Back in 1837 a Georgia Baptist Church with a membership of about 80 people had a split. They had a vote to determine whether to be a missionary or anti-missionary church. The young pastor lead the church to take a pro-missionary position. The vote was 42 for missions and 37 against missions. But, those who were opposed to missions were not satisfied with the majority vote so they separated and started their own little church.
When they left, one of their leaders came up to the young pastor and said, "We shall see who is in the right! For the blessing of God shall follow the right church."
One hundred and twenty years later, the church that did not believe in missions had shrunk from 37 members down to 18. They were able to hold worship services just once a month.
The church that HAD voted for missions, on the other hand, had grown from 42 members to over 1200, and were averaging over 500 in Sunday School. They had given over a million dollars to missions during the previous 15 years.
Which church do you think the "blessing of God" followed?
Source: Dr. Edwin L. Cliburn
Topics/Tags: Missions; Blessings; Church growth; Church, dissensions in