This post is part of the Foundations Of Youth Ministry series.  Check out the rest of the series!

A couple of days ago, I wrote an article on Why You Need To Develop A Philosophy of Ministry.

In that post I discussed four things that having a philosophy of ministry will help you with:  effectiveness, passion, organization and intentionality.

Today, I’d like to share with you my current philosophy of ministry.  This is always open to change for me, because I want to make sure that my philosophy grows with me as I grow.  Here is my most recent version:

Initiated Through Prayer

The church cannot exist without prayer.  I pray for the congregation both as a whole and individually.  Prayer is a necessity for any ministry to continue God’s work effectively.  Prayer needs to be focused in two major areas:  ministry and personal life.  Each aspect of ministry, each program and event needs to be bathed in prayer.  Each and every person needs prayer regularly as a portion of ministry, as well.

The personal aspect of prayer is focused on building my relationship with God continually.  I desire to continually grow closer to Christ, and the only way to achieve that closeness is through prayer.  My prayer life consists of speaking as well as listening to God.  My desire is to continually give him every portion of my life and myself.  One of the greatest tools to accomplish this is the book of Psalms.

Lived Inside-Out

Our innermost being, that part of us that is closest to God, must be an area of our lives that is visible to others.  Transparency and intimacy with God need to be the hallmarks of my life.  My goal is to live this way as much as possible, and encourage others to do the same.  This will be evident in the way I interact with others and consider all others ahead of myself.  One of the best passages in the Bible explaining how to live a life inside out is the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).  Other helpful texts are Matthew 23 (how not to live!) and Mark 1:35.

Oriented In Equipping Others

I feel that my strongest areas are found in serving teens, by  befriending, encouraging, teaching, and discipling.  I believe that God has also given me some discerning ability and some skills in organization and administration as well.  A significant amount of my time needs to be focused on these strengths in order to be as effective in the Body of Christ as possible.  Passages that support this are found in Ephesians 4:11-12; Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12-14; and 1 Peter 4:10-11.

Centered On Evangelism

Christ has charged his Church with the mission of evangelism.  I feel that this is the Church’s main mission as well as my own.  Although I do not see myself as particularly gifted in this area, I do have a passion to see others come to know Christ and give him lordship over their lives.  I strive to evangelize with my life, my actions, and my words.  And we are called to teach and equip others to do the same.  Classic texts on Christ’s commission to the Church are found in Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:8.

Making Disciples

One of the best and most effective ways to bring another person to maturity in Christ is through personalized one-on-one instruction.  God has called me to do this and to equip others to do the same.  Relationships are a primary vehicle God has given us to accomplish discipling.  It requires integrity and commitment.  Yet out of this instruction come leaders with integrity that follow 1 Timothy 3; Titus 1:6-9; and 1 Peter 5:1-3.  Other passages that support this are found in Colossians 1:28-29 and 2 Timothy 2:2.

Pastorally Shaped

The pastoral aspect of ministry is sometimes very different from the teaching/equipping side of ministry.  Love is a major part of pastoring.  I have to love enough to forgive.  I have to love enough to confront and discipline.  I have to love enough to comfort.  God desires us to rejoice when others rejoice, and to weep when they weep.  I do not feel that my strengths lie in areas of in-depth counseling.  But ministry requires some of that.  I will do my best to recognize when it is time to refer a person in need to a professional, and to recognize what I am able to assist with.  I do have a genuine love for people and a desire to pray for them and with them.  Biblical texts that support this area of ministry are Acts 20:13-35; John 21:15-17; Matthew 18:15-20; and Galatians 6:1-5.

Youth Focused

The Word of God accomplishes what God wants it to accomplish. His Word will never return void.  My task is now, and will be, as long as God allows me time, to bring out its full meaning with conviction, clarity, relevance, and love to teens and families of teens.  This is my passion. God has given me the freedom to be who I am and to be creative in my approach to ministry, and to be wholly his.  Passages that reveal and explain this desire to teach his Word are 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5; Romans 10:14-17; 2 Timothy 3:10-4:5; and Galatians 6:1-5.

Church Honoring

Jesus set the example by showing a very deep love for his Church, and I will strive to keep a strong love for it as well.  I see evangelism, equipping, and edification as the main purposes of the Church.  And because of my allegiance to Christ, I will continually strive to be faithful in my service to the Church.  I believe that the Church is in constant need of renewal and restoration to keep people living for God.  I will seek to encourage this in the Church and strive to encourage it in my family as well.  Passages revealing Christ’s love and commitment to his church, as well as his connection to it, include Matthew 16:13-20 and Ephesians 5:22-23.

I think this serves as a good example of a solid philosophy of ministry.  Is it perfect? Of course not.  Because I am not perfect.  There is plenty of room for improvement and growth.  But after over twenty years of development, I’ve been able to take my philosophy and tweak it into something that helps direct my the “why” behind my ministry.  I hope it helps you as well.

This is what I’ve developed over the past several years.  What would you add to this philosophy of ministry?  Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.