You Are Enough
On July 29th,1969 Neil Armstrong climbed down a ladder and said “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. They were the first words spoken on the moon surface, and as iconic as that moment has become, it was very close to being extremely different.
When John F Kennedy gave his famous speech saying we would get to the moon before the end of the decade, nobody knew how to get to the moon. In fact, we weren’t even entirely sure where the moon was. We also didn’t know if when we landed on the moon the space craft would sink down through several feet of moon dust. One thing was discovered fairly early though, for every pound of material launched into space, you would need an extra three pounds of rocket fuel to get it there.
It's for that reason that the astronauts almost climbed down a rope onto the moon’s surface. A rope weighs next to nothing. In the 1/6th gravity of the moon it’s not as much of an exercise as it is on Earth. Also there is next to no chance of a rope failing under the conditions. As hilarious as this sounds, it makes a lot of sense. Ultimately it was scratched because it would look ridiculous to have a multi billion dollar space program with the most advanced technology culminate it a simple rope. Well, that and there were concerns about the astronauts getting back up if one of them was injured or if there was another emergency. In the end, the ladder was a good choice. It’s still simple, and made out of the right material it’s not super heavy either. But I still like to think about Neil swinging onto the moons surface instead.
When it comes to church, sometimes we throw away the simple ideas because, like the rope, we think they are just ridiculous. But it’s often those simple ideas that really have the most impact. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen people come up with elaborate ideas for how to get people involved in small groups or to get them to volunteer for a project, or even to get them to come to church. The truth is, the most effective way is also the simplest way. You invite them. That’s right, it’s a simple invitation. The kind where you walk up to someone and just say, “Hey, I’m heading up to the church right now to decorate for VBS, you should come with me.” You are the best solution for church growth. You have all the tools you need to bring people to Jesus. Forget all the gimmicks, you are enough because God has made you enough.