background checks – screening, check-in and out, incident reports, lockdown plans, evacuation plans, transportation safety policies, financial safeguards, classroom policies, emergency preparedness, first aid procedures, rest room policies, liability insurance, etc.

Don’t all these safety precautions display a lack of trust in God’s ability to protect?

Commonsense tells us that if we take precautions in our homes, workplaces, and vehicles that we should also secure the house of worship.  It doesn’t make sense to park our brain at the door when we enter the church building.

But, let’s not rely on commonsense.  Let’s look to God’s Word.  Isn’t it possible, and even biblical, to trust God and take precautions?  Before you make a judgment, consider verses like Proverbs 3:5-6.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

“ALL your ways” would include seeking after Him in both proactive and reactive measures to safety.  Taking safety precautions does not have to mean we are leaving God out of the issue.

Here are some questions to take into consideration:

1. What does it mean to be a steward of that which is entrusted to you?

We have an accountability to God to not only faithfully use what God has given us to His glory but also in how we treat one another.  (1 Pet. 5:1-4; Titus 1:7)

2. In what areas of life does God expect and encourage us to exercise wisdom and discernment?

When Jesus sent His disciples out into ministry He said, “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd (wise) as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matt. 10:16).  Naivety and Christianity are not synonymous.

3. What would Jesus do or say about this?

Matthew 4 records Satan suggesting that it was okay for Jesus to put Himself in physical jeopardy because God would protect Him.  Jesus replies, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

4. What are church leadership’s responsibilities in shepherding the flock?

One of responsibilities of a shepherd is to protect or guard the flock.  (Acts 20:28-30; 2 Tim. 1:14)

5. How high of a standard should the church hold to?

1 Thessalonians 5:22 commands us to “avoid every kind of evil.”

6. How do we show people that we truly love them?

According to 1 Corinthians 13:7, love “always protects”

7. How far should we take the protection?

In the church we must not only look out for physical safety but also spiritual safety “for our struggle is not against flesh and blood” (Eph. 6:12-13).  If we were to look at all the body life and one another passages of Scripture, as well as verses pertaining to how we are made in the image of God, we would also have to conclude that safety must extend to the emotional, mental, and social realms as well as spiritual and physical safety.

The Classroom Safety Issues Worksheet helps teachers take a holistic approach to safety.

Yes, trust in the Lord to protect but also do all of the above.  We must follow the whole of Scripture.

Are you a teacher?   — Teach on purpose.
Are you a children’s worker?  — Discipline on purpose.
Are you a ministry leader?  — Lead on purpose.

The whole of our lives, not just our ministry, should line up with God’s purposes.   Living life with purpose makes a difference.

Imagine if all the people that come to your church would live their individual daily lives more on purpose.  Can you begin to fathom the impact that everybody living life with purpose would have on your church’s life and on the lost world around us? 

For that to happen:

1. You can teach on Living Life with Purpose but a curriculum alone will not be sufficient to change people’s lives.
2. The Spirit of God must take the truth of God and work His purposes in our hearts.
3. Prayer must envelop your church’s life.  “Be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints” (Eph. 6:18).
4. Leaders and teachers must provide good models of what it is to live life on purpose.
5. We must intentionally nurture our personal walk with the Lord so love for God spills over into loving others.

I asked if you could fathom the impact it would have on your church if everybody in your church would live their individual daily lives more on purpose.  It has to begin somewhere.  May it begin with you and me!

1. Prayer allows us to have intimate communion with the Lover of our souls as He delights in spending time with us.
    
   Ministry is empty without this connection.  John 15 draws the parallel to Jesus being a vine and us the branches.  In verse five Jesus emphasized the importance of such a connection when He said, “apart from me you can do nothing.” 
    
2. Prayer enables us to work in cooperation with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords as we get involved in the lives of people in our communities, across the nation, and around the world without even having to leave home.
    
   Ephesians 6 pulls back the curtain to the spirit world to help us understand the battle going on around us.  Verse sixteen concludes, “With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
    
3. Prayer gives us a means of showing compassion toward other believers and the world around us as we take them and their needs to a God who cares and can help them far more than we could ever hope to do ourselves.
    
   Read through the Apostle Paul’s letters for the many prayers he offered on behalf of those He served and you will sense not only his desire for them to walk close to God but also a heart of love.

Of course, the list could continue.  I just wanted to share a few reasons we don’t always think about in conjunction with ministry.  These three reasons alone are enough for me to ask, “How Can We Not Pray?

I have long looked at Ephesians 4:16 as God’s blueprint for church growth and ministry. As I wrote before, I believe this One Verse Says It All. 

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Notice that growth happens “as each part does its work.”  The part we have is tied into our spiritual gifts as seen in the context of Ephesians 4:16.

The Potential

In looking at the phrase “as each part does its work” in an exposition of Ephesians 4:16 I wrote,

 The word “as” denotes the measuring rod to which we will see this kind of growth and edification in the Body. Growth will be in proportion to “as each part does its work.

The Problem

In today’s world, people are so busy.  They are often stressed out.  Getting busy, stressed out people involved, doing their part, can be a challenge so we must ask if God’s blueprint is still relevant.

In today’s world, people are increasingly becoming disillusioned with the church.  Really, it seems to be the institutionalized church with which people have a problem but disillusioned people tend to have difficulty distinguishing between the organized church and the organism that is the church.  How do you get disillusioned people involved, doing their part?  Is God’s blueprint still relevant? 

The Perspective

What today’s people do or believe is not what makes truth relevant.  The Word of God is as life-oriented and powerful today as it was years ago.    Certainly an omniscient God knew what the people would be like today when is laid out His blueprint for church growth and ministry.

The Passion

I believe it is going to take a renewed passion in pastors and ministry leaders to take God’s Word about this so seriously that they are willing to stay the course regardless of the obstacles and setbacks that grow out of the problem.  If pastors and ministry leaders feel God’s blueprint is no longer relevant, they will have little motivation to put their all into meeting people where they are.  If you don’t meet people where they are, you are going to have a difficult time taking them to where they should be.

The Persistence

Teaching about God’s design, using a curriculum like Everybody Has a Part, is only a starting point.  This emphasis needs to become part your church’s culture and that takes persistence.

Getting everybody on board takes time.  Sometimes you must first disciple people, one person at a time.  Going through this process takes persistence.

People are at different places in this process so we need to take an individualized approach to meeting people’s needs and spurring them on to doing their parts.

And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.  (1 Thess. 5:14)

We live in a world where corruption and self-centered politics are everywhere, including the church.  The expectation, however, is that the church should be exempt and so disillusionment comes with the resultant attitude of “why bother?”  Problems in the church, however, are nothing new.  Read through the New Testament Epistles and you will encounter a church that was far from perfect. 

The harsh reality is that we live in a fallen world.  Though redeemed, Christians still must contend with the old sin nature.  Read Romans 7 for a good description of that inner battle.  If not walking in the Spirit, Christians too can fall into temptation and live for self; hence the need for true fellowship.  We need to be spurring one another on rather than spurning one another.  We are all a work in progress.

How can we help disillusioned people want to fellowship?

1. Do not be afraid to apologize for wrongs done in the church, to ask for forgiveness.  Worse than making a mistake is being too proud to admit it.
2. Be patient, kind, and respectful toward them.  Criticizing them for how they feel will probably only make it worse.
3. Be an example.  Model forgiveness and true fellowship.
4. Teach on the role of forgiveness in relationships.
5. Work at reconciliation and restoration among believers before irreparable damage is done (Phil. 4:2-3).  What one or two people do can affect people’s perception of the whole church.
6. Compel them with the irresistible love of Jesus.  Let His love flow through you so much that people want more. “Perfect love drives out fear” (1 Jn. 4:8).
7. Don’t give up on them.  You’ll only be living up to their expectations if you do.

More:

• Does True Fellowship Need to be Restored in the Church?
• Church Fellowship Ideas in a High Tech, Low Touch World
• Ideas for Getting Busy People to Engage in True Fellowship
• Stressed Out People Need True Fellowship

We do live in a stress-filled world.  Fearing that fellowship with others will further burden them, some people will isolate themselves.  What this actually shows is a lack of understanding about true fellowship. 

Scripture is filled with passages about how we are to be relating to “one another.”  The Greek word for “one another” is allelon which denotes a mutual, reciprical relating one to the other.  The goal is that we build one another up, not become a drag on each other.  “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Prov. 27:17). 

How can we help stress-filled people step outside of themselves and into true fellowship?

1. Teach about God’s design of the church being that of interdependence.  Emphasize that the one another passages are about a mutual, reciprical relating one with the other.  True fellowship is a two-way street.
2. Set time limits for each person to share when breaking into smaller groups or pairs.  Signal when it should be time to switch focus onto the other person.
3. If you have “needy” people in your small group, do not be afraid to put a cap on their sharing so they do not monopolize the time.  When you do that, however, it should come with a promise to speak one-on-one after group time if the need remains.  You do not want anyone to feel ignored.  If you allow someone to monopolize the group with their needs, it could be discouraging for others who then do not have opportunity to share.
4. Provide other forums like support groups or one-on-one counseling for those who can’t seem to step outside of themselves enough to care about the needs of others.  Make the objective of such groups that of helping people become fully functioning members of the body, not to wallow in their problems.

More:

• Does True Fellowship Need to be Restored in the Church?
• Church Fellowship Ideas in a High Tech, Low Touch World
• Getting Disillusioned People to Open Themselves to True Fellowship
• Ideas for Getting Busy People to Engage in True Fellowship

• How sad when they leave unchanged!
• How sad when it’s like they were never there!

Perhaps they came with burdens that seemed too heavy to bear.  Maybe they came with a bad habit or sin they just can’t overcome.

• How sad when they leave unchanged!
• How sad when it’s like they were never there!

People may have come empty spiritually.  Perhaps they came never having put trust in the Lord to save them.

• How sad when they leave unchanged!
• How sad when it’s like they were never there!

You have probably heard it said, “Aim at nothing and you’ll hit it every time.”  As ministry leaders and teachers, we must be prayerful and purposeful in all we do to see people leaving changed and obvious that they were there.

1. We must purposefully be the kind of leaders or teachers who make a difference.  – We must be prepared and be a model of the power of God at work in a person’s life.
2. We must purposefully work at connecting with the whole person who walked through the door.  — We must help them know the unconditional and all-encompassing love of the Lord that reaches into every aspect of their lives.
3. We must purposefully present God’s Word as the life changing, powerful Book it is.  – We must get them beyond head knowledge to heart knowledge that affects all they do.
4. We must purposefully seek people’s participation in the process.  – We must encourage them to engage with truth and one another rather than be passive bystanders.

Here are tools to help:

The Aiming for Empty-less Teaching Teacher Training Session can be used with a group of teachers or small group leaders to discuss what it will take to see people leaving changed and obvious that they were there.

The article, Teaching for Changed Lives, uses an acrostic to show how people need to be changed from the inside out.

The Teaching for Changed Lives Workbook is a self-study guide encouraging teachers to set changed lives as the goal of each lesson.

The Christian Education Leadership Team Training is a session to help you get all of your Christian Education leaders working toward the same goal — that of seeing changed lives — and to understand what it will take to progressively move forward toward that goal, or to keep that “wheel” rolling.