Of course, not all of these are "fads" in the negative sense. Many have made substantial contributions to the church. But, all too often, someone comes along and has "success" in his church with one approach or another, and suddenly that becomes THE way to do church. Here are a few that I've seen over the years: small group ministry (relational theology, Faith at Work, Keith Miller and Bruce Larson, etc.), Body Life and spiritual gifts (Ray Stedman, etc.), Evangelism Explosion (James Kennedy), church growth (Donald McGavran, et al), one-to-one discipling (the Navs, etc.), counseling ministry, 12-Step groups, contemporary worship, seeker-sensitive services, the health and wealth gospel, positive (or possibility) thinking.
The wise pastor will learn from the best and ignore the worst but will not be blown about by every wind of change in the church. I've learned that I'm pretty good at some things and pretty mediocre at others. And one of the benefits of maturity is that I am more and more comfortable both with what I can do and with what I can't do. That doesn't mean that I've stopped growing as a person and as a pastor, but I've chosen to build on my strengths rather than trying to shore up all my weaknesses. And I've learned to be more comfortable with my own personality and that of my church, so that I don't have to imitate the latest trend that's working somewhere else.
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