Tuesday Re-mix –
In my law practice, a bit of my litigation work is in the area of construction litigation. Large construction jobs seem to have more than their share of contention among the players. It seems that the job the design team (i.e., the architects and engineers) envisions and the job the contractor actually finds in the field are often not the same job. That difference leaves lots of room for lawyers, if you know what I mean.
That, it seems to me, is exactly what every church needs for ministry.
If you have followed this blog long at all, you know how strongly I believe in an empowered laity in the church. I believe every believer (i.e., every church member) has at least one assignment, one ministry. I believe all of us are supposed to be pouring ourselves into others through at least one ministry mechanism. Frankly, it is why we are still here on this earth.
But I’m not so sure all of our churches have really embraced that reality. I wonder if all our churches are really ready to hear ministry ideas from their laymen? If the Spirit of God so moves in someone in your church and that person comes to your leadership with that idea, that passion for ministry, are you ready to receive that person and empower them toward ministry? Is there someone in your church (or better yet, a team of people) who knows how to listen to that new idea and then help that person put legs to it? Are there systems in place in your congregation to help someone negotiate the obstacle course ahead of them in the areas of budget, logistics, facilities, communications, recruiting volunteers, training volunteers, leadership, etc.?
That is what we need: a “ministry design team”. We need a small group of people with expertise in various areas who can draw up a “blueprint” for a lay leader (or minister, for that matter) who has a clear vision for a new ministry. Why would we otherwise expect the person with the passion for the ministry to have all the details worked out with expert efficiency? More times than not, the person with the big picture in mind for the ministry is NOT the person with all the details. They need help. They need a ministry design team, just like owners need architects and engineers in order to get a building built.
And it seems to me that we, the church, should be dreaming new ways to provide that.
What about your church? Have you found ways to do this? I would love to see your comments!
© Blake Coffee