Team Development - Part 1

Praying for Clarity of Your Purpose

For the sake of this column we will assume that you already have a daily routine of meeting with God for personal growth and guidance. If not, please talk to a spiritual mentor about exciting ways to seek God according to your personality.

You know the emergency instructions reviewed each time you board an airplane. If the cabin pressure changes, those little toy-looking air masks will drop down. If you are traveling with someone who needs assistance, who gets air first? YOU! Why? Because you can’t help anyone if you pass out.

The same concept applies to Team Development. You cannot assist others in understanding their role on the team without first establishing clarity of your role.

Your individual purpose is, most likely, not the same as the vision or purpose for the ministry itself.

For example, when I was a volunteer women’s ministry director in a church with weekend attendance of 1700, the stated purpose of the women’s ministry was:

to assist women in getting to know God in such a way that
their daily life becomes a divine experience

The role of the women’s ministry director was:

To encourage the women God calls to the team
to use their giftedness as He desires

Alone, I could not assist a large number of women in getting to know God. However, I could encourage a team of gifted women called by God according to the gifts he placed in me.

Seek God’s guidance with these questions to help you clarify your role.

• What unique passion, gifts and/or desires has God given you for leading a team?
• Are you a big-picture motivating leader or an in-the-details working leader?
• How can you best assist others in their giftedness?
• What does God want to teach you in this experience?
• Have you noticed a specific scripture or recurring topic in your quiet times?

Staying focused on your individual purpose will allow others to respond to God’s calling on their life. This brings about unity and it provides clarity for the world to see the Body of Christ at work.

May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. John 17:23

Articles to Come:
Team Development – Part 2: Your Ministry’s Spot in the Big Picture
Team Development – Part 3: Flip the Organizational Chart
Team Development – Part 4: Work with What You Have
Team Development – Part 5: Healthy Team Meetings