You Don’t Need Our Permission…

Orginally published on Monday, October 29, 2007 at 6:16 AM
by Todd Rhoades

I was reading through the most recent issue of Fast Company magazine. I found myself very interested in an article on the growth of the internet site Facebook.com. What caught my attention was a quote by Facebook’s young CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He said, “We want a system where anyone can develop without having our permission. There are things that we will never think of.” Of course, I read that quote and immediately thought, "What would the church look like if we allowed people to develop ministries that fit our vision that we could never think of."

To a certain extent, I think this happens some in the church today.  I remember reading a recent newspaper article about the Canine Ministry at Mariners Church in Irvine, CA.  Yes, that’s right… a canine ministry.  According to Sheree King, an outreach director at Mariners, “"They (the dogs) are able to break down walls that we often can’t. The dogs facilitate relationships. They start a conversation.”

According to the newspaper article in the LA Times, the program began eight years ago when Paul Bogenrief, now 60, visited the church Sunday school with Sadie III, his golden retriever. Some of the small children found the dog’s presence comforting, so he started taking her there every week. The dog ministry expanded to other places. Today it consists of eight dogs ‘ministering’ at events like the monthly birthday parties for poor residents at a local nursing home.  They also help with foster kids, preside over learning programs in which children are more comfortable reading to the dogs than to adults and act as canine comfort counselors at church mountain camps. And they’re helping break down barriers with people so that the gospel can be shared.

I doubt that any of the Mariner’s paid staff EVER thought of having a ministry that would work in this way.  But they did have a system that gave people the power to dream and develop without having their permission.  The result was a vital ministry that the church would have most certainly never thought of.

Does your church allow people to dream up new ministries?  Does the vision you as a leader paint excite people to think of new ways that you might carry that mission out?
What would happen if you gave your people the opportunity to develop and dream about ministry?
My guess… they would come up with things that you would never, in your wildest dreams, ever imagine.  And some of those things might be vital in carrying our your mission.

That’s something to think about!

Have a great week!

Todd

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Hi... I'm Todd Rhoades. I'm a Christ-follower, husband, father and I love to connect leaders with other leaders. Hopefully you'll find something here at MMI you like and will return often. If you want, you can find out more about me or follow my every step on Twitter.

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