Turning Churches - Changing Direction

I was finishing reading Doing Church as a Team by Wayne Cordeiro this morning and one point he made got me thinking. Was was talking about turning churches, or changing direction.

I was thinking that we need to remember that when a church is new, and small, it is easier to turn quickly. Like a speed boat, there isn't much in the water, so it can turn in a short radius. It's also like a recently planted plant. It can be transplanted without too much effort because the roots haven't grown deep or spread to far.

An older church, or larger church, takes more time and effort to turn. Like a large ship may take miles to turn around, or a plant that has had time to develop deep roots, or has spread them wide. More care needs to be taken in making this turn. I'm certainly not saying the turn shouldn't be made! If a turn or change in direction is what's best for the church in better enabling it to accomplish it's vision and purpose, then whatever the cost, it needs to be turned! I'm just saying that you need to remember that it isn't a speedboat any more, and it will take more time and effort to make the change.

Just some thoughts.