PLACE Ministries Blog » Engagement http://www.placeministries.org/blog Finding Your Place in Life and Ministry Tue, 18 Jan 2011 15:31:09 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Measuring Effectiveness and Maximizing Giftedness http://www.placeministries.org/blog/2010/02/measuring-effectiveness-and-maximizing-giftedness/ http://www.placeministries.org/blog/2010/02/measuring-effectiveness-and-maximizing-giftedness/#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:12:59 +0000 Lisa Baker http://www.placeministries.org/blog/?p=110 The easiest way to measure results is by counting numbers. Any church staff person knows that numbers will be due every year, every quarter, every month and even weekly. But so much more takes place in ministry than numbers, lines and columns can calculate. How do we measure effectiveness adequately?

To further measure effectiveness we have to hear the stories. At Brentwood Baptist Church we take periodic staff meetings and Sunday morning worship services to share what God is doing in the lives of our church members. We hear stories like this one:

My wife and I moved back to TN in 2007 and searched everywhere for a church (didn’t think we’d ever find one). We visited Brentwood Baptist Church      with some friends and liked everything about it. Even our kids loved it. After attending for two years we decided to become members. Part of the            membership process was taking PLACE. Through the PLACE assessments I recognized my Artistic Ability. In my coaching session I decided to get involved in BBC’s orchestra. I’ve always wanted to be a musician. It is what God wrote on my heart even as a young boy. I’ve played guitar since I was 13, but life threw some curves my way and I had to take a different career path. I’ve always been frustrated not being able to express myself through my true passion of music in my regular full time job. PLACE has been truly rewarding as it has given me an outlet to express my true self through music and live out my God given talents in the church. If I were any happier doing what I do at BBC there would have to be two of me. Now I am living out Jesus’ purpose for me in music and worship.

Dennis Mihalek

In Dennis’ case, there was an immediate ministry that was fulfilling to him. Sometimes the match isn’t as clear, so to maximize giftedness we have Leadership Identification Meetings so BBC’s staff can share who PLACE has sent their way and how they have connected the participants or not. By coming together as a staff and talking and praying over these individuals, many times we think of other ways to connect people. Generally people who are connected are not people who are slipping out the back door.

• Stories measure what numbers sometime cannot.

• Sharing, talking, praying and putting our heads together help maximize the giftedness God has sent out way.

]]> http://www.placeministries.org/blog/2010/02/measuring-effectiveness-and-maximizing-giftedness/feed/ 0 Experiences of Joy http://www.placeministries.org/blog/2009/10/experiences-of-joy/ http://www.placeministries.org/blog/2009/10/experiences-of-joy/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:34:20 +0000 Ginger McSwain http://www.placeministries.org/blog/?p=81 The joy of the Lord is my strength” was the song of encouragement and prayer I sang to the girls this morning as we drove to school.  Their second day in a new school.  Their countenances and spirits were understandably a bit low….(not to mention their mama’s!).   But as I think about their feelings over the past few weeks transitioning from homeschool to public school I realized how often I’ve felt the very same things they’re feeling….but in ministry.  More than once over the past 15 years of volunteering in my local church I’ve experienced the excitement of the ‘dream’ or the ‘vision’ of what a particular ministry role will be like; the nervous anticipation of the first team meeting; the preparation and thrill of that first day on the job.  But then what sometimes has happened is the over analyzing of my performance and then eventually the comfort level of that position settling in and then the routine of it all just zapping my initial enthusiasm.

Viewing your Life Experiences through the PLACE filter…

I have learned through the years to evaluate experiences such as this through the lenses or filter of PLACE.  What element of PLACE is missing to potentially cause the shift in my enthusiasm?  Does the ministry area line up with my personality or my spiritual gifts?  Or is it the environment that is unsettling for me (the Abilities in PLACE).  Or is there someone on the team that is impacting my passion area?  I have testimony to each of these areas as it relates to previous ministry experiences.

But whether it be ministry or school.  We should choose each day who we will serve….the god of the moment (often simply known as our emotions) or the God of the Universe!  I choose – and I encourage our daughters to choose - to take every thought captive and in all things look at people and places the way God does.  Pray and then walk in faith, that His joy will be our strength to get us through the next assignment and it will be His peace that will allow us to walk in Love.

Joyfully Serving HIM Together!

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