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It was September 13, 2015—the morning we launched our new worship space (a renovated space, to be exact)—our sanctuary. I had been the pastor at Tower Hill Church for two years (almost to the day).
When they hired me, I was a 39-year-old-contemporary-worship-leader-and-youth-pastor-turned-senior-pastor, a risky move for a church known for its traditional style. In fact, I'm pretty certain I was the youngest senior pastor since 1949. I definitely was the least traditional. (I had to literally negotiate not wearing a robe before they agreed to hire me).
But, I had a particular set of skills (in full Liam Neeson voice). I had experience planting contemporary styles of worship in traditional churches. And, the church knew they needed to do something, as young families were leaving for other (more contemporary) churches.
So, my mandate was to leave the traditional service alone (in no uncertain terms) and to help grow a fledgling contemporary service in our fellowship hall. We put a vision team together. We met every week for a year—working through Tim Keller's Center Church and dreaming about the kind of church we wanted to become: a church for all generations.
We made some quick changes. We upgraded the sound system. We improved the worship environment. We overhauled the entire service. And, we started to grow. And grow.
And soon, we outgrew the fellowship hall. We put a task force together. We began to study the challenge: do we add another service in the fellowship hall, or, do we renovate the sanctuary in order to accommodate both styles? We brought in a colleague, Dr. Bob Whitesel, to get outside eyes on the situation. He agreed with us—we needed to renovate.
So, we secured contractors for a new audio-visual system, lighting, pew removal (to make it more comfortable), pew angling (to make it warmer), motorized shades to control the light, and a chancel renovation to fit the band.
I knew that two things had to happen if this was going to work: 1. We needed to completely transform the traditional environment for the contemporary service, and, 2. The contemporary elements needed to be invisible for the traditional service (we were going for the least possible disruption—see aforementioned mandate). No easy task. So, how would we do it?
I found the answer while attending the Drive Conference at Northpoint Community Church that year. Andy Stanley was speaking, and, at the end, led us in prayer. The stage went dark and a video played. 30 seconds later, the lights came back on and a 9-piece worship band had magically taken Andy's place. That was it! I thought to myself: If they can do it in 30 seconds, we can do it in 30 minutes.
We would completely change the environment between services. We would put the lectern, pulpit, and communion table on wheels. We would make the knee-walls removable. We would use wireless mics and instrument packs as much as possible to speed up the transition time (no taped-down cables).
Of course, none of this was automatic. There were many late-night (sometimes contentious) meetings. While away on vacation, one of our teams tried to change a big decision we made. I had to leave vacation and deal with it. By the time we finished, I was exhausted and stressed out. But, we did it.
And then, after two years (on September 13, 2015), it was finally launch day. Guess what happened? We had more people come to our contemporary service than ever before. It was electric with excitement. The lights, the sound, everything was exactly as we'd hoped… at least, that's what I was told.
I had to hear about it second-hand because I wasn't there. In the middle of our final fundraising meeting the day before (oh yeah, we needed to run a capital campaign to pay for it all), my back locked-up.
On Sunday morning, I was on my living room floor because I couldn't walk.
Later, I would find out that two discs were pushing on my spinal nerves, causing excruciating pain and muscle weakness. Looking back, there were warning signs. I just ignored them. I paid no attention to the stress. Or, the need to share the workload. It was my passion-project and I paid a big price for trying to do too much myself.
After months of physical therapy, cortisone shots, tens machine treatments, and chiropractic adjustments, I finally started to heal. But, I realized it wasn't just a physical issue. The real issue was that I need to seriously adjust my leadership if I was going to make it for the long haul.
10 years later, I'm still here. And we're still growing. We outgrew our sanctuary and had to add another service. But, I'd be flat on my back again if I didn't learn to share the work, delegate, and cultivate my own spiritual and physical rest.
Do you have a big vision for your church? Of course you do. And, I believe, that's probably God-given. So, trust it. Take action. Don't settle. But, don't end up on the floor in the process.
 | Jason is a 30+ year ministry veteran, serving as a pastor, youth pastor, and national worship leader, presenter, and writer. He has a Master of Divinity from Princeton and a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller, where he studied church revitalization, and is certified by The Great Commission Network as a Missional Coach. Follow on X: @JasonPastor |
This isn’t just another leadership book—it’s your invitation to discover how Christ-centered questions can transform the way you lead and live. Packed with real stories and timeless wisdom, it shows you how to grow your influence, deepen your faith, and lead with the same life-changing impact Jesus did.
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