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My family and I moved to Nashville from the Chicago area over Labor Day weekend so I could join the Ministry Grid team at Lifeway. Like any big move, there were a number of reasons for us to make the switch. By far, the biggest ones were these:
1) The direction Lifeway is heading under the leadership of Thom Rainer and the chance to work in the division led by Eric Geiger on a team led by Todd Adkins.
2) The chance to work with a team of aggressive, vision-oriented people on a project and resource which will directly benefit churches.
3) The opportunity to do the kind of work I truly enjoy for the purpose of directly serving pastors and church leaders and aiding their churches’ health and ministry.
None of that, though explains what Ministry Grid is. It is a church leadership and ministry training platform that just launched this week. Yesterday Trevin Wax posted a conversation with me about what Ministry Grid is and how churches can use it to train leaders.
Trevin Wax: First off, Barnabas, tell us what your role is with Ministry Grid
Barnabas Piper: I am the content marketing strategist for the Ministry Grid team. I work under Todd Adkins who is the Director of Leadership Development for Lifeway and the head of our team. My primary responsibilities are social media, the Ministry Grid blog, and developing news ways to use and share the wealth of content (video and written) we have.
Trevin Wax: In my experience, it seems like many pastors and church leaders think in terms of programs, and then they look for volunteers who can run the programs. Why is it important to train the people who serve in our churches, and how can this overcome an overly programmatic mindset for ministry?
Barnabas Piper:Programs can serve as valuable frameworks within churches, creating avenues for people to serve. But just as often they can limit a person’s effectiveness, kind of the way a menu tells what you can order at a restaurant but also limits your choices. Churches that have created a limited “menu” have essentially ruled out many people from using the unique gifts God has given them.
By emphasizing training – the development of gifts and calling to serve – churches are moving toward becoming a healthy body. Instead of having a limited number of pieces doing most of the work, it becomes a healthy whole with each person doing what God designed him or her to do.
Ministry Grid exists to help churches train every person and to do away with that limited menu of ministry options so that the whole church becomes a true body serving one another and ultimately serving Christ.
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