“I can’t do this on my own.”

I have heard many pastors utter these words.

The expectations, even the self-imposed expectations, placed on church leaders are often great while the resources to meet them are often small. And, this type of reality emphasizes the need for a team. The solo leader will rarely meet their goals or the goals of their church. They’ll instead find themselves frustrated, defeated, and burnt out.

The expectations, even the self-imposed expectations, placed on church leaders are often great while the resources to meet them are often small. And, this type of reality emphasizes the need for a team.

Maybe you’ve been trying to do it all on your own and have realized that it’s just too much for a single person to handle. Maybe you’ve suddenly been tasked with creating a stewardship ministry and are trying to figure out your next step. Or maybe you’ve created a ministry team before but found the group to be constantly running in circles and never really accomplishing much.

Whether you are putting a team together for the first time or trying to figure out what went wrong with a prior team, let me encourage you to consider the importance of the team makeup.

Frequently, a church leader’s team consists of people with similar personalities and skill sets to himself or herself. And this is not surprising—we are naturally attracted to those like us. Dreamers like to be surrounded by dreamers. But don’t miss out on the gift of being surrounded by those who are not like you.

While similar personalities and skill sets may create fun conversations, they can hinder a team’s ability to move forward. As you develop a team, it is important to have complimentary team members, with varying personalities and skill sets, to help accomplish the ministry’s mission.

As you develop your ministry team, here are four types of people to consider:

1. The Dreamer

Dreamers tend to be enthusiastic idealists. This is the person who is not afraid to throw a new idea out there. Sure, their dreams can become slightly unrealistic at times, but that is okay. By this person pushing the limits with out-of-the-box ideas, they help the group consider ministry strategies that wouldn’t have been discussed otherwise and, potentially, go after goals they would have never considered.

2. The Developer

This is the person who is able to turn a dream into a reality. Like the dreamer, they can be highly creative, but their creativity is expressed differently. They like thinking through content and presentation. Developers are the ones who answer the questions, “How are we going to do this?” and “What will it look like?”

3. The Organizer

Hello, spreadsheets! The organizer likes to consider structure. They enjoy organizing people and events. While the dreamer may be perceived as inefficient at times, the organizer is highly efficient. The organizer tends to be a great go-between person for the developer and the implementer.

4. The Implementer

In any group, you need someone who ensures that things get done. Implementers tend to work well with the organizer in the group. And even though they are execution driven and direct, they are very people oriented. They enjoy checking in and following up with others.

 

Whether you are tasked with leading a stewardship ministry or any other church ministry, don’t go at it alone. Invite others on the journey. Build a team of complimentary individuals who can far exceed what you will be able to accomplish on your own.