Healthy Dissent Prevents an Unhealthy Descent

Too many church leaders, whether they're pastors or lay leaders, say they want unity when what they really desire is uniformity.

Unity occurs when a group of people work together toward a common goal -- in the case of an evangelical church, it's the desire to live out the gospel of Jesus Christ -- even though they have differences of opinion. Uniformity, on the other hand, demands that everyone behave and act in the way that leadership wants them to behave and act. Those who don't are viewed with contempt, have their motives questioned and even have their integrity attacked. I was accused by one "leader" in front of five other Western Oaks members that I could not be trusted because I "twisted words." That "leader" has yet to respond to my two written requests to give specific examples from the circumstance that he cited that I had twisted words.

Sadly, I found several key "leaders" at Western Oaks who prefer uniformity to biblical unity. Based on recent communication to church members, that hasn't changed since our family left. For me, it was a reaffirmation that we made the right decision.

For my friends who remain at Western Oaks, my prayer for you is that the Lord gives you the wisdom to ask the tough questions. If you do, be ready to endure from some of your "leaders" what John Adams faced when he had to sway the Continental Congress to vote for independence. Watch this video from the musical "1776" and read the rest of the post.



I received many encouraging comments from average church members when I started the Protect Western Oaks blog. I also received a few intriguing critical ones, including one person who said "we would all appreciate [it] if you would please just drop the whole issue or at least keep it to yourself." What's sad here is that this person cannot appreciate someone expressing a viewpoint different from her own. If you don't agree with her, then you should keep your views to yourself.

When Bob Kaufmann responded to my questions for the executive committee, he expressed a similarly distorted view about those -- specifically me -- who express a viewpoint that didn't align with his own. Consider these insightful words: "It seems that you believe that what Pastor Jeff, the executive committee and the majority of members of Western Oaks Baptist Church have heard from God is wrong. It seems that you believe that you hear God better and want to lead a group of people because of this."

For the purpose of this post, I will not address the veracity of his words. Instead, I want to focus on what he is communicating. Please notice the assumption that the majority knows God's will. Therefore, the minority is outside of God's will. For the record, I have never claimed to speak for the majority of Western Oaks. That would be hubris. If I don't represent the majority, does that mean that my concerns and questions have less merit? All I did was to ask questions, which our leaders claimed that they wanted us to do, and expected those questions to be answered with honesty and transparency. It never happened.

Also, it's a dicey thing for someone to claim that he represents the majority and that they are aligned with God's will. In fact, Scripture is filled with examples that suggest the opposite is true. It's often the majority that can be out of touch with God. Consider the few who were chosen to be part of Gideon's army; Joseph, whose dreams from the Lord caused his brothers to plot his destruction; and the minority report from Caleb and Joshua who boldly declared they could possess the land that God had promised them. The list goes on and on.

I had originally told you that I planned two more posts after this one. I may or may not write those posts. The truth is that I have other writing projects that need my attention. My energy needs to be directed there. I intend to leave this blog open in case something else needs to be addressed. I am patiently waiting for a few issues to resolve themselves in the appropriate venue. If they don't, then it may require bringing it to the attention of a larger audience, either through this blog or a different venue.

I conclude with a message to my friends at Western Oaks who believe the Lord has called you to stay there even though you have concerns about the direction that your leaders are taking the congregation. My prayer is that the Lord will give you the courage, the wisdom, the fortitude and the clarity that you will need as you protect Western Oaks.