[featured_image]When I wrote Six-Word Lessons to Discover Missional Living, I attempted to capture 100 lessons that would help believers live on mission with Jesus. One chapter focuses on some of the lessons I learned while planting Lake Hills Church in Castaic, California. Consider this principle about training…
Lesson #87: Train in Ministry, not for Ministry. Leadership development is not a program, it is a lifestyle. Learning to serve others does not happen in the classroom, but in the context of ministry.
All believers must be equipped and empowered at every opportunity right where they live. (p 122)
It doesn’t make sense to front load all the training content in advance and then expect people to remember “the training” when they finally face a need to implement it weeks or even months later. Instead, provide orientation and then allow people to start serving while providing ongoing training in a ministry context. I believe that this is what Jesus did with His disciples. In fact, at times after sending them out, He would debrief and provide additional training after they returned. What thoughts does that trigger about the way you develop leaders?What would it look like if you adopted this principle?
Today’s Missional Challenge
Consider how you will train others in ministry, not for ministry.
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