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Building a Philosophy of Ministry, Part 2

April 12, 2011 By 4 Comments

Last week I wrote a post on the need and initial steps of building a philosophy of ministry.

You cannot identify and prioritize what is important to you until you have identified your core values. Once the time has been taken to consider and write out your core values, you are ready begin phase two.

Writing Your Mission Statement

First, take the pressure off of yourself. Writing your mission statement will not happen overnight or in one sitting. It will probably need many revisits and revisions. As you grow, it can and should grow.

Second, set up some parameters. Some times your mission statement is brief enough to be a tag-line. For instance, FedEx for years touted the motto: “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.” While that is an excellent mission statement for a carrier, a ministry may need to be a bit broader. When considering guidelines,  focus on the ingredients and the goal of a mission statement.

Purpose of a Mission Statement

  • Clarify the vision–What is the goal? What are you our values? The statement does not need to be a run-on sentence of your goals and values, but the vision should be clear!
  • Communicate the purpose–Written properly, this should communicate to everyone exactly why you exist and what you intend to do. This is why ambiguous statements needing explanation are often less effective.
  • Inspire the team–Misson statements should get you fired up. There is no other way to say it!

Your mission statement should include:

  • Who you are
  • What you plan to do
  • Why you plan to do it

Here are two excellent sample mission statements:

Calvary’s youth ministry exists to turn irreligious high school students into fully devoted followers of Christ.

Calvary’s youth ministry seeks to assist the parents in developing Christian leaders through relevant Bible preaching, planned social interaction and practical ministry experience.

From these statements, your team and any stranger knows what you are about. With a clear vision, you are well on your way to effective ministry!

What is your ministry mission statement?

Continue to Part 3

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  • http://www.jasonvana.com Jason Vana

    Great points Noah! I think it’s important to note that a business/organization/ministry that truly follows their mission statement will actually need to change it about every 5-7 years. I think a lot of people are under the impression that once you create a mission statement, you’re stuck with it for the life of the organization.

    The mission statement of my ministry is:

    Ignite Student Ministries exists to raise up the next generation of student leaders to expand the Kingdom of God throughout the world.

    • http://www.noahlomax.com Noah Lomax

      Jason, great point! Yes, if you are growing in the understanding of what you are doing so should your mission your statement! You are right that many people get hung up on one statement for life. I do not feel that is very practical.

      Thanks for the comment and I love your mission statement!

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