Seven Practices of Effective Ministry

“The first four practices are all about making changes to the organization.” Pete began. “The last three require a personal change for the leader, and sometimes, that’s a little more difficult.”

“The tendency in business, or in church work for that matter, is to mistake activity for progress. We think that just because people are busy and doing a lot of stuff that we are being successful. The fact of the matter is, if all that activity isn’t taking you where you want to go, then it’s just wasted time.

“Number five is Listen to Outsiders.”

Don’t be so concerned about keeping the folks you’ve got, that you neglect the folks you’re trying to reach.”

the first step: Clarify the Win. There’s not a player on that field right now who’s confused about his goal. They may not reach it, but they know what it is. If you give good people a clear goal, then most of the time they’ll work like dogs to get there. But if the goal is unclear, they’re forced to guess or, worse, decide for themselves what a win

Practice number three is this: Narrow the Focus. By that I mean you shouldn’t try to do everything; you should do a few things well.”

we don’t have a scoreboard in the sanctuary, and the only plate we have is an offering plate. And I can assure you that no one cheers when we pass it.”

Your problem is, you don’t know what a win is at church, do you?”

Think Steps, Not Programs