The Y Factor
by Bill Hybels
January 1, 2003
Six months ago I realized our church had a problem, so I invited the senior staff to join me in a conference room. I closed the door and announced, "We're not leaving until God gives us an answer."
Part of a church leader's job is to identify and define the reality his or her church is facing. As I thought and prayed about our church's reality, I came to the distressing realization that we didn't have the financial resources to meet the growing spiritual need around us.
"Here's the new reality as I see it," I said, standing in front of a flip chart. I drew a line ascending from left to right. "This line I'll call spiritual opportunity. Never in the history of Willow Creek have we known an era of greater spiritual opportunity.
More people are willing to talk about the gospel or let you pray for them—even come to church—than ever before. Not long ago, if we asked our seatmates on an airplane if they ever thought about the spiritual life, they'd roll their eyes as if to say, Two hundred people on the plane and I get seated next to a spiritual wing nut! Today, if you ask that same question, eight out of ten people will say, "Yeah, I'm thinking about the spiritual side of life more than I ever have before."
Then I drew another line from the same starting point, but level from left to right. "This, however, is our resource line. It's flatter than it's been in a decade." Then I reminded the staff of our recent capital campaign that had stretched our people financially to their eyeballs, even before the stock market crash and 9/11.
"Resources have never been this tight," I admitted. "But, here's the deal. I believe that despite the new reality, despite the growing disparity between our opportunities and our resources, God wants Willow ...
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