Critical Mass

Critical Mass

To get a gigantic movement, first bombard a small group with the vision and call

The first atomic bomb was mostly TNT packed around a tiny bit of U235. The TNT imploded into the U235 causing an “atomic reaction” which then exploded outward into the effect of Hiroshima and Nagasaki .

This awful and destructive science is also a model for movement creation. If you want something big, set off a pile of TNT. But if you want something really big, use your TNT to implode on a small bit of “Critical Mass” and let that do the exploding later.

Some say this is what Jesus did. He imploded His teaching, vision, burden, and call on a relatively small group of disciples for three years. Later, in Acts 2 we begin to see the chain reaction explosion which still continues today. Critical Mass argues for starting with a core not a crowd, a small group not a congregation, leaders not the masses. This model argues that people who really want to leave behind a massive chain reaction “spend more time with less people for greater results.” (c.f. Robert Coleman)

The Critical Mass observation is taken as a universal truth by some. Do you? How much is it true? How often does it apply? Are there exemptions? If you really believed it, what would change in your ministry?

---

You are free to duplicate or publish this article without permission.
Keith Drury (kdrury@indwes.edu)\teaches practical ministry courses at Indiana Wesleyan University.
His other writing is posted at http://www.indwes.edu/tuesday/