Ministry doesn’t always go as expected. Parenting doesn’t always produce the results you hoped for. Relationships don’t always go smoothly.
Rather than giving up or despairing, see if you can get to the root of what went wrong. Sometimes we merely deal in symptoms rather than the real issue. Then we wonder why lasting change doesn’t come. We may be applying the wrong solutions because we are staying on the surface. Take time to ask, “What’s at the Root?”
Examples of Getting to the Root Issue
These examples will not cover everything you might face. And, the root cause in these various situations could be different in your case.
- A ministry event or class didn’t go well.
Surface: It was a bad idea so I won’t do that again.
Root: Perhaps you didn’t invest sufficient time into planning and/or praying.
Solution: Learn to set priorities, to better manage your time, and be prepared. Always pray.
Resource: Time Management for Teachers Worksheet
- People are getting disillusioned with serving in the Church.
Surface: They don’t love the Lord as they should so we’ll teach/preach more to build their faith and love.
Root: Maybe people aren’t doing what lines up with their spiritual gifting, passions, and personality.
Solution: Help people find their best fit in ministry.
Resource: Finding Your Best Fit in Ministry Book
- Children don’t sit still and pay attention to the Bible lesson.
Surface: Kids are so disrespectful today so I will have to discipline them more.
Root: Possibly you aren’t teaching in accordance with their age level developmental need for activity.
Solution: Use more hands-on Bible learning activities.
Resource: Age Level Teacher Training Resources
- God doesn’t seem to be answering your prayers.
Surface: God doesn’t care so it doesn’t matter if I pray.
Root: Maybe you aren’t praying in keeping with God’s character or will.
Solution: Learn more about God and His Word.
Article: Power in Prayer as We Adhere to Biblical Principles on Praying
- Some people in your church who claim to be Christians aren’t safe to around.
Surface: They don’t belong here so we’ll be more protective until they leave.
Root: Perhaps people haven’t been discipled as they should.
Solution: Follow the Great Commission to its fullest extent which takes people beyond getting saved to spiritually growing and obeying Him as Lord of their lives.
Article: Safety Because of the Great Commission
- People are so busy and it’s affecting recruitment and the fulfillment of Body Life as God designed it.
Surface: People aren’t putting God first so we’ll teach/preach more about prioritizing God and His will.
Root: Possibly they don’t have good role models of how to live in ways that prioritize what’s most important.
Solution: Begin with yourself and your church to control your schedule so it is more purposeful and considerate.
Articles: Purposeful Scheduling and Considerate Scheduling
Your child keeps falling back into the same bad behavior even though you keep disciplining.
Surface: I’m not being hard enough on him/her so I’ll enforce stricter consequences.
Root: Maybe the child is harboring resentment, hurts, or anger.
Solution: Focus on the heart, not just the behavior.
Resource: Parenting is Heart Work (Clicking on this link will take you to one of our affiliate stores.)
Whatever the circumstance, ask God to get you beyond the surface to the root cause. Continue to pray about it to determine the best course of action based on the real issue. Look for resources that can help you learn and grow in this area.
In our church we’ve people coming back again and again for monetary help. The boards solution is make policy putting boundaries on how many times the same person can get help from the church cause on the surface they feel they’re taking advantage of us. I think the root is more their needs for help managing money. Some out of job need help learning skills.
Thanks, Chet, for another good example. It reminds me of the proverb, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Policies might be necessary sometimes but if we fail to get to the root of the problem, we aren’t truly helping people.