Our Acorn-to-Oak Story

By John Faust

God”s design for growing a mighty oak tree is simple. Plant a healthy acorn in the ground and wait! Most big things result from small but power-packed origins, lots of patience, and hard work.

What is true of oak trees is true of churches. Case in point””Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. People ask, “Why is this church so big?” One answer, sometimes overlooked, is the healthy “acorn” of Southeast”s early church leaders.

I want to thank and honor four elders who served faithfully during the 1960s and 1970s, presenting them as leadership models and examples of encouragement to current church leaders. These men are representative of a rather short list of key leaders in the early stages of Southeast Christian Church who really made a difference in establishing a solid foundation for the church”s growth.

In private interviews, I listened to each man”s humble reflections. Though their recollections were distinct, they held a common thread. These men view themselves as small and God as big. They acknowledge with awe God”s ability to use ordinary people to do extraordinary things. As elders they learned and lived out the truth of 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

None of them could have imagined the big things God would accomplish through their efforts. Such has been the acorn-to-oak story of church leadership at Southeast.

Quality

Butch Dabney produced a scrap of paper, where he had listed six jobs he believed elders were called to do. Before discussing them, he said, “Now John, you know elders are commissioned to direct the affairs of the church.”

“Yes, Butch, I understand,” I replied.

In his list, Dabney included curriculum approval, troubleshooting, prayer, visitation, leadership development, and ordinations. He stressed the importance of separating elders” meetings (which focus on shepherding) from general board meetings with deacons (which focus on service).

The items on his list perhaps were not as revealing as the compilation of the list itself. Dabney always wants things done right. He is very thorough. He writes things down so he doesn”t forget. He says, “If you can”t do something right, then don”t do it. The Lord deserves first class.”

He has a good eye for quality that he illustrated with a restaurant analogy. “When I take my wife to a restaurant, the napkin should be straight. I don”t want to see crumbs under the table or a frown on our server”s face. Little things make a difference and reflect a friendly or uninviting attitude of that establishment.” The same is true at church. If we expect people to come and eat at our table, we better pay attention to details.” Dabney pointed out that quality control must remain in the context of good stewardship. Quality doesn”t necessarily mean Cadillac””a Ford or Chevy will often work just fine!

He commented on a unique sculpture prominent in Southeast”s first sanctuary. “Some people said we shouldn”t have done that. But there was a good reason. Those distorted lines on the left represent a person”s life outside Christ. Those straight lines on the right ascending out of the baptistery and disappearing in the skylight represent a person”s eternal life in Christ. Quality with practicality consistent with our purpose””that”s what we need.”

Dabney led the choir and was Southeast”s first worship leader. His sense of humor, gracious spirit, and meticulous manner helped set a positive tone and create a welcoming atmosphere. He does not consider himself a great leader, but he leads by example and people have followed him to the foot of the cross.

Trust

John Newman was in the insurance business and was accustomed to helping people work through problems. His own problem of battling cancer didn”t deter him from smiling and talking with me from a wheelchair in his home. (Newman passed away on Christmas Eve.)

His most significant memory of Southeast”s early years is the ability of the collective group of elders to confront difficult situations boldly as opportunities for growth. He cited examples of thorny problems requiring tedious confrontation, great wisdom, and courage. “Those things weren”t fun but look how God worked things together for the good!” he said.

“As elders, we can so easily think we know more than God knows and begin trusting ourselves instead of him. For example, we were convinced we should purchase the house and property next door. This course of action seemed absolutely essential for church growth. Though the purchase was continually blocked, we stayed focused on that goal for many months. We learned, however, God had other things in mind and the day finally came when it all made sense. If God says no or if problems occur, we shouldn”t question or doubt him. We should trust him. We should be patient and obedient.”

Newman served as a faithful Bible teacher and brought his insights about business and finance to the board of elders. He describes himself as a behind-the-scenes leader””a utility man on the team.

Unity

Lowell Grady”s first comment was, “I kept running as hard as I could to keep up! It was exciting, fulfilling . . . and very stressful!” I think that straightforward assessment represents most elders” thoughts and experiences!

Grady remembered the relational dynamics in elders” meetings. He spoke of the unique blend of personalities, talents, and opinions. “God puts people in the right place at the right time to fulfill his mission. Since God put us in this room together, we had to accept the challenge of honest communication. Discussions were always lively. One elder would be cautious; another would be progressive. We all weighed in with opinions and somehow we had the capacity to listen respectfully, bite our tongues if necessary, disagree in love, but still come away from those private meetings with a unified pacesetting message for the church.

“Some of us didn”t get our way. But we reminded ourselves this is not about any one of us. It”s about God and what he”s doing. If my way isn”t the direction we ultimately go, I will still accept the resulting decision, be supportive and not be divisive. The fact that we didn”t always agree was a good thing. God uses spirited leadership discussions to help clarify his will and purpose for his people.”

Grady continues to serve in volunteer roles at Southeast, including singing bass in the men”s choir. He learns his music, knows his part, blends his voice with other men singing other parts, and the result is a unified message of hope in Christ for the world to hear.

Availability

Retired physician Russ Summay has been an aggressive “pioneer” of missionary work. He and his wife, Jane, have traveled the world to establish new missionary partnerships and to reinforce those already in place. I asked Summay, “What motivated you years ago to sacrifice so much of your attention, energy, and resources to serve as an elder?”

“I was just a nobody,” he answered. “In our era there were no heavy hitters. None of us had carefully honed skills in specialized areas of service. If something needed to be done, we just pitched in and did it.”

There came a time when a new missionary chairman was needed. Summay was asked to consider the role. His response was, “Well, OK, I haven”t done that yet. If the church needs me to serve in this way, I”ll give it my best shot.” Countless souls have been won to Christ throughout the world as God has blessed and multiplied his efforts.

Available

These four men were all motivated by a strong belief that elders are to be available and responsive to needs as God opens doors. More than four decades ago, God opened a door in Louisville, Kentucky, to ground fertile enough for a few acorns to take root.

In reminiscing with these wonderful Christian men about those early years, we could only shake our heads in amazement about how big God is and about what he has done. We also smiled at how small, insignificant, and sometimes even “nutty” were our efforts back then.

The words of an old silly poem somehow still ring true: “When you are discouraged and feeling kind of blue, just take a look at the mighty oak and see what a nut can do!”

 

 

John Faust is in his 22nd year of service on the ministry staff of Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, Kentucky.