No. I'm not part of a group that's advocating for an "Idiot Free America." Although the thought of living in an idiot-free culture does have its perks, how boring is that! In any case, the message hits on an important ingredient for creating culture; partnerships.
I used to think of ministry solely as an act of service to others. Whether it was ignorance or the appeal of the rugged individualistic nature of the lone star hero who single handedly saves the day, whatever the reason may have been, I had never thought of ministry in terms of partnerships.
Over time I’ve learned that ministry is also about creating partnerships. I've been blessed to have several people in my life who I consider partners in cultivating ministry. In turn I wanted to share that knowledge with others which is why I've started mentoring.
I used to think of ministry solely as an act of service to others. Whether it was ignorance or the appeal of the rugged individualistic nature of the lone star hero who single handedly saves the day, whatever the reason may have been, I had never thought of ministry in terms of partnerships.
Over time I’ve learned that ministry is also about creating partnerships. I've been blessed to have several people in my life who I consider partners in cultivating ministry. In turn I wanted to share that knowledge with others which is why I've started mentoring.
The more successful you want your ministry to be, the more successful partnerships you need to create. If you’re out to create and cultivate a certain culture you’re going to have to surround yourself with people who can help you till the ground. This is especially true if you’re trying to create a new culture in an environment where culture shifts are looked upon with skepticism or rejection.
In addition to helping prepare the way, creating partnerships also helps make ministry more meaningful. There’s plenty to learn from the people around you and the more tools and insight you can acquire from, them the greater impact your ministry can have and the deeper your culture can take root.
So where do you start looking for potential partnerships? Start at your own church. There are plenty of qualified and experienced people who are dying to sit you down for 8 hours a day if they could and fill your head with delicious ideas. Ok, maybe that doesn’t sound very appealing, in fact is sounds a little creepy.
In addition to helping prepare the way, creating partnerships also helps make ministry more meaningful. There’s plenty to learn from the people around you and the more tools and insight you can acquire from, them the greater impact your ministry can have and the deeper your culture can take root.
So where do you start looking for potential partnerships? Start at your own church. There are plenty of qualified and experienced people who are dying to sit you down for 8 hours a day if they could and fill your head with delicious ideas. Ok, maybe that doesn’t sound very appealing, in fact is sounds a little creepy.
In any case, look for those people in your church who have successful ministries and have created a culture around those ministries. If you don’t know them personally find someone you know who can introduce you. Express your desire to learn from them and ask them to help you create a culture-making ministry for yourself. In time you’ll discover that your network will grow along with your opportunities. It may take some guts to do that at first but in the end it will be a rewarding and spiritually fulfilling experience.
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