One of my favorite Bible characters has always been John the Baptist. There's something fun about a guy who lives in the desert, eats locusts and honey, wears clothes made of camel's hair and addresses at least some of his crowd (who came all the way to hear him, by the way) as "You brood of vipers!" Come on John, tell us how you really feel!
His appearance was foretold in the Old Testament, and he himself could point to Isaiah 40:3 and say, "See there? The Voice? That's me." He was filled with the Spirit before his birth and of him Jesus said, "Among those born of women there is no one greater than John" and "He is the Elijah who was to come." More could be said, but without question John was an important figure.
Despite all of these great things about him, or perhaps because of them, what amazes me most is the humility of John. Nowhere is this better displayed than in John 3:30, "He must become greater; I must become less." I want to analyze the context of this statement and what's going on, because I think it has profound implications for those of us in ministry today.
John said this in response to some critics of Jesus. Their comment was that "he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him." This hits me as, "Hey John, Jesus is cutting in on your action! People used to come to you, now they're going to him!" But this doesn't faze John. In fact, it's already stated in John 1:29-39 that after John repeatedly told his disciples Jesus was "The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" that they left John and began to follow Jesus. It was his goal that they become followers of Christ.
It's this mindset that is expressed in John's statement, "He must become greater; I must become less." The "must" here is very intriguing to me, because it's the same word Jesus used when He said He "must suffer... must be killed and after three days rise again." This isn't simply something that should be done - it must be done. There's no other way. And for John, it must be that anyone who follows him is ultimately learning to follow Christ.
The very simple reality is that your students will not always be your students. They'll transfer or graduate (or drop out!) and will move on in life. If their walk with God is dependent upon you then they will be in trouble. However, if by following you they've learned to follow Him, then they'll be prepared to continue following wherever He leads for the rest of their life. While you will (hopefully?) always have a special place in their heart, their allegiance must be to Jesus.
This truth has collided with my life on more than one occasion. I had a student leader who decided she needed to step down because she didn't have time to lead and also be faithful with the outreach opportunities God had given her. Another student stepped down from leadership in order to follow God's direction in being a leader somewhere else. In both cases it didn't fit in with my plans, but it was an instance of Jesus calling away one of "my followers" to pursue Him and His plan.
How about you? Are you preparing students to follow Jesus for the long haul? Are they simply relying on you, or are they diving deeper in their relationship with Him? And how will you respond when He calls one of them away from you? Will you rejoice like John, thankful that you were able to point them to the Lamb of God? After all, that's the way it must be.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Play to Your Strengths: Finale
So far in the first three posts on playing to your strengths, I've only talked about personal strengths. In this final post, I want to challenge you to do the same within your ministry. Just as each individual is different and has his or her own unique strengths and giftedness, so does each ministry.
Just as we can more easily identify our weaknesses than our strengths, you can probably more readily see things that are not going well in your ministry rather than things that are. And while we want to grow and do all things with excellence, I wonder if you've taken the time to really consider just what the strengths of your particular ministry are?
Going back to our tendency to compare with other ministries, it's easy to forget that they are working with a different set of variables than you are. The campus doesn't need you to be carbon copies of each other! What it needs is each of you playing your part in the Kingdom, making the most of the unique strengths and ministry opportunities you possess.
When I stop and consider what we have that makes us unique, I quickly see that I haven't even begun to tap into all the possibilities to fully play to these strengths. One strength for us is that we have a building. It's easy to see how that can be a weakness (certainly meeting on campus would be more accessible to on-campus students) but it presents us with a lot of opportunities as well. It allows us complete control of the environment we want to create for our worship gatherings. It gives us unique opportunities to serve students - through meals, laundry facilities, computing services and just a place to hang out. It also makes us more accessible to students that live off campus. I think we could still do a lot more with what we have.
Historically, ours is a ministry that has been around for over 70 years. That means a lot of people have been connected and have served here. Many have been marked by the Lord during their time in college and recognize the value of this ministry. That gives us a great group of people to partner with - in both prayer and financial support. We could do so much more in utilizing this strength.
Denominationally, wearing the name "Baptist" certainly doesn't endear us to all students. And while we don't make a big deal about it or check anyone's denominational preference at the door, we're also not ashamed of who we are. That same label gives us a great starting point with a lot of students - and also allows us to show that loving Jesus is far more important than whatever "brand" of Christian you happen to be.
Locally, we're supported by an association of Baptist churches. This is yet another strength that we could build on so much more. Here is perhaps our greatest wealth of resources - and far too often I give it very little of my time. Through these churches we have access to missions and service opportunities, discipleship, connections with older believers, the list goes on and on.
Within our ministry, the list of strengths is ever changing because the students involved constantly change. At times we've had great ministries to certain parts of the campus, only to see that door close when one or more people of influence moved on. However, as new students have emerged with a passion to reach the campus, new doors have opened as well. These, too, are strengths we must play to.
Are you considering the particular strengths that your ministry has? Are you seeking to develop those to the fullest? Do you think Reggie's quote could be directly applied to your ministry as well? Is it true that "Our best chance at making our biggest contribution is to get better at what we're already good at?"
What do you think?
Just as we can more easily identify our weaknesses than our strengths, you can probably more readily see things that are not going well in your ministry rather than things that are. And while we want to grow and do all things with excellence, I wonder if you've taken the time to really consider just what the strengths of your particular ministry are?
Going back to our tendency to compare with other ministries, it's easy to forget that they are working with a different set of variables than you are. The campus doesn't need you to be carbon copies of each other! What it needs is each of you playing your part in the Kingdom, making the most of the unique strengths and ministry opportunities you possess.
When I stop and consider what we have that makes us unique, I quickly see that I haven't even begun to tap into all the possibilities to fully play to these strengths. One strength for us is that we have a building. It's easy to see how that can be a weakness (certainly meeting on campus would be more accessible to on-campus students) but it presents us with a lot of opportunities as well. It allows us complete control of the environment we want to create for our worship gatherings. It gives us unique opportunities to serve students - through meals, laundry facilities, computing services and just a place to hang out. It also makes us more accessible to students that live off campus. I think we could still do a lot more with what we have.
Historically, ours is a ministry that has been around for over 70 years. That means a lot of people have been connected and have served here. Many have been marked by the Lord during their time in college and recognize the value of this ministry. That gives us a great group of people to partner with - in both prayer and financial support. We could do so much more in utilizing this strength.
Denominationally, wearing the name "Baptist" certainly doesn't endear us to all students. And while we don't make a big deal about it or check anyone's denominational preference at the door, we're also not ashamed of who we are. That same label gives us a great starting point with a lot of students - and also allows us to show that loving Jesus is far more important than whatever "brand" of Christian you happen to be.
Locally, we're supported by an association of Baptist churches. This is yet another strength that we could build on so much more. Here is perhaps our greatest wealth of resources - and far too often I give it very little of my time. Through these churches we have access to missions and service opportunities, discipleship, connections with older believers, the list goes on and on.
Within our ministry, the list of strengths is ever changing because the students involved constantly change. At times we've had great ministries to certain parts of the campus, only to see that door close when one or more people of influence moved on. However, as new students have emerged with a passion to reach the campus, new doors have opened as well. These, too, are strengths we must play to.
Are you considering the particular strengths that your ministry has? Are you seeking to develop those to the fullest? Do you think Reggie's quote could be directly applied to your ministry as well? Is it true that "Our best chance at making our biggest contribution is to get better at what we're already good at?"
What do you think?
Friday, October 30, 2009
Play to Your Strengths: Part 3
If you've been following along, we've already covered the importance of playing to your strengths and working to figure out what those strengths are. The quote we've been working with challenges us to "get better" at what we're already good at. That's the topic of conversation today. How do we go about developing our strengths?
First of all, you have to decide you're going to be intentional about doing it. Because it's easy to just float by in your areas of giftedness, it's easy to stand pat with where you are and not seek growth. If you don't have a plan to develop it, it won't happen on its own. That means it has to be a priority. And that means it's going to take TIME. Yes, that one resource you probably already feel that you don't have enough of.
How does this time need to be spent? In the aggressive pursuit of learning. This means having a heart of humility and a teachable spirit. Just because you're good at something doesn't mean there's not a whole lot more out for you to learn! And you need to be willing to learn from anybody and anywhere that learning is available.
One great resource is books. Are there any books out there that you could latch on to and soak up? I know when I first started in my job, my insecurities actually kept me from doing something like this. I felt that since I was hired to do the job, they expected me to already know everything I needed to know.* So to go seeking out more information was a sign of weakness - a sign that I didn't know. And my insecurities brought into question in my own mind whether or not I should've had the job in the first place.
*In hindsight, if today I was on the committee that was hiring someone for my job, I would hand them a copy of The Fuel and the Flame on day one and tell them they were not allowed to do anything else until they finished the book. Then we could discuss what was next.
Talking about books is easy and all, but how many books do you own that you've never opened? I have dozens.* Why have I never opened them? Because reading takes TIME! Once again, you've got to put your schedule where your mouth is if you really want to build on your strengths.
* In fact, I just ignored the offer to receive Mark Batterson's new book for free because I already have plenty of other books that I haven't read yet! I'm hopeful that the copies that are distributed freely actually get read.
If you don't know what books to read, just ask around! I feel that teaching and preaching is one of my strengths, and I would recommend Andy Stanley's book Communicating For a Change to anyone seeking to grow in that area. A few weeks ago I started (ahem: STARTED...) reading Spirit, Word and Story which was highly recommended, and last night I was encouraged to read Christ-Centered Preaching. There are good resources out there if you're humble enough to seek them out and willing enough to commit the time to investing in them.
Aside from books, another great way to grow in your giftedness is to observe others with the same gifts. Preaching is easy to observe, and through that process I've picked up a lot of helpful ideas along the way. Depending on your strengths, it might take a little more work to find a way to observe it in action. But it's a great way to learn and, incidentally, I think it's how the disciples got a great deal of their education from Jesus.
Along the same lines, you could consider seeking out a mentor. That same person that you could observe might be willing to give you some of their time. If they have the same giftedness that you do then they're going to be passionate about it as well. And if they're passionate about it, they're probably not afraid to talk about it with someone else who loves it too!
The last thing I want to toss out for personal growth is feedback. A friend once told me, "Experience is good. Evaluated experience is better." We certainly need to practice our craft, but we also need to be willing to ask honest questions about how it's going and what we could do better. We should constantly be practicing self-evaluation, but there are challenges involved there. At times we can be far too harsh, and at other times much too lenient.
The answer is to seek out those you trust who can give you honest, constructive criticism. Of all the things I've mentioned so far, this is definitely the hardest. Even when it comes from someone who loves you dearly, there's nothing fun about hearing what you did wrong or could have done better. However, if you really want to build on your strengths, you've got to embrace this idea.* A good friend visited with me last night and shared some things I could've done better while preaching. Even though each comment was a shot to my pride, I appreciated his candor and agreed with every word that he said.
* It's becoming somewhat cliche, but even Tiger Woods has a coach!
At times you may also receive some unsolicited feedback! In fact, you can probably count on it. In those times you want to be sure and respond with grace and try to step back and honestly consider what they have to say. As I said before, we need to be teachable and receive instruction in all different forms, even ones we never would have sought out on our own.
As Reggie McNeal said, your best chance at making your biggest contribution is to get better at what you're already good at. Do you believe that? Are you willing to be intentional about it? To take steps to put it into your schedule and to seek out the people and resources necessary to make it happen? I think it would cheating the Kingdom if you chose not to.
First of all, you have to decide you're going to be intentional about doing it. Because it's easy to just float by in your areas of giftedness, it's easy to stand pat with where you are and not seek growth. If you don't have a plan to develop it, it won't happen on its own. That means it has to be a priority. And that means it's going to take TIME. Yes, that one resource you probably already feel that you don't have enough of.
How does this time need to be spent? In the aggressive pursuit of learning. This means having a heart of humility and a teachable spirit. Just because you're good at something doesn't mean there's not a whole lot more out for you to learn! And you need to be willing to learn from anybody and anywhere that learning is available.
One great resource is books. Are there any books out there that you could latch on to and soak up? I know when I first started in my job, my insecurities actually kept me from doing something like this. I felt that since I was hired to do the job, they expected me to already know everything I needed to know.* So to go seeking out more information was a sign of weakness - a sign that I didn't know. And my insecurities brought into question in my own mind whether or not I should've had the job in the first place.
*In hindsight, if today I was on the committee that was hiring someone for my job, I would hand them a copy of The Fuel and the Flame on day one and tell them they were not allowed to do anything else until they finished the book. Then we could discuss what was next.
Talking about books is easy and all, but how many books do you own that you've never opened? I have dozens.* Why have I never opened them? Because reading takes TIME! Once again, you've got to put your schedule where your mouth is if you really want to build on your strengths.
* In fact, I just ignored the offer to receive Mark Batterson's new book for free because I already have plenty of other books that I haven't read yet! I'm hopeful that the copies that are distributed freely actually get read.
If you don't know what books to read, just ask around! I feel that teaching and preaching is one of my strengths, and I would recommend Andy Stanley's book Communicating For a Change to anyone seeking to grow in that area. A few weeks ago I started (ahem: STARTED...) reading Spirit, Word and Story which was highly recommended, and last night I was encouraged to read Christ-Centered Preaching. There are good resources out there if you're humble enough to seek them out and willing enough to commit the time to investing in them.
Aside from books, another great way to grow in your giftedness is to observe others with the same gifts. Preaching is easy to observe, and through that process I've picked up a lot of helpful ideas along the way. Depending on your strengths, it might take a little more work to find a way to observe it in action. But it's a great way to learn and, incidentally, I think it's how the disciples got a great deal of their education from Jesus.
Along the same lines, you could consider seeking out a mentor. That same person that you could observe might be willing to give you some of their time. If they have the same giftedness that you do then they're going to be passionate about it as well. And if they're passionate about it, they're probably not afraid to talk about it with someone else who loves it too!
The last thing I want to toss out for personal growth is feedback. A friend once told me, "Experience is good. Evaluated experience is better." We certainly need to practice our craft, but we also need to be willing to ask honest questions about how it's going and what we could do better. We should constantly be practicing self-evaluation, but there are challenges involved there. At times we can be far too harsh, and at other times much too lenient.
The answer is to seek out those you trust who can give you honest, constructive criticism. Of all the things I've mentioned so far, this is definitely the hardest. Even when it comes from someone who loves you dearly, there's nothing fun about hearing what you did wrong or could have done better. However, if you really want to build on your strengths, you've got to embrace this idea.* A good friend visited with me last night and shared some things I could've done better while preaching. Even though each comment was a shot to my pride, I appreciated his candor and agreed with every word that he said.
* It's becoming somewhat cliche, but even Tiger Woods has a coach!
At times you may also receive some unsolicited feedback! In fact, you can probably count on it. In those times you want to be sure and respond with grace and try to step back and honestly consider what they have to say. As I said before, we need to be teachable and receive instruction in all different forms, even ones we never would have sought out on our own.
As Reggie McNeal said, your best chance at making your biggest contribution is to get better at what you're already good at. Do you believe that? Are you willing to be intentional about it? To take steps to put it into your schedule and to seek out the people and resources necessary to make it happen? I think it would cheating the Kingdom if you chose not to.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Play to Your Strengths: Part 2
Yesterday I wrote briefly about the importance of playing to your strengths and how that brings the greatest impact in the Kingdom. Reggie McNeal's quote bears repeating: "My best chance at making my biggest contribution is to get better at what I'm already good at." So how do I go about doing that?
First of all, you need to recognize what your specific strengths are. Perhaps you already know. If not, here are a few quick indicators: What do you love doing? What energizes you? What gives you a feeling of accomplishment? Where do you get positive feedback from others? In what areas do you learn quickly?
In this realm I find that if you don't know what you're gifted at, just get out there and start serving! And when you find out something you don't do well (maybe working with three-year-olds!) then you can cheer that at least you've scratched another possibility off the list.
Another great way to find out your strengths is to simply ask those who know you best. "What do you think I'm good at?" "What do you see me doing well?" Get past the fear of getting no positive feedback or looking like an egomaniac. We recognize strengths in others much more quickly than we do in ourselves.
Finally, there are some tools out there that can help you figure out giftedness. Spiritual gift inventories* are good for this. I can't vouch for their accuracy, but it looks like you can even try some free ones online. A completely unique assessment (not free) is through Clifton StrengthsFinder 2.0. With strengths like "Ideation" and "Relator" you may find some very new ways of recognizing how God has uniquely wired you.
* I used to have a bit of a problem with spiritual gift inventories because they have no way of differentiating between spiritual gifts and natural talents. While I still find that to be true, I don't think it's that big of a problem. After all, we're rolling with the idea that whatever gift you have, you should develop and use to the glory of God! Colossians 3:17 and 3:23-24 tell me that anything we do should be done for the Lord - and He is worthy of our very best!
Once you know your strengths, you can begin to play to them and then surround yourself with people that compliment (rather than mimic) you. In the context of campus ministry, that opens up a wide range of possibilities. Certainly you have student leaders that you want to include here. Are you helping them learn and develop their strengths? Outside of them, are there peers you can team with? Older mentors? Strategic planning is definitely not one of my strengths (and I've often coveted it in others) but I have an older friend that talks to me on a mostly weekly basis who is very strong in this area.
It's easy to "fly by the seat of your pants" in your strengths, leaning on the level of development you already have rather than seeking to grow in them further. I'll talk about that next.
First of all, you need to recognize what your specific strengths are. Perhaps you already know. If not, here are a few quick indicators: What do you love doing? What energizes you? What gives you a feeling of accomplishment? Where do you get positive feedback from others? In what areas do you learn quickly?
In this realm I find that if you don't know what you're gifted at, just get out there and start serving! And when you find out something you don't do well (maybe working with three-year-olds!) then you can cheer that at least you've scratched another possibility off the list.
Another great way to find out your strengths is to simply ask those who know you best. "What do you think I'm good at?" "What do you see me doing well?" Get past the fear of getting no positive feedback or looking like an egomaniac. We recognize strengths in others much more quickly than we do in ourselves.
Finally, there are some tools out there that can help you figure out giftedness. Spiritual gift inventories* are good for this. I can't vouch for their accuracy, but it looks like you can even try some free ones online. A completely unique assessment (not free) is through Clifton StrengthsFinder 2.0. With strengths like "Ideation" and "Relator" you may find some very new ways of recognizing how God has uniquely wired you.
* I used to have a bit of a problem with spiritual gift inventories because they have no way of differentiating between spiritual gifts and natural talents. While I still find that to be true, I don't think it's that big of a problem. After all, we're rolling with the idea that whatever gift you have, you should develop and use to the glory of God! Colossians 3:17 and 3:23-24 tell me that anything we do should be done for the Lord - and He is worthy of our very best!
Once you know your strengths, you can begin to play to them and then surround yourself with people that compliment (rather than mimic) you. In the context of campus ministry, that opens up a wide range of possibilities. Certainly you have student leaders that you want to include here. Are you helping them learn and develop their strengths? Outside of them, are there peers you can team with? Older mentors? Strategic planning is definitely not one of my strengths (and I've often coveted it in others) but I have an older friend that talks to me on a mostly weekly basis who is very strong in this area.
It's easy to "fly by the seat of your pants" in your strengths, leaning on the level of development you already have rather than seeking to grow in them further. I'll talk about that next.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Play to Your Strengths: Part 1
I don't know exactly how many years ago it was that I was at a leadership conference where Reggie McNeal was the speaker - it's possible it was almost ten years ago. But I vividly remember something he said that began to radically change my life. I wrote it down word for word and it's stuck with me ever since. It seems so simple and obvious, and yet it's also very counter-cultural and feels somewhat rebellious.
The quote was this: "My best chance at making my biggest contribution is to get better at what I'm already good at." Now on the surface it may sound like a "duh" sort of thing, but when we dig deeper we find that we don't necessarily believe that to be true. No, rather than build on my strengths, I need to shore up my weaknesses! I need to become the "well-rounded" leader! (I'm sure someone much smarter than me has written in depth about that myth somewhere.) After all, who wants to follow someone who is riddled with weaknesses?
We do live in a culture that is more fixated on weaknesses than strengths. Consider the child that brings home a report card with one A, 5 B's and a C. Which grade gets the most attention? I'm guessing that while the A gets some praise, the C gets the most scrutiny.
If I were to ask you what you think your strengths are, you may not know. Or, you might simply be afraid to say - after all, what if I disagree? Besides, it can sound pretty arrogant to talk about your strengths in the first place. But if I were to ask what some of your weaknesses are, you could rattle those off all day!
It almost feels like cheating to develop my giftedness, to harness my strengths, to practice improving at what I already enjoy doing. But I believe that Reggie has nailed it here and we should all be doing whatever we can to develop our strengths
I think this is a very Biblical concept that can be seen in several places. Let me quickly mention two. First off is the analogy of the body. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12 that the body of Christ (just like a natural body) is made up of many different parts and each one is important, regardless of whether or not we esteem it as such. He encourages all parts to be valued and to do their job, and in Ephesians 4:16 points out that we all grow up in Christ as "each part does its work."
A practical application of this same truth is seen in Acts 6:1-7, where the apostles recognized a need but knew it would infringe upon their own ministry and giftedness. Rather than spread themselves too thin, they delegated it to others.* The results was that "the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith."
* There is so much good stuff on leadership in this passage. We'll come back to it down the road.
I hope you buy into the idea of playing to your strengths, getting better at what you do best, and you've written Reggie's quote down somewhere close by. Once you've accepted the importance of developing your giftedness, you're ready to get down to the nitty gritty of actually doing it. I'll dive into that in tomorrow's post.
The quote was this: "My best chance at making my biggest contribution is to get better at what I'm already good at." Now on the surface it may sound like a "duh" sort of thing, but when we dig deeper we find that we don't necessarily believe that to be true. No, rather than build on my strengths, I need to shore up my weaknesses! I need to become the "well-rounded" leader! (I'm sure someone much smarter than me has written in depth about that myth somewhere.) After all, who wants to follow someone who is riddled with weaknesses?
We do live in a culture that is more fixated on weaknesses than strengths. Consider the child that brings home a report card with one A, 5 B's and a C. Which grade gets the most attention? I'm guessing that while the A gets some praise, the C gets the most scrutiny.
If I were to ask you what you think your strengths are, you may not know. Or, you might simply be afraid to say - after all, what if I disagree? Besides, it can sound pretty arrogant to talk about your strengths in the first place. But if I were to ask what some of your weaknesses are, you could rattle those off all day!
It almost feels like cheating to develop my giftedness, to harness my strengths, to practice improving at what I already enjoy doing. But I believe that Reggie has nailed it here and we should all be doing whatever we can to develop our strengths
I think this is a very Biblical concept that can be seen in several places. Let me quickly mention two. First off is the analogy of the body. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12 that the body of Christ (just like a natural body) is made up of many different parts and each one is important, regardless of whether or not we esteem it as such. He encourages all parts to be valued and to do their job, and in Ephesians 4:16 points out that we all grow up in Christ as "each part does its work."
A practical application of this same truth is seen in Acts 6:1-7, where the apostles recognized a need but knew it would infringe upon their own ministry and giftedness. Rather than spread themselves too thin, they delegated it to others.* The results was that "the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith."
* There is so much good stuff on leadership in this passage. We'll come back to it down the road.
I hope you buy into the idea of playing to your strengths, getting better at what you do best, and you've written Reggie's quote down somewhere close by. Once you've accepted the importance of developing your giftedness, you're ready to get down to the nitty gritty of actually doing it. I'll dive into that in tomorrow's post.
Friday, October 23, 2009
A Secret Ministry Sin
I wish this wasn't a problem, but if I'm completely honest I'll admit that it's something that's completely eaten me up from time to time. As I've visited with others in ministry (both pastoral and collegiate) I know that I'm not alone. Many (most? all?) of us have dealt with this at one time or another and perhaps struggle with it regularly. What problem am I talking about? Getting caught up in ministry comparing!
Its development is simple enough - things in one or more areas don't seem to be going so well for our ministry, but it looks like someone else is absolutely crushing home runs there. I either begin to feel jealous and envious or I simply wallow in self-pity and feelings of inadequacy. Neither of those are where Christ wants me to be. At times in the past I've even felt like some other group was "the ministry Jesus loved." We were merely the one He tolerated.
This kind of ministry comparing is bad for a wide variety of reasons. First of all, it reveals that I'm finding my value and significance in the wrong place. A believer's worth needs to be found in one place only: full acceptance as a child of God because of the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ. How the ministry goes should never be the measuring stick of how much (or even whether or not) God loves me!
Comparing also brings into question just whose kingdom I am trying to build. I'm sure none of us sets out to actually build our own kingdom, but maybe we're only 90% about His and unconsciously 10% about ours? If we were 100% about His Kingdom then we would be ecstatic when His Kingdom grew, even if it was due to someone else's efforts rather than our own.
Third, many of the measurables that stroke our ego and make us feel good may not really equal success at all! If you've been in ministry very long, you know this to be true. Things that seemed flawed or failed have often been used by God to bring about fruit. Certainly there's more to success than simply drawing a crowd.
Furthermore, the cliche that "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" rings very true here. It's easy to pick out one or more things that seem to be going well from a distance without knowing about everything else that's going on.
Finally, comparing tends to ignore one very important truth: that ministry is dealing with a different set of variables than you are! They have different strengths and weaknesses, different resources at their disposal and may be serving in a completely different environment.
As I was recently dealing with these same thoughts on varying levels, the Lord really hammered me as He brought to my mind the last few verses of John's gospel.
Jesus had just finished explaining to Peter the kind of death he would die (21:18-19). In response to this, Peter asks, "What about him?" Jesus' response rocks my world: "What is that to you?" BOOM! It doesn't matter what's going to happen to him! You, Peter, need to be faithful to what I've called YOU to do!
That really is the answer: to be faithful where YOU are to what God has called YOU to do. Rather than worry about what's going on somewhere else, make sure you're busy doing your part. Is faithfulness your measuring stick? Are you giving your all to the vision God has planted in your heart?
And when it comes to another ministry that seems to be doing well, is there anything you can learn from them? Is there a principle at work that would help you be even more faithful in following God's leading in your particular context?
Be careful not to get caught in the deadly trap of comparing your ministry with someone else's. It's a fruitless, sinful endeavor that will rob you of your joy and effectiveness in laboring for Christ and His Kingdom.
Its development is simple enough - things in one or more areas don't seem to be going so well for our ministry, but it looks like someone else is absolutely crushing home runs there. I either begin to feel jealous and envious or I simply wallow in self-pity and feelings of inadequacy. Neither of those are where Christ wants me to be. At times in the past I've even felt like some other group was "the ministry Jesus loved." We were merely the one He tolerated.
This kind of ministry comparing is bad for a wide variety of reasons. First of all, it reveals that I'm finding my value and significance in the wrong place. A believer's worth needs to be found in one place only: full acceptance as a child of God because of the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ. How the ministry goes should never be the measuring stick of how much (or even whether or not) God loves me!
Comparing also brings into question just whose kingdom I am trying to build. I'm sure none of us sets out to actually build our own kingdom, but maybe we're only 90% about His and unconsciously 10% about ours? If we were 100% about His Kingdom then we would be ecstatic when His Kingdom grew, even if it was due to someone else's efforts rather than our own.
Third, many of the measurables that stroke our ego and make us feel good may not really equal success at all! If you've been in ministry very long, you know this to be true. Things that seemed flawed or failed have often been used by God to bring about fruit. Certainly there's more to success than simply drawing a crowd.
Furthermore, the cliche that "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" rings very true here. It's easy to pick out one or more things that seem to be going well from a distance without knowing about everything else that's going on.
Finally, comparing tends to ignore one very important truth: that ministry is dealing with a different set of variables than you are! They have different strengths and weaknesses, different resources at their disposal and may be serving in a completely different environment.
As I was recently dealing with these same thoughts on varying levels, the Lord really hammered me as He brought to my mind the last few verses of John's gospel.
Jesus had just finished explaining to Peter the kind of death he would die (21:18-19). In response to this, Peter asks, "What about him?" Jesus' response rocks my world: "What is that to you?" BOOM! It doesn't matter what's going to happen to him! You, Peter, need to be faithful to what I've called YOU to do!
That really is the answer: to be faithful where YOU are to what God has called YOU to do. Rather than worry about what's going on somewhere else, make sure you're busy doing your part. Is faithfulness your measuring stick? Are you giving your all to the vision God has planted in your heart?
And when it comes to another ministry that seems to be doing well, is there anything you can learn from them? Is there a principle at work that would help you be even more faithful in following God's leading in your particular context?
Be careful not to get caught in the deadly trap of comparing your ministry with someone else's. It's a fruitless, sinful endeavor that will rob you of your joy and effectiveness in laboring for Christ and His Kingdom.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
First Things First
Before I begin this journey of sharing my thoughts on college ministry, I want to begin with something that a friend told me right out of the gates when I first got the job. It was so simple that I actually brushed it off at the time. Not that I disagreed, just that I felt there were so many important things I needed to learn if I was really going to be successful. But after eight years, I think his words carry more weight than ever.
He summed it up quite well when he said, "The single most important thing you can do for your students is to spend time with the Lord every day." You might be nodding casually just as I did, thinking, "Yeah yeah yeah, I already know that." Sure you know that. We know lots of things. But does that truth live itself out daily in your life?
I know all too well how easy it is to get busy with plans and programs and meetings and people and begin to skimp or completely squeeze out time with the Lord. I also know it can be dry and seem unfulfilling at times, but no matter what there is value in daily saturating yourself in the word of God and taking time to pour your heart out to Him.
I believe I got this phrase from Tim Elmore, who once described this leadership challenge as "The Starving Baker." Far too often I've felt that was a perfect picture of me: so busy preparing spiritual food for others that I didn't take time to properly feed myself.
You might be able to survive that way for a short while, but unless you continually draw near to the Lord, you won't have anything worthwhile to give to others. Make sure that's the number one priority - not just in your mind, but in the reality of your daily schedule.
He summed it up quite well when he said, "The single most important thing you can do for your students is to spend time with the Lord every day." You might be nodding casually just as I did, thinking, "Yeah yeah yeah, I already know that." Sure you know that. We know lots of things. But does that truth live itself out daily in your life?
I know all too well how easy it is to get busy with plans and programs and meetings and people and begin to skimp or completely squeeze out time with the Lord. I also know it can be dry and seem unfulfilling at times, but no matter what there is value in daily saturating yourself in the word of God and taking time to pour your heart out to Him.
I believe I got this phrase from Tim Elmore, who once described this leadership challenge as "The Starving Baker." Far too often I've felt that was a perfect picture of me: so busy preparing spiritual food for others that I didn't take time to properly feed myself.
You might be able to survive that way for a short while, but unless you continually draw near to the Lord, you won't have anything worthwhile to give to others. Make sure that's the number one priority - not just in your mind, but in the reality of your daily schedule.
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