It’s difficult to see what you aren't looking at.
If you aren't looking at it, you certainly won’t change what needs to be addressed.
That explains a lot of what we do or don’t do in church and ministry.
The result is that we might feel stuck. We know something isn’t quite right but we can’t quite put our finger on it. We don't see it.
We may excuse ourselves or ignore our intuition. But it’s pretty hard to ignore lower offerings, lowering attendance and shrinking participation. We’re doing all the “right things” (that we know of) but we seem to be going backwards. It can be frustrating.
We may search the internet, read some books or talk to friends but it seems like we’re still stuck.
So we try to ignore the discouragement and we persist but nothing is “clicking.”
Can you can relate?
Stuck and frustrated might start looking like burnout. Maybe in your quiet moments you anxiously wonder what else you can do besides pastoral ministry. You might even start looking for healthy or unhealthy diversions. But before you do that, consider a mindset and a lacking skill set that seems to be connected to a lot of ministry burnout and church decline.
The Mindset And The Blind Spot:
In your thinking about doing church, not just weekend worship but especially your programming and strategic planning, how often do you default to assuming that most things are done with and through groups? You know… group Bible study, group worship, youth groups, ladies groups, men’s groups, couples clubs, affinity based groups who like the same things, etc. The list goes on.
It makes sense! It is an economy of scale thing. So we go ahead and plan the class, activity or event. Then we’re done. But it seems to be getting harder for people to attend! It seems that existing groups are smaller with older people and a youth group doesn’t even exist. (Then we blame the lack of those “groups” on our decline…kind of convenient.)
Stick with me.
The Necessary Skillset:
Have we put all of our people development strategies in the “group” basket? If the group thing isn’t happening…then what is the alternative?
The alternative is one on one. Yes we need groups but it often begins and continues individually, one on one. We see Jesus doing this constantly in the Gospels and in many places in the Bible. It is the “long game” of intentionally meeting with, talking to, praying with, debriefing with and yes, coaching someone to grow in Christ. We cannot microwave disciples or assume class attendance or group participation will make it happen. It is the sacrificial, long term experience of teaching someone to fish rather than giving them a fish. But if one is always defaulting to a “group” or “crowd” solution and relying on “one-off” conversations we will continue to be stuck, frustrated and seeing decline.
If you want to write me off and wrong, then what is your intentional one on one people development strategy? If we don’t ask the question, and are not looking, we will never see the need or the blessing of this intentional long term investing in people one at a time strategy.
You might be quick to say that you do that! Sure you have many personal conversations with people one on one. As a pastor that is a norm. But while we might be talking to the same people repeatedly over many years, it is likely that it is not an intentional structured conversation. More than likely it is a one-off conversation done periodically.
You are kind and caring. You are always interacting with people. But it is subject dependent, about their board or committee or their physical challenges or family. Rarely is it about where they are in their faith and service and what their plan is to address learn from what they have done and have a plan for getting better.
Yet if we do make that personal, sacrificial, long term intentional investment in one person, wonderful things happen. The person we are working with will have an experience that can be duplicated with someone else, even while they are working with you. They can repeat what they have experienced. You can even coach them to do that. This can scale and multiply.
What it takes though is for you to see, notice and do something about the opportunity, even if you have not exactly had that experience yourself. You can learn.
But where do you start? It’s not with the seasoned leader who always volunteers. Pick someone who is younger, overlooked, someone curious with potential. Ask to spend time with them. Go out for coffee. Talk. Ask questions. Pause and actually invite them into this relationship. Ask about their hopes and dreams in living for Jesus. Ask them how God can use them to make a difference for His kingdom. Consider where they are interacting with and including their social network. Encourage a personal devotional life and help them to live in response to God’s Word. This is the cycle of “live and learn and live and learn.” It starts with God and His grace in Jesus, it continues in His Word, it extends to life and behavior change. From there, within the bounds of a trusted relationship there can be, challenges, discoveries, celebrations, plans, prayer and encouragement. One by product is that regular reception of God’s word and sacrament are much more likely. So to is their repeating this with someone they care about.
In the current day, this kind of intentional mentoring or discipleship is critical. The church will likely not grow in bunches and groups. God wants us to touch one life at a time over what might be a long time. So, who are you praying for? Who are you investing in? What is your (and their) next step? Ask the Lord and watch Him work.
Rev. Scott Gress is believes in Growing People for Ministry by focussing on leadership, discipleship and teamwork. Contact Scott if you are interested in him working with you or your church. A free 30 minutes sample session is available to explore how you might work best together. The Coaching Leader Podcast is also available on iTunes and his YouTube page. You can contact Scott through email scottgress@me.com or his blog page scottgress.com or at 561-542-4472
"Growing People for Ministry" Leadership + Discipleship + Teamwork
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