Most plants you find in the local nursery have tags. It doesn't matter if it is an indoor or an outdoor plant. The tags will not only tell you the name of the plant; it will tell you where to plant it or where to place it.
See not all plants thrive in every spot. Some indoor plants thrive in a western exposure, where they will get lots of afternoon sun. Put violets or certain varieties of orchids in direct hot sun -- and the plants will shrivel up and die. The same is outdoors. Some plants thrive in full sun. Others prefer partial shade. And still others will only thrive in the shade.
We learned the importance of plant placement the hard way. We planted a avocado tree in the easement at the rear of our property. The easement is at the bottom of a hill and it collects all the runoff water. Our other fruit trees thrive in the abundance of moisture. At first the avocado tree looked healthy. It even began to bear fruit. But then all of a sudden the fruit dropped and the leaves shriveled up. I gave the avocado tree an extra amount of tap water, thinking it was simply thirsty. The nursery owner told me that in fact I had killed the tree. An avocado tree needs well drained soil. Its roots cannot be submerged in wet soil. Oops! A lesson learned. I should have read the tags!
If churches are to thrive in a certain postal code or street address they must do some demographic research. They must understand the people in their surrounds. When I planted a church I spent the first six months walking the streets in our neighbourhood. I knocked on doors and surveyed the residents. I met with city leaders and key shop owners in the area. And I asked a lot of questions. I wanted to know what were the needs of that particular community. I wanted to know what kind of church would thrive in that area. And before we went public we designed our church plant based on the data we gathered. We did not change the gospel message but we presented that message, by Word and deed, in such a way that it would be well received by the community we were attempting to reach. With the apostle Paul, "To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings." (1 Cor 9:22,23)
Being placed to thrive is not only critical for planting new churches; it is equally true for established churches. If churches are serious about being healthy, growing, and reaching the lost for Christ, they need to know and understand the people they are trying to reach. And then they must design a strategic plan based on that data. There are a number of tools available for churches that would help in doing this research. One of these tools is A Community Opportunity Scan. It will take some time to do a proper scan of your community, but it is invaluable if you really want to reach the people of your surrounds. In Australia, the researchers at National Church Life Survey (NCLS) have done the long yards in gathering this data. They are able to provide this data for your church's postal code. While this NCLS data comes with a price tag -- it does get accurate data quickly. The downside of using NCLS is that lack of personal contact in and around your neighbourhood and community. Walking your neighbourhood already offers many doors of opportunity for the gospel. In any case, gathering this data is essential if you want your church to thrive where it is placed.
So here is the wisdom from the garden: a church needs to be placed where it will thrive.
Next time: Feed regularly, but remember, too much manure can do more harm than good.