Ministry Growth

The Process

The Creator of heaven and earth, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and End turned up on the shores of Galilee and looked at Simon (Peter) and His brother Andrew and said ‘follow me’. At that time, Peter had the priority of providing for his family. Yet Jesus called to him and he followed immediately. I sometimes wonder what went through Peter’s mind as he lay everything down — what would this mean? Did he worry about whether his family would be okay? He must have had so many unanswered questions, and yet he answered the call based on the speculation that this man that he had barely met might be the savior of the world.

Becoming Jesus’ apprentice was probably nothing like what they expected. I would imagine that they thought they would build a resistance force capable of rising up to overthrow the Roman occupying force. It must have been quite strange to watch the miracles of God’s power unfold. Their perception of what they might become was based on who Jesus was and what He meant to each of them, not in their own strength or abilities. Jesus was to reveal His kingdom through uneducated men and help them be expressions of His love through healing, restoring, and teaching others. They would become Jesus’ disciples and eventually be commissioned into leadership. They would go on to study how He lived and the motivation behind His actions. They would learn first-hand from the stories He told and ultimately walk in His authority, leading people into His kingdom. He would do all of this through freewill and love. Peter’s journey was not easy. Throughout his life and leadership, he would go on to struggle with a desire for power and control. He would fear for his life and deny Jesus. He would experience condemnation and judgment, he would do the wrong thing at the wrong time. Paul writes in Galatians how he had to correct Peter around 15 years after Jesus’ ascension into heaven. We are imperfect as Peter was imperfect, but that should not stop us from running a champion’s race of truth and love in Christ.

But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile believers, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. As a result, other Jewish believers followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.

When I saw that they were not following the truth of the gospel message, I said to Peter in front of all the others, “Since you, a Jew by birth, have discarded the Jewish laws and are living like a Gentile, why are you now trying to make these Gentiles follow the Jewish traditions? -Galatians 2:11-14

Jesus told Peter he was to be the foundation of His kingdom on earth. How courageous to put a broken, fearful, prideful man at the heart of His kingdom on earth! For Jesus, one simple understanding was all that mattered. Do you understand the power of His love that gives itself away so others might find His truth and life? It’s like God was saying, “I don’t care how much you mess up, I know your frailties and broken ways and I want to use you in spite of them.” You may go on to build a large business, ministry, or start a family, but what really matters is how deeply the love of God has entered into your heart. What matters most is intimacy with Him, which in turn leads to knowledge of our identity and inheritance in Him. Knowing Him deeply is a reality built by the small habits we form day-by-day. Will we turn back to Him and turn away from distractions? Or do we pursue our own agendas? If you can turn away from distraction, you can lead others into truth and allow God to use your ministry for eternal purposes. It is God’s heart to offer you an inheritance of a generational blessing because God uses those who lay their agendas down for His.

Realistic Expectations

A professor recently said to me that anxiety arises because of the difference between what one person’s mind believes should be happening versus the reality of what is actually happening. Realistic expectations are helpful, along with knowing yourself. If you are the type of person who has high expectations, be careful to give yourself increased levels of grace. There can be value in the way you see the world, but it’s important that your mind places reasonable expectations on how and when realistic goals can be achieved. The process of starting and growing an idea takes time and perseverance. You will experience high moments of financial increase and impacting lives, as well as lows that force you to question the reason and purpose behind it all. It’s often in the pain and suffering that His glory is revealed because we eventually get out of the way. It’s in our weakness that His love shines brightest. We are not going to have it all together on this journey, and that’s a good thing because our mess points us back to radical dependency and obedience to what He calls us to.

Product Development

In the first world, apps, Youtube, and new media platforms are changing the way we expect products and services to be offered. Companies often give us a sample of a product to demonstrate the difference it makes (ex., “Try out this one-week free trial!”) before we have to decide if it is something we should continue to put our time, energy, and resources into. Money-back guarantees, apps that entertain first and then offer credits, online games, tasting goods at Costco, a free oil change, the list is endless and it is all aimed at eliminating the risk associated with trying a new service or product. The goal, of course, is to get you hooked. Our world is saturated with daily messages promising resolution and hope in the next season through medication, health products, fitness fads, cars, real estate, investments or financial gain. The world is now a global market, making it increasingly competitive with greater challenges and larger opportunities for everyone.

“An idea is conceived and tested to see what impact it makes in someone’s life. It then goes into an improvement stage to develop the impact it has. The strategic marketing plan is refined as the distribution and production methods are developed. In the planning stage, revenue is forecast and preparations are made to cover the costs associated to ensure the operation can move forward month by month. It grows in popularity and revenue increases. New ideas are created during the growth stage as the first product hits saturation; new products rise up and the organization continues to grow as the company’s product range diversifies. One product’s popularity introduces other newer products or services to the market, leveraging them so they can have a faster growth pattern.”

Seedling Growth

Business Life Cycle Stages

https://www.slideteam.net/business-life-cycle-stages-powerpoint-slide-graphics.html

The Biggest Hurdle

The biggest gap we’ll ever cross is the distance between who we are in brokenness and who God has created us to be in Christ through redemption. We must address hidden fears and insecurities in order to overcome them in the pursuit of what God has called us to. Stepping out into faith does not feel comfortable. Once we have crossed this hurdle, we must choose humility when we are faced with the reality that we are all a work in progress and are walking through the refining process for the rest of our lives.

Often the initial piece that you create is not anything like the final piece; it evolves, it changes, it meets the needs of people in different ways, it births other products which could not have been discovered if the development stage had not been humbly worked through. We have to create a prototype, then ask people for their feedback, and then refine it. This process reveals any internal doubts we have. The facade of everything being okay within are laid bare and the negative self-talk increases. The only way forward is through the discomfort, applying perseverance and humility. It’s not easy to work through this stage but the payoff far outweighs the short term negative feelings we experience. We all have to work through this stage every time we create something new. The challenge is to identify the excuses that hold us back:

“I’m just waiting for…”

“Once I have…”

“I don’t have enough time…”

“I just need more money…”

“I just don’t think I’m that talented…”

“I’m not sure it’s for me…” These all are ultimately rooted in not feeling capable.

It’s likely true that you don’t have enough right now — enough experience, enough money, enough humility — but in time, you will. All you actually need is faith and perseverance. The best time to start is now. 99% of people will never get past the uncomfortable stage of creating something to be judged. So congratulations! You’ll be in the top 1 percent if you do. Is it possible to reframe failure as future success? The sooner you start failing, the sooner you’ll start succeeding. We must surrender our expectations, understand this as a process, and in time, the refining will give way to success.

The Creative Process

In the 21st century, we live at a speed once unimaginable. However, creativity operates best in downtime and in rest: mindless coloring, driving on a quiet road, sitting in nature, becoming present in a room with few distractions. We have a retreat monastery near us which operates in total silence. It opens its doors to guests to come and experience real silence. I suggested this once to a group of young adults, and the varying response was interesting. Some were keen while others went white at the concept of not having anything to distract them. Just the idea of 24 hours of being alone in their own thoughts was horrifying to some. Why was this? Silence and stillness are now perceived as negative things. But being still and living simply so often are the doorways to creativity.

Activate your creative brain by taking time out:

Left Brain Cognitive | Right Brain Creative

First: Develop the Product

Once you have a prototype, it will need to be tested in the market to access needed improvements. Ask the basic questions: What did people like about it? What were the challenges? The key to this vein of the process is to approach it with flexibility and willingness to morph, change, and evolve as necessary. Your initial prototype will most likely be quite different from your “end result” (or constantly moving/changing/morphing result).

Make Some Noise

Once you are ready to attract people to your ministry and you have a platform that explains the product/service clearly, then you will be tasked with making some noise. Imagine there is a person in a crowd who wants your product but they can’t hear you. Your challenge would be to make enough noise to be noticed. Once you make enough noise, you might then be able to explain who you are and what you do. Your “noise” will be worked out through communication strategy and general marketing.

Then they reached Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road. When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” “Be quiet!” many of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.” So they called the blind man. “Cheer up,” they said. “Come on, he’s calling you!” 50 Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “My Rabbi,” the blind man said, “I want to see!” And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road. - Mark 10:46-52

There is something powerful about the posture of recognizing our need for Jesus and shamelessly making noise that gets Jesus’ attention. The idea of making noise for Jesus is a good one, whether it be speaking about Him, creating something for Him, or helping those far from Him; while we cannot control the level of blessing He places on it, we can bring excellence and joy to the process of creating the product and making noise around it. Strategy to make noise in a world of marketing might include using tools such as:

• Per Posting or Article

• Newspaper article

• Retail shop

• Magazine article

• Exhibition

• Funnel website

• Blog exposure

• Craft fair

• Web advertising

• Website

• Vlog exposure

• Instagram post

• SEO

• Facebook post

• College fair

• Television ad

• Word of mouth

• Youtube video

• Networking

• Radio advert

• Wholesale contract

• Podcast advert

• Google advertising

The art is making as much noise as possible while spending as little money in the process as we can. This is especially true in the early start-up stages. Great marketing strategists will figure out what they can leverage with friends, word of mouth, the web, media, and PR. They’ll figure out what is topical and write articles that interest people and do promotions that catch the eye. They’ll gain access to bloggers, newspapers, and media platforms without spending a penny. They follow trends and are inquisitive in new ideas and concepts. Marketing is best looked at as an exploration of ideas geared toward connecting products and services to people’s needs in an efficient manner.

Word of Mouth is the Most Powerful Tool Today

If you are building a ministry, word of mouth and media will be your most powerful tools.

And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die.- Revelation 12:11

God allows His kids, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to testify as to who He is; we continue in His presence to talk of His goodness and love for all mankind. Imagine if the ministry or business you create has people so filled with the love of God that they cannot stop talking about how much it has impacted their lives. Jesus continues to save us from our broken ways, binding up our broken hearts, filling us with joy, teaching us to love others more sacrificially, to think about ourselves less and care about others’ needs more.