"10 Things" for Starting a Ministry

Actually, this is Gary Lamb's "10 Things I Wish I'd Known When I First Started Church Planting", but I'm guessing they may be fairly applicable to any ministry start.

1. Be secure in your calling . . .

2. People who come one time and act like you are the greatest thing in the world, want to sign up for everything after one visit, talk about how they are called to ministry after one visit, etc are the ones that won’t last long. It happens every time.

3. You can NEVER cast vision too much. Volunteers do what they do because of the vision, not because they need something else on their schedule.

4. Small groups are a lot of work and NO ONE is doing them well especially if they are reaching unchurched people. However when they run right there is nothing greater.

5. Who you do this thing with is so important. Do it with friends and people you enjoy being around.

6. Don’t be afraid to talk about money. The bible talks a lot about it and it is part of spiritual growth. Big vision takes big money and God uses people to fund that vision.

7. Be yourself. The world doesn’t need another Ed Young, Andy Stanley, Rob Bell, or Erwin McManus. It does however need you to be you and who God created you to be.

8. Don’t be afraid to lose people. I never want to see people go, but there are times when people need to leave and in the early days I was too afraid to lose people that I kept people around that needed to leave.

9. Take time off!!!! Starting a church is a marathon, not a sprint. You are in this thing for the long haul so take care of your body, your mind, your soul, your marriage, and your family now where you can be doing this thing later.

10. Enjoy the ride. Quit worrying about the next growth barrier, the other churches in town, the critics, etc. Just enjoy what God is doing. Stop and smell the roses. If you don’t do it now, you never will. Keep pushing to reach more people, but enjoy what is happening while it is happening.

I'm not a church planter, but #'s 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 resonate strongly with me.

For you planters or church founders (or other ministry veterans), what are your "things you wish you'd known"?

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