Life’s Work

Life’s Work – Ministry – Discipline

Be Diligent

Diligence is the application of our energy to accomplish a task with perseverance; it is also continually working toward your goals no matter how hard the circumstances. Diligence in ministry towards others is equally as important because people will begin to see your dedication to your cause and ultimately towards God.

Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters…”

Develop Ministry Plan

In Bob Ostrander’s book, I Never Thought of That: The Essential Guidebook for Ministry Leaders (available in our store), he outlines four primary functions for a ministry plan. The ministry plan is a concrete analysis of your goals for your ministry.

These four functions include:

• An action plan
• A roadmap
• A reason for people to invest resources
• A sales tool

Seek Advisors

When leading a ministry, it is important to recognize each individuals different needs. A necessary aspect of ministry, whether personal or in a church, is knowing how to reach people. Seeking council can help you discover different methods on how to serve and bless others and is a vital tool in having a successful ministry for the Lord.

One analogy some people find helpful is the idea that everyone should have three people playing different roles in their life: a Paul, a Barnabas, and a Timothy. The Paul figure being someone you learn from, the Barnabas being someone at a similar stage of life who is a true friend and an encourager to you, and finally, Timothy who is someone you disciple and teach. No matter what stage of life you’re at, it is important to seek council and wisdom from different sources so that you can continue to be a light to others. Centerpoint Stewardship, Inc. provides counseling and coaching on how to run a successful ministry and maximize your potential as a leader.

Develop Skills

Developing your skills as a ministry leader is one of the most important things a person can do for themselves. It is important to understand what skills you need to improve on and how to best go about these improvements. Some ways that can help you develop personal skills in the ministry setting can come from reading literary sources, attending conferences, getting an education, being biblically disciplined, and acquiring management abilities, counseling skills and leadership qualities. Although leadership and speaking is one of the most important skills for any ministry leader, a strong ministry leader has more than just speaking and leadership skills alone. Any successful leader should be well-rounded in their skill sets to maximize their potential for expressing God’s mercy to a world in need of Him.

Study Trends

Leading a fruitful ministry starts with knowing the intended group of people you are trying to have an impact on. Some of the factors to consider include:

• age groups
• socioeconomic groups
• ethnic groups
• language barriers
• as well as economic
• political
• moral trends.

As we see in I Chronicles 12, the men from the tribe of Issachar, “…Understood the times and knew what Israel should do…” The “Sons of Issachar” were able to use their knowledge to provide Godly leadership for Israel.  We can use this example for similarly interpreting our times and applying that understanding to benefit our societies, or more specifically, our ministries. However, interpreting trends should not heed acceptance of the ever-growing morally relativistic society, but rather applying them to the unchanging, objective truth of God’s Word.

Study Best Practices

One question we should ask before starting a ministry is “what has God called me to do?” Once we have concluded that God has called us to ministry, we should then ask, “How do I filter what God has called me to do from my own personal agenda?” Once we are disciplined in the Word and we listen to God’s calling for our ministry, fruitfulness will follow. One thing every young ministry leader should know is that they are partly responsible for the people they preach to, so if they begin teaching things that aren’t Biblical truths, God will not let it go unnoticed. Faithfulness to the ministry over time will help leaders become more knowledgeable and insightful.