Confessions of an Inefficient Missions Pastor
by Dr. Doug Cassady
If you are looking for a streamlined, well-oiled process or program for discovering the missional assets or capacity of your congregation, then stop reading this article. Be warned that what you are about to read is just a mess – utter chaos, especially to the efficient, process-minded church leader. Yes, in the area of programmatic mission volunteer assessment, recruitment, and talent utilization, I must confess that I have led our church to take an “inefficient” path of assessment and mobilization. So, be advised. If you want to keep reading, it is at your own peril. Gross inefficiency lies ahead!
There are many in church leadership who are trying to find the most “efficient” way to mobilize their church members for missions and ministry. They are looking for the best battery of talent surveys, spiritual gift inventories, and aptitude tests to insure the most effective and efficient way to perfectly match church members with the ideal opportunity of service. Don’t get me wrong; all these things can be helpful for enlistment, training, and mobilization. But let’s be honest: if a perfect program was all that it took to mobilize “pew potatoes” then it would have already been implemented and the Church would be on the move and working just fine, thank you.
Discovering the potential of church members for mobilization begins with the sometimes-messy endeavor of discipleship. That is to say, believers truly need to begin to have an understanding of who God is, His heart for the world, His unfathomable grace, and His call on their lives. This understanding leads to a passionate love relationship with Him, which leads to worship. Worship is the first step in mobilization and development of a missional lifestyle. As John Piper states, “worship is the fuel of missions.”1 Discipleship that leads people to authentic worship and a Christ-like life is not the most efficient of processes. There are twist and turns, sidetracks and setbacks. But, whom do you want on your missions team? The most analyzed, trained, and assessed individual or the one who is fervently in love with God and has a vision for His kingdom? Who will persevere on the field and truly give all of himself/herself?
So how can mission leaders identify such people? I have discovered that the way I learn about the latent capacities of church members is by taking the time to build personal relationships with them. Yes, true Christian community may not garner as much information as a church wide survey. (Not that there is anything wrong with that!) But, investing in personal relationships helps me to direct individuals to the place of service that better matches what God is doing in their lives. If I know a person’s heart, I can equip and empower that person to utilize their God-given interests and passions.
How about another confession? I don’t personally recruit all the potential prospects for mobilization in missions. The best recruiters are those who are involved in the work. I have made it a key part of my job to encourage them to tell their stories and share what God is doing in their lives. Could I present a more polished presentation of recruitment? Maybe. However, it is the enthusiastic and authentic life that is being transformed by God through missions involvement that proves to be the most effective recruiter. They are the ones who can dislodge the “pew potatoes.”
And here is another example of the way we in church leadership often think: One of the best ways of launching new mission initiatives is to leave the development of new fields or ideas to the professionals. Who better to think through all the potential shortcomings of a plan than the church staff? The more planning that is put into this new work the less chance it has to fail. The result will surely be fail-proof mission endeavors. Right?
I don’t think so.
My goal is to promote having church members pray and think creatively about the spiritual needs that they see in the world today. Then, through providing church-funded grants and a culture of freedom to try new ministries, they can see their dream realized and take a few others along with them on this ride of missional adventure. But be warned, some of these new endeavors may face some challenges. A few may not be the most polished product or long-lived. But I have found that many of these new ministries are strong and growing. They are used by God to reach and transform lives. Then, the next thing you know, you have lost control! The good news is that losing this control is O.K.
Losing control can even make your life better if you, like many church leaders, are the personality type that tries to do everything. If this is you, you know what I mean. It is sometimes easier and more efficient that way. This may sound crazy, but I try to involve as many people as possible in the communication, preparation, training, and execution of mission endeavors. Would you believe that I have a newsletter team and IT team to support mission work? It truly is a powerful thing to have teams that have been trained and have a passion for missions do all the planning and fieldwork. They might just do work in your community, your state, your country, or around the world without you. Asking these volunteers to do missions training helps to round out their leadership competency and puts before the whole congregation fantastic missional role models. Also, there is a built-in resource for expansion of missions activity within your church walls: the church staff. Encourage other staff members to follow their God-given dreams of involvement in missions. Empower them to mobilize others. Contrary to popular belief, crossing of sacred territories is allowed. Self-motivated and self-sufficient missions teams and missional staff members may just lead to a church on the move!
My final confession is our church constantly continues to offer increasingly more opportunities for involvement in missions and ministry. It is true that some think the church may be in danger of being spread too thin. They think the church could run out of money or need to take people away from some very important ecclesiastical duties. In contrast to this train of thought, I’ve discovered a kind of loaves and fishes principle at work. It seems that as more new, varied, and creative mission endeavors emerge, totally different circles of friends and spheres of influence are engaged and mobilized. Instead of shrinking the pool of human and financial resources, God gives increase. It also seems that God has instilled more different interests and giftedness in individuals than just what a small number of ministry opportunities can inspire and utilize. Warning: this process can lead to addiction. You just may be addicted to the thrill of seeing more “pew potatoes” being uprooted.
The most vital aspect of all the approaches to the discovery of assets or capacity is to pray for individuals in team recruitment and trust God to work in the lives of people to motivate them for service. Some may feel that it takes too long to wait on, listen to, and trust God. However, God knows those He has perfectly prepared to meet each unique challenge or opportunity on the field.
I know that you may be wondering if these confessions are just a way of masking an “inefficiency” that doesn’t “work.” Over the past three and a half years our church has seen missions involvement increase dramatically. The church is witnessing God work through dynamic and growing partnerships: 6 community-targeted, 5 domestic, and 4 international. Missions involvement during this time period, from a congregation that averages around 700 in Bible Study, has seen sharp increases each year and 699 individuals have been on a missional adventure. Thanks be to God! He is very good at using messy methods and imperfect people to bring glory to Him and grow His kingdom.
1 Piper, John. Let the Nations be Glad!: The Supremacy of God in Missions: Baker Books, 1993, pg. 15.
Dr. Doug Cassady
Missions Pastor
First Baptist Church of The Woodlands, Texas