May I be blunt?
I don’t really have any interest in you learning for the sake of learning, though I’m the first to admit I have a teacher’s heart.
I’m more interested in what you and your team are going to do with the skills, tactics, and tools we discuss.
Keeping this in mind, let’s look at three common misconceptions of the stages of growth and how to be mindful during the process in order to achieve the greatest outcome for your organization.
Resources
A lot of what we talk about in development is resources…or the lack thereof.
God makes it clear He has all the resources. “Everything on earth and heaven is mine.”
If this is true, which we believe it is, and we take Him at His Word, why is it in ministry we struggle so much to get resources? This can be frustrating, daunting, and challenging for leaders. I’ve yet to encounter a line of people running out the boardroom door dying to get involved in helping raise money.
So why do we struggle?
We don’t have a resource problem. We have a people problem.
Our problems are people problems because God uses His people to bring His resources to bare for His work, that He calls us to. He uses people. He works through people, whether they’re giving, serving, or out there communicating.
Money vs. Movement
If we’re being honest, most people, including leaders on staff, but particularly board members, don’t truly want to get involved with raising money. This goes back to their initial reasons for getting involved in your ministry. People get involved because of an organization’s mission – the life impact and the desire to bring it about, to see it happen.
So, where does that leave us?
We must shift the paradigm.
We raise money because it’s fuel. Money fuels us forward. Giving is the fuel that drives the mission forward.
Draw the line. Make the distinction. The mission is the mission. The vision for lives is the vision. Giving is what keeps the momentum moving in a forward direction.
Redefine Development
A leader once asked me how I would define development in one sentence.
Development is the discipline of growing real relationships with people, helping them see what God is doing, and then challenging them to have the impact that only they can have.
Notice it doesn’t say anything about raising money.
Development is a discipline for growing something.
You can only raise money for two things: saving lives and changing lives.
Self-assess which area to tackle first and bring your growing pains into focus. I encourage you to work as a team to adjust your trajectory. Remember, this won’t self-correct; you can’t afford for a growth mindset revolving around auto pilot.
Keep me in the loop. Let me know how these minor adjustments lead to major gains.
If you are struggling with where to even begin with all of this information, go back to your strategy statement. We have created a Strategy Statement tool just for you! Click here to download it and get started.