How Do Non-Christians View Your Community Service?

As believers take steps to focus on meeting needs beyond the walls of the church, it's important to consider how those being served (as well as those who may observe your acts of service) will interpret your actions. It's possible that your best intentions and efforts to serve may be misunderstood. Avoid drawing attention to yourselves or your church or ministry group as you seek to meet needs. Do they see you and your church, or do they see Jesus and the hope of the gospel?

I regret the time we served a Thanksgiving meal to families at the local community center and I called up the newspaper to make sure that they sent a photographer and reporter to cover the story. I was so thrilled that we were featured on the front page of the local paper on Thanksgiving Day. Even though our church members genuinely served the families in the community who may not have enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal otherwise, I was motivated by the publicity this could bring our church. Now, I am wondering how non-Christians actually viewed our community service. Did they see the values and hope of the kingdom, or did they see us as self-serving to get attention for group?

Many groups get T-shirts for group members to wear as they serve together. There's nothing wrong with T-shirts and they can often help to build team unity and identify who is involved. However, what is being communicated by your T-shirts to those you are serving? Or what is communicated to those observing? [If it is "look at us" - don't do it.]

Realize that all acts of service to any group of people (addressing social, economic or physical needs) carry a message that must be understood and interpreted through an outsider's point of view.

Ask: Are we willing to partner together with others to bring about change and not be concerned with who gets the credit? Are we communicating the values and hope of the kingdom?

The Tangible Kingdom>>TK Primer

I always enjoy hanging out with my friends Hugh Halter and Matt Smay. At the Exponential '09 conference this week in Orlando I got my hands on their newest resource - an eight-week guide to incarnational community. This is Missional Transformation made practical!

If you are interested in understanding how to "live missionally" with other Christians, this TK Primer is a great tool to help you prepare your heart for mission. It will help you to develop life-long habits that are aligned with the mission of Jesus. "It will help move you into mission regardless of whether you know a lot of details, history, or theology."

Here's a video introduction to the TK Primer. (about 17 minutes)

Here are some of the Basic Concepts addressed:

Gospel: the good news of Jesus, capable of transforming everything about a person, their community and their world.

Missional People: individuals actively committed to living a "sent" life in the context of community.

Sojourner: a spiritually curious God-seeker; a traveler who has intersected the missional community.

Incarnational Community: a group of people with the posture, tone, motives, and heart of Jesus; those who physically represent him in a particular location.

Posture: the attitude of the body; the way a person or community expresses itself to others, especially in nonverbal ways.

The TK Primer provides an initial pathway that will help you and your community start missional activities in your daily life. There are daily readings for you to process together with God -- then in community with other Christians who desire to engage those in the culture right where you live.

If you'd like to check it out, you can download the introductions and first 2 chapters as a PDF here.

You can order your own copy online. (It's not available in stores or at Amazon.com)

Here's one of the practical steps suggested in the TK Primer: Bless one person, without any strings attached and without trying to talk about God or getting any acknowledgment. Reflect on how your heart felt. What is you could live a life of blessing? How might you be different? How might if develop street credibility if every Christian lived this way?

What other practical steps could you suggest for engaging in the mission of Jesus in your circle of influence?

Seven Benefits of Coaching

My friends Steve Ogne and Tim Roehl have written a great book that focuses on empowering leaders for ministry and mission in a changing world. Tranformissional Coaching captures the very best of Steve's and Tim's extensive coaching experience with a particular emphasis on coaching young and emerging leaders. He has developed a holistic approach which engages the whole leader in transformation that helps clarify calling, cultivate character, create community and connect with culture. [Note: you can download a free chapter at www.steveogne.org]

Coaching has many advantages! Here are seven benefits of having a coach:

1. A Coach points out what we can't, don't, or won't see. Coaches ask questions no one else is asking. Even the most effective leaders has blind spots. A coach has the unique advantage of being "outside" and "inside" the leader's environment at the same time. You can have the objective view of a specialist and also have genuine empathy as a member of the "team"....

2. A Coach provides a safe, compassionate, confidential environment. Sometimes...a leader needs someone to whom he or she can voice what he or she is feeling and thinking without worrying about whether there will be negative repercussions....

3. A Coach helps give perspective. Sometimes a leader needs a reality check. It is not uncommon for a leader to get tunnel vision about an issue, and a great coach helps him or her see the bigger picture before making a decision that could have unproductive consequences....

4. A Coach improves performance. Both anecdotal and formal research shows the effectiveness of coaching in this regard...

5. A Coach aids with problem solving and processing conflict. In the intense and often emotionally volatile environment of conflict, a coach can bring clarity and calm while helping the leader determine a productive course of action.

6. A Coach is a paraklete. That's the Greek word for "one who comes alongside, an advocate, and a comforter." A coach advocates for the leader and communicates between the leader and his or her organization and supervisors....

7. A Coach empowers leaders to plan their work and then work their plan effectively in proper sequence. A coach continually points leader back to the big picture, helping them connect all they do with their priorities and plan in mind.

Having a coach can greatly increase your personal productivity and ministry effectiveness. Ed Stetzer has found that church planters who met weekly with a coach led churches that averaged twice the size of those with no coach. (p 80)

If you would like to explore how coaching might benefit your life and ministry, contact me at davedevries@oc-us.org to set up a "test drive" coaching appointment.