I am all for excellence in ministry.
I am all for planning and preparation.
I am all for trying to make a difference.
I am all for social research and the understanding of human dynamics.
I am all for using technology in ministry.
I am all for using money and resources in ministry.
I am all for purposing for results rather than relying on wishful thinking.
I am all for organization, programs and systems.
I think all of the above are a matter of good stewardship with the opportunities, time and resources we are given.
But there is one thing that makes me uncomfortable when I've been a part of such ministries or ministry planning--It's almost like we're saying to God when we purpose to serve him: We will build your kingdom with or without your help.
And something about that just isn't right.
I think it's the difference between praying and saying a prayer. You know what I mean? We spend an hour in planning relying on all of our human powers, resources and wisdom, and then we say a 30 second prayer to "bless" it all. Then we claim that this was God's will.
What if God would not have us use our own wisdom but would have us simply do one thing: Every day spend an hour in prayer and his Word. Listen to his voice. Then obey what he wants us to do. What would happen? How can this be done as a group/team rather than just as an individual?
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Ah, the story of my (recent) life.
ReplyDeleteSince church planting is my area, I'll go there...
Church planting teams often have a set idea about structure, marketing, outreach, services, model, etc. I totally remember being involved in those deep planning sessions and asking God to bless them. It sucks... it's a hard lesson learned.
It's amazing when you stopping asking God to bless your efforts and, instead, jump on his bandwagon. In church planting, teams need to spend time praying about their chemistry, about roles, about models, about approach... about everything. No planning should be done unless the team spends time in the word and praying about it.
Hope this helps. I still fail at it sometimes.