Proactive Ministries

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Welcome to our Proactive Ministries Blog on Typepad. Through this resource we hope to offer support and inspiration to churches and staff following our training events.

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Less Is More in Ministry

    After eighteen years of working with hundreds of churches across America, one thing remains absolutely clear – many churches are Ministry Hoarders.  What does this mean?

1)    We ADD more and more programs and activities while never intentionally removing or suspending any we already have

2)    We ask our best, most mature Leaders to be responsible for more different things than could possibly be done with excellence, often causing them to experience "burnout"

3)    We do not take seriously the entire Biblical mandate of, “God’s call on our lives” in choosing where to minister, spiritual gifts and spiritual disciplines

            Consider this example:

            Seven years ago, Mike and Sandy, a couple in the church worked with a group to birth a new Live Manger Drama, having people by in their warm vehicles and experience the story of the birth of Christ.  The first year there incredible enthusiasm existed for this.  Mike was a professional marketing director at work and Sandy was a much loved elementary teacher in the community.  The worked hard to construct an elaborate "set" of scenes of the story of Jesus and more than 50 church members participated in the effort.  In the three nights they put this on, more than 300 cars drove through to see the drama.  For a church with an average worship attendance of 140 this was a smashing success. 

        As they were evaluating the impact of this in their January Church Council meeting, there were numerous accolades from those who participated as well as reports from community families who loved it.  Someone proposed a motion that this would be the church's annual Live Manger Drama going forward.  It passed unanimously. 

        Five years later at an October Church Council meeting the Secretary of the Council was glancing back at the minutes and realized there was a new Pastor, and only five of the Council members who attended five years ago were still on the Council.  She felt sad that Mike and Sandy moved to Minneapolis due to a promotion in Mike's job more than three years earlier. 

    A major agenda item that night was, "The Annual Live Manger Drama" and its future.  The first two years were super, but after five years the numbers summed it up: Year 1: 50 volunteers, 300+ cars; Year 2: 41 volunteers, 245 cars; Year 3: 15 volunteers, 102 cars; Year 4: 12 volunteers, 46 cars; and Year 5: 15 volunteers, 26 cars.  No one at the Council could name but one family who joined the church as a direct result of the Annual Live Manger Drama. 

        Bill and Mary, who were very close friends of Mike and Sandy, spoke up, "We really need to get more of our members to participate in the Live Manger Drama this year.  This is one of our major ministries and we have been slacking on it the last couple of years. Let's set a goal of 50 members being involved.  This is one of our most important ministries!"  

        The discussion did not go well.  The sixteen Council members were strangely quiet.  Only one other couple said they would definitely participate.  Was it time to let the Live Manger Drama die with dignity?  The Council had a close vote to continue it, since Bill and Mary made a second impassioned plea. That year the impact was minimal.  Only ten people participated in working on it, several with less than positive attitudes.  Bill and Mary left the church the next February. 

        A majority in that Council meeting wanted to vote to discontinue or suspend the Live Manger Drama.  Largely due to sentiment, they voted to let it go on and the cost in morale was enormous.  They lost Bill and Mary, one of the most involved families in the church.  The outcome could have been different IF the Council had been annually reviewing and setting clear Ministry Priorities at the first of each year.

        Most churches in America continue to add ministries while allowing nearly all the previous ones to be forced to suffer painful deaths.  (Ministry Hoarding) Many Leaders are burned out on trying to keep things alive which should have passed with dignity and celebration long ago.  LESS IS MORE. 

            With a limited number of engaged Leaders and active members to draw from for ministry involvement, LESS IS MORE.  This will continue to produce pain until the Pastor and Leadership become courageous enough to set clear, easily defined Ministry Priorities each year.  Many activities and programs can be "postponed or suspended" to be intentional the members praying through key priorites that will cause both spiritual and numerical growth for the church.  Do our Leaders really believe that God desires for the church to grow? 

            The good news is that there IS an effective process for Leadership to use in moving toward LESS IS MORE.  Give us a call if this describes one of the challenges in your church’s growth. 

 Jim

 

Rev. Jim W. Hollis, Executive Director

Proactive Ministries

Offices: (770) 803-9988

Ministry Possibilities: Principles & Practices

By Guest Author, Jan Hollis

Occasionally we are asked about how we know ministry efforts have been effective. I come from an eductional background where we were constantly observing, analyzing and attempting to replicate the very best practices to make our schools more effective. In an age where it seems all elements of society are about "measuring" the impact of our work - even the church is trying to develop some models for doing the same.

A word of  caution from this experienced educator: just as the most crtically important element of success in classrooms is the teacher, the most critically important elements of success in our Lord's churches will be first our individual relationships with the Risen, Living Lord, and the resulting actions of HIs people, called by His name, demonstrating the gospel in everyday life and in the life of the church. We must be careful not to reduce His work to numbers games and finite goals - after all, we are working with and for the Infinite!

That being said, efforts are being made to identify characteristics of healthy churches so that all may understand better what God may want for His people in their "assembling themselves together". We will explore this more deeply in other posts, but let's begin with the awareness that just setting goals is not enough - it is only identifying "where" we are going. That's a good thing to know, but even better is "how" we will get there. Proactive Ministries offers both sound, Biblically-based principles - our motivation, attitudes, and values; and practices - strategies, models, and settings in which God's people in His church can be successful in spreading the Word. Even when practices change as a result of new paradigms emerging among the faithful, the same principles guide us. Ministry continues to strengthen among those who seek Him. Don't miss the opportunity to be a part!

Barnabas Ministry Groups Seek Supporters

Over the last few years, Proactive Ministries has been presented with the opportunity to work with churches in long-term relationships. Barnabas Ministry Groups are one effective option for churches of all sizes to share in ministry together. Some churches have been provided scholarships through outside donors. This video presents highlights of the types of long-lasting impact the Barnabas Ministry Groups can have on congregations.

Download Barnabas Supporter Video

Why Partner With Proactive Ministries?

Many options exist today for congregations who desire outside, professional and spiritually based resourcing.  There are Financial Funding companies, Conflict Resolution counseling groups, Church Growth experts and Denominational Seminar leaders.  Proactive Ministries is larger than any one of these.

There are excellent reasons for your congregation to consider partnering in ministry with Proactive.  Here are just a few:

• Proactive is a 501.c.3, not-for-profit ministry, founded in 1993
• The work we do with congregations and leaders is a mission, not a business
• We begin new relationships with congregations by giving them the gift of a professional, Envisioning Experience - a day and an evening with our Staff in your church, to listen to your Pastor, Staff, Leaders and Members
  
• We have worked with more than 800 congregations across 39 states in the United States
• We do not prescribe a "one size fits all congregations" strategic plan for your church
• Our Staff Leadership works alongside you in your church, community and local culture
  
• We span a number of Christian denominations, not allowing differences in Doctrines to be an inhibiting factor to effective ministry development
• All of our training contains elements of motivation, scriptural foundations, and practical application in the lives of persons in and beyond the congregation
• Every ministry we develop with you is undergirded with prayer support
  

Give us a call today if your church wants to move to the "next level" in pursuit of ministry excellence.  Being comfortable is easy, moving to reach our potential is an adventure in faith. 

Blessings,

Jim

Rev. Jim W. Hollis, Executive Director

Offices: (770) 803-9988

www.proactive-ministries.org