By David Winfrey

Fresno—Randy McWhorter loves it when the light-bulb goes off in pastors’ heads.

As leader of the healthy church group for California Southern Baptist Convention, McWhorter directs a variety of services designed to help congregations reach their full potential.

“The thing that excites me most is to see the personal growth in the pastor’s ability to lead his church,” McWhorter said.

“When I see the ‘Aha!’ moment — when the pastor’s role really comes into focus for him—that’s really rewarding for me because then I know he’s on his way toward leading the church to be all that God wants it to be.”

A second-generation pastor and California native, McWhorter served in local churches 21 years before joining the state convention staff. He said he made the transition in order to help church leaders, particularly pastors, be more effective.

“We’re all about fulfilling the Great Commission and helping churches be all that God desires,” McWhorter said.

He and the healthy church group offer four types of assistance: training conferences, networking opportunities for pastors to find models and mentors, personal coaching and church consultations.

“It’s the coaching and the consultations that I think help us add the greatest value,” McWhorter said. “It’s customized to fit the need of the leader and the local church. And that’s something they can’t get when they go to a conference.”

By working alongside a pastor or group of church leaders, McWhorter helps them assess their church’s health by how well they fulfill five biblical functions: worship, ministry, fellowship, evangelism and discipleship.

When congregations lose focus on those, he said, they tend to drift toward a focus of pleasing existing members. As a result, the congregation becomes less effective at the purposes God intended. “That’s what makes it an unhealthy church,” McWhorter asserted.

When churches are focused on their members’ comfort, they tend to view a lack of tension as a sign of health, but McWhorter disagrees.

“A healthy church lives with the healthy tension that comes when God’s people are confronted with God’s purposes and must decide on His way or theirs every day.”

McWhorter’s job description includes serving as evangelism director for the state. He stresses that evangelism isn’t designed to stand separate from the rest of a church’s ministry. “Evangelism is supported by all the other ministries of the church.”

He said a healthy transition in the past 10 years has been evangelism training based more on relationships than on confrontation.

“Witnessing is most effective when it becomes relational and part of one’s lifestyle,” McWhorter said. “The thing that has not changed in evangelism … is the sobering fact that most Christians have not embraced a witnessing lifestyle of any kind.”

He said he desires more churches to rediscover their reason for existence by clearly defining their values, mission and vision. “It’s much easier to be a New Testament church that pleases God when you know and follow what you’re designed and directed to do,” McWhorter said. “Having the desire to know God’s will and having the courage and faith to risk everything to follow it is my wish.”

Because California Southern Baptists pray for and give to the California Mission Offering McWhorter and his team of healthy church consultants are helping congregations demonstrate “Love With Action.”

To view a short video of Randy, click here.