What are the top 5 qualities an Involvement Minister should have?
Note - try to avoid the obvious, like, loving Jesus, etc., and there's no particular order.
I'll go first:
1) People centered
2) Creative
3) Servant heart
4) Spiritually energetic
5) Mentor
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Involvement, Family Life, Spiritual Formation ...
Feeling Overwhelmed? Get some help!
Church life is busy! It doesn't take much eye strain to notice the ministry needs of the church: people are sick and hospitalized; visitors and new members long for assimilation into the body of Christ; ideas for outreach outnumber the actual hands-on-count; marital counselling is desperately needed; spiritual counselling too is at a premium; special body-building activities to help strengthen fellowship are always welcomed; worship needs a jolt, a kick, a spice, something or someone to get it out of the rut. The list goes on and on. Face it. You need help!
The church is a volunteer army and most of your active, serving members already have full time jobs and families and the burden to produce fruit at church is taxing, often exhausting. Let's face it, it's like having a second job that you're not being paid for. People's time and loyalties get divided by default. You want to serve. You need to serve. But the demands of the church outweigh the supply. Granted, there are certain ministries that receive ample attention - preaching, teaching, curriculum, children's programs, LIFE Groups, church finances, and administrative areas. These ministries are flowing rather smoothly. If it ain't broke don't fix it. But there are more opportunities ....
Perhaps what the church needs is another hired servant. A servant committed to the spiritual and relational health of the family. The ministry burden is too great for any one minister to carry. Stated more positively, ministry opportunities may and must be shared. Two hands are better than one. The church needs a cheerleader like Barnabas who is known as an encourager (Acts 4:36); a helper like John Mark who simply serves (Acts 13:5). It needs someone intent on strengthening the bonds of fellowship that mysteriously unite us in Christ. A servant is needed who is a true lover of people, and there are so many to be loved.
You've heard the titles: Associate minister, Involvement minister, Family Life minister, Spiritual Formation minister, Fellowship minister, Outreach minister, etc. Whatever name you choose reflects the task at hand. Sound strange? Many of us grew up in a fellowship with one preaching minister ("pulpit minister") who functioned much like a CEO - handled business and office affairs, visited the sick and hospitalized (all of them), wrote weekly bulletin articles, drafted sermons, Bible classes (Sundays and Wednesdays), wrote educational curriculum, led small groups, went to all the fellowships, all the activities, chaperoned youth outings, counseled, performed weddings, unlocked the building, locked the building, lived next to the building, etc. Again, the list goes on. We should ask the questions, Is this biblical? Is this practical? Is this realistic? Is this working?
The New Testament does not tell us exactly how to "do" church. It doesn't tell us how to set up a ministerial infrastructure that supports the needs of the church in the 21st century. But it does describe the church as a family composed of many Spiritually-gifted men and women who combine their gifts for the common good (Rom 12:3-8; Eph 4:11-13). Outside of Jesus Christ, the NT never leaves the task of ministry to just one person, and even he had twelve helpers. Simply put, the ministry model of one minister pulling the majority of the ministry load is unbiblical and unhealthy. The 21st century church calls for a united front to address its multifaceted needs. Two ministers are better than one.
How shall the church proceed?
Church life is busy! It doesn't take much eye strain to notice the ministry needs of the church: people are sick and hospitalized; visitors and new members long for assimilation into the body of Christ; ideas for outreach outnumber the actual hands-on-count; marital counselling is desperately needed; spiritual counselling too is at a premium; special body-building activities to help strengthen fellowship are always welcomed; worship needs a jolt, a kick, a spice, something or someone to get it out of the rut. The list goes on and on. Face it. You need help!
The church is a volunteer army and most of your active, serving members already have full time jobs and families and the burden to produce fruit at church is taxing, often exhausting. Let's face it, it's like having a second job that you're not being paid for. People's time and loyalties get divided by default. You want to serve. You need to serve. But the demands of the church outweigh the supply. Granted, there are certain ministries that receive ample attention - preaching, teaching, curriculum, children's programs, LIFE Groups, church finances, and administrative areas. These ministries are flowing rather smoothly. If it ain't broke don't fix it. But there are more opportunities ....
Perhaps what the church needs is another hired servant. A servant committed to the spiritual and relational health of the family. The ministry burden is too great for any one minister to carry. Stated more positively, ministry opportunities may and must be shared. Two hands are better than one. The church needs a cheerleader like Barnabas who is known as an encourager (Acts 4:36); a helper like John Mark who simply serves (Acts 13:5). It needs someone intent on strengthening the bonds of fellowship that mysteriously unite us in Christ. A servant is needed who is a true lover of people, and there are so many to be loved.
You've heard the titles: Associate minister, Involvement minister, Family Life minister, Spiritual Formation minister, Fellowship minister, Outreach minister, etc. Whatever name you choose reflects the task at hand. Sound strange? Many of us grew up in a fellowship with one preaching minister ("pulpit minister") who functioned much like a CEO - handled business and office affairs, visited the sick and hospitalized (all of them), wrote weekly bulletin articles, drafted sermons, Bible classes (Sundays and Wednesdays), wrote educational curriculum, led small groups, went to all the fellowships, all the activities, chaperoned youth outings, counseled, performed weddings, unlocked the building, locked the building, lived next to the building, etc. Again, the list goes on. We should ask the questions, Is this biblical? Is this practical? Is this realistic? Is this working?
The New Testament does not tell us exactly how to "do" church. It doesn't tell us how to set up a ministerial infrastructure that supports the needs of the church in the 21st century. But it does describe the church as a family composed of many Spiritually-gifted men and women who combine their gifts for the common good (Rom 12:3-8; Eph 4:11-13). Outside of Jesus Christ, the NT never leaves the task of ministry to just one person, and even he had twelve helpers. Simply put, the ministry model of one minister pulling the majority of the ministry load is unbiblical and unhealthy. The 21st century church calls for a united front to address its multifaceted needs. Two ministers are better than one.
How shall the church proceed?
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