What a place! 
A few days ago I took in a tour of the Boeing Plant in Everett, Washington. It was amazing.
For those of you who do not know, the Boeing aircraft assembly plant in Everett handles the construction of the 747, 767, 777, and 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Construction of this manufacturing plant, the world's largest at 472 million square feet covering over 98.3 acres of land, was completed in 1967 with the first 747 going out the door only 16 months after the start of production. That meant that they were building the 747 airplane while also building the assembly plant. It is the workplace for over 30,000 employees.
Several things about this place impressed me beyond its size and its contents. For example, there is the symphony of 30,000 plus people who assemble over three shifts to build the great flying machines that Boeing produces. Another impressive fact about the Boeing plant in Everett is the way the people in the plant incorporate the latest technology and innovation in their crafts. I am also awed by the ability of many different people with many different skills to follow directions with creativity and purpose to produce such magnificent aircraft in an orderly fashion. My list could go on but, as my friend from Texas said during and after the tour, "Wow!"
Going on this fascinating tour also caused me to reflect on the church. Questions come to my mind as I contemplate and compare the Boeing assembly plant with the average local church in North America today. Here are some questions you can ask with me.
How can we do a much better job at getting a variety of people with diverse skills and spiritual gifts to work in harmony in a process that produces growing followers of Jesus who are using God's design of loving God, loving others, and making disciples?
How can we unleash the creative power and ability of our congregation so that the church is able to continually innovate and improve its effectiveness?
In what ways can we adapt our model and philosophy of the church to empower and release new generations to multiply disciples of Jesus and churches that may look different than what we have now?
How can we change our church internal structures so that we are no longer just keeping up with the good changes in our culture around us but even keeping ahead of what culture offers while remaining faithful to the Word of God?
What positives set our church apart from our competition? (Our competition is not other churches. It is a worldview without Christ and the Scriptures, an entertainment and self-oriented culture, truth as determined by what is relative to the individual's current ideas and opinions, and a me-first consumerism and personal pleasure orientation.)
Your church and mine is not commissioned to produce the latest Dreamliner, it is commissioned by our Lord to help produce the best followers of Jesus who are making other disciples and transforming the world for Christ while multiplying churches everywhere.
Take a tour of your church to see how you will answer the questions listed above, then do something about your answers.
How is your place? Is it His place?