of a specific change or of an incorrect perception." [3, pages 90-91]

Since change agents must be totally committed to their strategic mission or purpose, they must also view dissenters as wrong. While some issues can be negotiated, this is not one of them. Successful transformation depends on persuading the vast majority to share their single-minded focus. Those who disagree with their manipulative strategies are viewed as intolerable barriers to the ultimate goal: a new way of collective thinking, being and serving.

LCC warns change leaders about this problem:
"Change leaders should expect resistance to team learning. ... Recognizing and making this resistance explicit to other team members tends to lessen its grip. It takes time for a group to emerge as a team, and all the concerns and resistance related to teams will resurface during this period." [3, page133]

Rick Warren is more subtle, and his references to health versus disease cloak his hostility toward "unhealthy" members who resist his agenda. In The Purpose Driven Church, he writes:

"When a human body is out of balance we call that disease.... Likewise, when the body of Christ becomes unbalanced, disease occurs.... Health will occur only when everything is brought back into balance. The task of church leadership is to discover and remove growth-restricting diseases and barriers so that natural, normal growth can occur."[1, page 16]...

...In the end, the specific vision or stated purposes matter little. What counts are the unity and conformity derived from the common focus, the feel-good group experiences, the peer pressure, and the facilitated process. The only real obstacles to mass compliance are those (usually faithful members) who oppose the essential steps to top-down control and infect others with their doubts. You may recognize some of the steps:

1. Identify resisters. In the Church Growth Movement, the resisters are those who question the need for systemic change (total restructuring of all facets), distrust the dialectic process, and criticize the transformational methods. What's worse, they refuse to shift their primary focus from the actual Scriptures to the positively phrased "purpose" or "vision" or "mission statement."

2. Assess resisters and determine the degree of resistance. Negative or uncompromising attitudes will be tracked using the sophisticated data systems that monitor each member. "Continual feedback" from these high-tech systems (made available to many large churches through Bob Buford's Leadership Network) provides the data needed to make necessary adjustments. It's all part of Total Quality Management. As we read in The Change Agent’s Guide, "Resisters should be judged for relative sophistication and influence." [2, page 122]

3. Befriend, involve and persuade borderline resisters. Participation in small group dialogues may encourage borderline resisters to trade their traditional convictions for a more permissive fellowship. Some will reconsider their objections and conform to group demands. Others will quietly leave on their own.

"Coercive power only strengthens resistance," wrote Robert Vanourek in Reflections on Leadership. "...Instead the leader's skills at 'facilitating' the group should be used. The ideas should evolve from the group. Then the leaders can simplify them in a persuasive fashion. Then commitment to the vision can be gained."[5, page 301]

4. Marginalize more persistent resisters. They obstruct progress and undermine the needed unity, momentum and passion for change. That's why pastors often suggest to "divisive" members that they might be happier elsewhere. When the unhappy members leave, they usually, out of obedience to their Lord, follow the pastor's request that they not speak to anyone about their reasons for leaving. The congregation will be told not to ask any questions. Thus the change leaders avoid potential conflict.

Pastor Warren is more subtle, yet he models an attitude that breeds intolerance and judgment toward individuals who violate his politically correct guidelines concerning unity and relational synergy. As you saw earlier, he equates sincere Christians who question the adoption of the world's methodology with germs and disease within the body. And he calls on the church leadership to "remove growth-restricting diseases and barriers so that natural, normal growth can occur."[1, page 16]

5. Vilify those who "stay and fight." At this stage, negative labels, accusations and slander are permitted, if not encouraged, to circulate. Resisters — now labeled as divisive troublemakers — are blamed for disunity, for slowing the change process, and for distracting the church body from wholehearted focus on its all-important vision, mission or purpose. Ponder the subtle suggestions and negative labels Pastor Warren attaches to individuals who question his purpose-driven management system.

6. Establish rules, regulations, laws and principles that silence, punish or drive out resisters. At Saddleback, every new member must sign a "Membership Covenant." It includes this innocuous promise: "I will protect the unity of my church... by following the leaders." This covenant is backed by Scriptures such as Ephesians 4: 29 ("Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths....") and Hebrews 13:17 ("Obey your leaders and submit to their authority....") But taking a stand on God's Word is hardly what the Bible refers to as "unwholesome talk." And, if church leaders followed the world's management system rather than God's way, the command to "obey your leader and submit...." would be overruled by other relevant Scriptures.

For encouragement, read The Loneliness of the Christian