This Christian Life

Good Ministry the Enemy of the Best?

by Dick Sterken

The leaders in our church have been discussing Peter Scazzero’s book, The Emotionally Healthy Church. Last night we dealt with the issue of limits – understanding our own limits and those of our church is important to help keep leadership from becoming over-committed and eventually burning out. Some of our current ministries were discussed, as well as possible future ministries.

At one point, the facilitator (our associate pastor of discipleship) remarked that while the ideal model for ministry would involve one-on-one discipleship, this is not practical because the church never has enough mentors. So instead we settle for ‘good’ programs or ministries that address the immediate needs. An example is our singles and grad students ministry – the single folks in our church would each love to have an older couple that would mentor them, encourage them, and provide wisdom and guidance. Since only two couples have signed up, and we have sixty singles, we’ll probably settle for a ‘Singles Ministry’ that becomes the responsibility of one or two couples.

In response to this, someone pointed out that forsaking the ‘best’ (one-on-one discipleship) and settling for an inferior solution may actually make the problem worse! Again, using the singles as an example: once the ministry begins, couples who really should be involved in discipling a single can just say, ‘Let the Singles Ministry handle that.’ On the other hand, if there was no ministry, singles that were not able to find a mentor may eventually leave the church. While that seems harsh, it would hopefully spur the congregation to get involved in discipleship when they see the consequences of their inaction.

What do you think? Do some church ministries actually encourage apathy? Is one-on-one discipleship the standard we should strive for in ministry?