Rick Warren talks about the things that other churches cannot copy, here is the third thing Rick says you cannot copy, this spoke to me:
Third, you can’t be me. (No one in his right mind would want my weaknesses.) Only I can be me, and only you can be you. That’s the way God intended it. When you get to heaven, God is not going to say, “Why weren’t you more like Rick Warren (or Jerry Falwell or Bill Hybels or John MacArthur or anyone else)?” God is likely to say, “Why weren’t you more like you?”
God made you to be yourself. He wants to use your gifts, your passion, your natural abilities, your personality, and your experiences to impact your part of the world. All of us start out as originals. Unfortunately, many end up as carbon copies of someone else. You cannot grow a church trying to be someone else.
This spoke to me, because it is kind of my ministry in a nutshell. I have had the privilege of serving in various forms of ministry since I was 10 years old…however for 14 to 15 years after that I was influenced that my serving, my speaking/preaching, my methods and style had to mimic those who were in leadership over me. I was miserable until God showed me that being myself was more powerful that copying anyone. There is a Bible college and a couple of churches in our area that are full of young guys with an ambition and call to ministry, but many of them never get off the ground because they are too busy copying their hero and trying to be like him. I wonder what kind of impact those churches and that school would have in this country if those men decided to be themselves? Be yourself!
