A Travel Free Learning Article
By Eddie Hammett, Ministry Colleague with The Columbia Partnership
Voice: 828.458.8954, E-mail: EHammett@TheColumbiaPartnership.org, Web Site: www.TheColumbiaPartnership.org
“I’m not having much fun anymore in my ministry.” “I’m just not making the impact I want to make in ministry.” “I feel like I’m dancing with two left feet stumbling all over myself and others.” “My dance skills are just not what they use to be. I need some new dance steps for my ministry.” “The flow of ministry is gone. It has become more work with less fulfillment and fun.” “If I don’t find relief I’m going to have to find another career.”
These are actual statements I have heard more than once from persons and churches I am privileged to coach. The first time I heard the metaphor of dance with ministry it was somewhat a disconnect for me. The more I thought about it the more sense it made. Ministry is filled with disconnects and multiple challenges that take many of us beyond our comfort zones; as is true for many dancers.
Discovering and Dealing With Disconnects in Ministry. What are Ministry Disconnects Today? A ministry disconnect is counter-cultural from what has worked to build traditional churches in a church-oriented culture, and what seems to be essential in today’s post-Christian culture.
1. Care-giving does not build churches. For those born prior to 1960 the essence of an effective church was one that cared for her membership. Weddings, funerals, hospital and home visitation, programming designed for membership. If a leader and congregation did this well the church grew. Today, that does not work as consistently. In fact, often this is perceived as self-serving, self-focused, maintenance-oriented and against missional interests of many of those seeking church today.
2. Preaching is no longer what attracts members. For those born before 1960 we place a high value on biblical, relevant preaching, and a great preacher could grow a church and attract members. This is no longer the only ingredient for an effective church that attracts members. What attracts today has more to do with the power of community-building experiences than preaching experiences.
3. Christian education is not a program. It is an experience with believers. Christian education and the five dimensions of programming around the five functions of a church are fading in many places. In other places, time-starved people are demanding streamlining and simplifying church. The five functions are giving way to one or two structures that are designed to create, interpret, and mobilize experiences with Christians in spontaneous and planned encounters.
4. Worship hinges on God-focused activity not necessarily church-focused activities. Worship is craved by many today seeking meaning and motivation to live through rapid change, increasing diversity, and a world that often moves so fast that connection with the Divine is a challenge at best. Worship today is certainly God-focused activity that is found in the normal course of one’s busy life, pausing periodically and intentionally, to reflect and re-center a life. Such is often found in corporate worship in a gathered community but not often in church-focused programming or activities as many of people have valued in days gone by.
5. A full program for all ages and niches may be more a hindrance for spiritual formation than facilitator for it. With fractured and busy families an age-graded, multi-tiered program to facilitate spiritual formation is often a hindrance or distraction rather than a facilitator of spiritual growth. Today, many are seeking safe places to struggle with tough issues that happen in the busyness and spontaneity of daily life. Creating safe relationships that are a call away becomes the need and service that is valued. Maybe we are in a day when we have coaches on call, and life coaches available throughout workplaces, cities, schools and communities. The scattered church may be surfacing in God’s design once again.
6. Building church is more about building partnerships and relationships than membership, staff, and buildings. In days gone by the institutional church was built through new buildings to house growing memberships. Today churches are created through relationship building and facilitating partnerships that are redemptive, restorative, and missional-focused. The church today will be more missional-driven than membership-driven.
Some in the pulpit and pew would question putting dancing and ministry in the same sentence, however allow me to use the metaphor to help us discover new steps that can return the joy to ministry in spite of the challenges we face today. As I have listened to many pastors struggle with their effectiveness and sense of competence I’m hearing some patterns emerge. These patterns are restoring the joy and effectiveness of ministry for many clergy and churches across the country. Permit me to share some of the new dance steps my coaching clients are discovering and teaching me.
New Dance Steps for More Effective Ministry. What are the new dance steps needed for more enjoyable and fruitful ministry today?
1. Flexibility is a must today. Increasing diversity, pace of change and changing patterns of family, among other things brings great challenge to many. The traditional and basic dance steps (skills, routines) of ministry are no longer sufficient. Being flexible in routine, learning to create multiple entry points for worship, spiritual formation and coaching offer new hope and options for many searching for something new.
2. Openness to new routines, schedules, new voices, rituals, styles and communication venues restore the destabilized dancer. So often pastors, and other staff and lay leaders, are stuck in one or two basic routines for worship planning, and communicating with the congregation and leadership teams. “Let’s call a meeting at the church” is now being replaced by let’s meet over Skype or on a conference call. Printed order’s of service and announcements are being replaced or at least supplemented through Facebook pages for the church, websites and online learning opportunities. Being open and willing to face and embrace these steep learning curves creates energy, connects with another generation and often expedites and broadens leadership.
3. Pruning is one of those most challenging new dance steps. Pruning is essential for fruit-bearing. Many churches and leaders are not bearing fruit in their ministry because they fear pruning. Prune volunteer leaders who are not on the same page, who are ineffective, unreliable and consistent distracters. Pruning could also relate to pruning the bad habits of the pastor/staff or lay leader. Change is not easy, but often it is essential to bear fruit. Pruning might also relate to downsizing activities, programming or decentralizing to make ministry more convenient for attendees.
4. Creating partnerships is another essential new dance move. Seeking out and creating new partnership for ministry brings excitement, additional resourcing of people and funds, and broadens leadership base. This is a real new move for many and is often questioned. Those who learn this new step benefit greatly in leadership, ownership of new dreams and resourcing.
5. Building bridges of relationships maximizes bridge-building and minimizes creating barriers with those inside and outside the church walls. So much focus in some churches is on setting the church apart and against people, lifestyles or practices rather than learning to be in the world but not of the world. When barriers are created and persons are turned away the church severs any possibility of reaching that person.
6. Faithing not faking It—forward focus. Let’s face it, some churches and leaders believe in the motto "fake it til you make it". That does not work and certainly does not move things forward. So often the new step is relying on faith more and staying forward focused rather than watching our feet or the past. A smooth confident dancer flows with faith in the relationship, skills and choreography. Surely, pastors and key leaders should do no less.
7. Remnant focus is another needed new step for leaders but one that goes against the tradition and most leaders’ comfort zone. Jesus preached to the multitude but invested himself in the remnant—those few who were willing to follow. What would really happen if we as churches and pastors/staff followed the disciple-making model found consistently in Jesus’ ministry?
8. Creativity. Things are changing exponentially in the world in which we now live. Certainly, I am not advocating changing the Gospel message. I am encouraging trusting the spirit, being willing to follow into creative avenues that open before us. Creativity is a challenge for many of us—it stretches us into learning to use technology, stories, media clips, new ways of measuring effectiveness and success, new ways of framing partnerships and conducting meetings, worship and celebrating Holy Days.
9. Discernment is a spiritual gift that is so powerful and so needed in this new generation. Learning to discern, discover and embrace the movement of the Holy Spirit, looking for connections and disconnections as teachable moments or divine appointments. Learning to connect with and trust the leadership of one’s curiosity, intuition fueled by the Spirit is empowering to all those we dance among.
10. Hope-building and restoration ministries. So many need hope-builders rather than judgment today. Those who are broken, wounded, skeptical, or riddled with dysfunction or addictions need hope. Learning to create, nurture and sustain restoration relationships, structures and environments is crucial. This really is the music that creates the proper atmosphere for great dance moves. Without the right atmosphere great dancing is empty.
11. Coaching. Learning to coach your church rather than carry your church offers great relief to clergy and empowerment and opportunity for lay leaders! The coach approach is not about being seen as the expert, fixer or answer person. Coaching is about helping others discern, discover and move forward into actions that align with belief systems. The coach approach creates sacred space and place for persons to slow down, listen and connect the dots of what God is bringing forth in their lives. It really does work! This offers another tool in the toolkit. It is a tool I wish I had known about 30 years ago when my ministry began!
Restore the joy, face challenges with faith not fear, and enjoy the music and relief of working with partners who embrace the same dance. For additional resources my web sites www.transformingsolutions.org and www.soulful-leadership.com.
Important Things to Know
Eddie Hammett is a Ministry Colleague with The Columbia Partnership. He is a certified coach with the International Coach Federation. Recent books of which he is the author or co-author are Reaching People Under 40 While Keeping People Over 60, Spiritual Leadership in a Secular Age, and Making Shifts Without Making Waves. He is available for speaking and coaching with leaders, congregations, denominations, and parachurch organizations. His personal web site is www.TransformingSolutions.org. His work is also highlighted at www.cbfnc.org.
The Columbia Partnership is a non-profit Christian ministry organization focused on transforming the capacity of the North American Church to pursue and sustain Christ-centered ministry. Travel Free Learning is a leadership development emphasis of The Columbia Partnership. For more information about products and services check out the web site at www.TheColumbiaPartnership.org, send an e-mail to Client.Care@TheColumbiaPartnership.org, or call 803.622.0923.
