Enlisting Your Class Care Team
There was a time when being asked to serve in a church or group was considered a high honor. It was acknowledgement that potential had been seen in the individual. In fact, many were eager to serve as part of the class care team. Mass enlistment efforts often produced plentiful results.
Those days are over. People are busy, often too busy. Pulpit announcements of leadership needs seldom produce worthwhile results. People have been trained to say “no” quickly.
Because of the current leadership shortage, good enlistment steps are seldom followed. Prayer is often quick or missing. Pressure to fill an empty position too often leads to acceptance of warm bodies rather than God-called individuals.
It does not have to be that way. I want to share some simple steps. Fight the pressure to rush. Follow God’s leadership. Start small and do it right. Be persistent, and watch what He does! In Part 1, I will share the first two of four steps for enlisting your class care team.
Step 1: Pray and wait
In Matthew 9, we read about Jesus doing ministry in all the towns and villages. In response to what He was seeing, we read:
When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
Matthew 9: 36-38, CSB
Notice, Jesus did not command the disciples (and us) to bring all the potential leaders to Him. He did not say: do a survey to discover spiritual gifts. No, he said to pray to the Lord of the harvest, and He would be the one who would send the workers needed.
Plain and simple: your job is to pray for workers. Have you prayed? Are you praying, believing He will answer your prayer? Or are you trying to do His work for Him? Pray, believe He will send them, and then watch to see Him at work. Sometimes we need to learn patience. And so, we wait for God to send the leader(s) we need.
The season of prayer may be long or short. At times, I have prayed and immediately God provided the answer for my enlistment need. Let me be clear: in my experience quick answers are uncommon. But the right leader is always worth the wait. So be patient as you pray for the workers He will send.
Step 2: Watch
While you are praying, look around in the group and beyond the group. Is God at work in someone? Did He bring someone to you or to your awareness. Did another leader talk to you about someone? Without sharing the focus of your prayer, did an individual share what God has laid on his/her heart? Watch. Listen.
As you watch, take your observations to the Lord in prayer. Allow Him to lead. Don’t get ahead of Him. Remember, the disciples Jesus called did not look like world changers, but they were! Watch where God is at work in individuals and join God there.
In Part 2, we will look at the last two of four steps of enlistment. To learn even more about the impact of care teams, get a copy of my book, Caring: Caring for Members and Friends in Sunday School and Bible Study Groups. Pray and wait. Watch. Join God. Make disciples. Be revolutionary!
Photo by Olivia Snow on Unsplash
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