the Monday Morning Debrief: Setting yourself Apart
I saw this when my friend Barry Hill highlighted this. Barry’s a huge coffee connoisseur. This article highlights 10 unique neighborhood coffee shops. It was quite fascinating to read what made them all stand out in their neighborhoods.
So how does this apply to ministry?
Most churches have youth ministries (or some form of youth ministry). And most of them look basically the same with a traditional youth group on a Sunday or Wednesday night, a summer Bible camp or mission trip and a “sunday school hour” class. Not that I’m saying there is anything wrong with any of these things. But what I am wondering is, if every church is doing the same thing, what is the 1 thing we are doing that is setting us apart?
At New Life, we have an 83,000 sq. ft. indoor sports facility that we have at our disposal. That is something that sets us apart from any other church in the Washington DC area. It’s unique, different and definitely a draw. But the challenge I have is just because I have this facility to work with, doesn’t mean that whatever we do in ministry is an instant hit.
That is where I am reminded of what Jim Collins talked about in his book, “Good to Great”. He talks about being great at 1 particular thing. It doesn’t matter what that 1 thing is, what matters is that you are great at it and known for it. That is what sets you apart from the others and makes you unique. So for your ministry, what is that 1 thing that you are going to excel at and be known for?
TAKE A MINUTE and process through your ministry. What are you doing? Why are you doing it? And what is setting you apart from all the other youth ministries in your town? This isn’t a competition (our ministry vs. their ministry). But the more unique and different we are from each other, the better potential we have at reaching ALL students in the area for Christ. Remember, we all play on the same team. So let’s not go after the same players. Let’s be unique. Let’s be different. Let’s be great at it so that we can win students for Christ.
Thoughts, comments, questions, suggestions? Post something so that we can all learn from each other and benefit.
