1. Church Growth Through Ministry

2. Church Growth Through the Ministry of the Laity

3. Acts 8:4
“Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.”

4. "A Text Without a Context is a Pretext"
Acts 8:4
"A Text Without a Context is a Pretext"
Without examining the context in which something (in this case, Scripture) was said, one can easily (or even intentionally) misappropriate or misuse or misapply or misrepresent a text to support a position that it in fact does not support.

5. Acts 8:1
“Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.”

6. Thoughts Local church focal point of growth
Success comes when you can see the right next step
No growth without change
You will only grow as large as your organizational plan
Must use the laity to grow

7. Creating a “Picture of Our Future”
DESIRED STATE
“there”
YOU ARE HERE
HOW YOU GET FROM “HERE TO THERE?”
YOU WANT TO BE HERE
CURRENT STATE
“here”
New Organizational
Plan

8. Lay Leadership Development
Desired state
Relationships
Process
Ministry Plan
New vision
Current state

9. What makes a church grow?
God’s will for the church to grow
N.T. is full of examples/celebrations
Necessary elements:
Pastor is “possibility thinker”
Laity are well-mobilized
Small groups and teams are utilized
Effective evangelistic methods are used
Church changes and gets a new perspective

10. The three primary tasks of spiritual leadership
EMPOWERING
DEVELOPING
Lay Ministers
EQUIPPING
RELEASING

11. Declare your vision --Pastor “cast” --Leaders “catch” --People “continue”

12. Show uncommon commitment --Learn, unlearn. and relearn --Pursue God’s
Show uncommon commitment --Learn, unlearn and relearn --Pursue God’s agenda

13. Train local church leaders and laity --Invest the time and money to teach, coach and educate to develop skills --Reach the “now generation”

14. A whole new way of thinking!
AREA OLD NEW
Leaders delegation
Pastor preacher
People spectators
Groups fellowship
Teams acceptable
AREA OLD NEW
Leaders delegation multiplication
Pastor preacher equipper
People spectators participators
Groups fellowship ministry
Teams acceptable necessary

15. Lay Leadership Development A 12 month course

16. Church of God Lay Leadership Development
Spiritual leadership
in the local church
Two levels
Certificate course

18. Excellence for the Rest of Us
The framework for excellent lay ministry
The intentional process of developing leaders to accomplish Kingdom ministry through the local church
An ongoing process
Not event-to-event planning
To order contact Leonard Albert at:

19. How it works Formation of Teams Four teams with three to four in each
Teams are empowered to create their own ministry outreach style
Each team ministers once per month
Total commitment is only about three hours each month. 19

20. Teams For evangelism and outreach: four teams Prayer
Servant evangelism
Church visitation
Personal Evangelism

22. Groups Multiply! Visit: www.cogdoe.org Group #1 (four teams) Group #2
Pastor / Leaders
Group #3
(four teams)
Group #4
(four teams)
Visit: 22

23. Discipling Strong Men in the Local Church
Church Growth Through Men’s Ministry
Discipling Strong Men in the Local Church
How to Build and Sustain a Disciple-Making Ministry to Men in the Local Church
By: Leonard C. Albert

24. 1 Corinthians 4:15
“For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.”

25. “Instructors”
GREEK> paidagogos (pahee-dag-o-gos'); a boy-leader, i.e. a servant whose office it was to take the children to school; (by implication [figuratively] a tutor (Strongs NT:3807)

26. “Fathers” NT:3962 pateer, pateras,
a. The originator and transmitter of anything: Rom 4:12
b. One who stands in a father's place, and looks after another in paternal way.
c. A title of honor, teachers, as those to whom pupils trace back the knowledge and training they have received: Matt 23:9

27. Men’s discipleship is…
The Great Commission Matthew 28:20
Multiplication through reproduction
II Timothy 2:2
Apprenticeship
I Thessalonians 2:7-8

28. Men don’t follow programs Men learn “side-by-side” not “face to face.”
Men follow men
Men don’t follow programs
Men learn “side-by-side” not “face to face.”

29. We Must Not Abandon Christ’s Discipleship Model
We have adopted an academic model
Men are not comfortable in the classroom
Men are challenged by what they experience not by what they are told

31. When does a man become a disciple?
Walks with Christ
A discipleship plan
Lives like Christ
A mentoring process
Works for Christ
A personal ministry for men

32. God is Looking for Three Types of Men
Saints
A man after God’s own heart
Servants
A “man of the towel”
Soldiers
A man who will fight

33. My observation (after 40 years!)
First, it takes a long time to make a disciple Second, it takes time build and sustain a successful, disciple-producing men’s ministry. Third, there is no such thing as “Five Easy Steps to an Effective Men’s Ministry.”

34. Filled all blue The “wide/deep continuum” www.maninthemirror.org
All Inclusive Men’s Ministry
Man Code = Environment
3 Strands = Leadership
Portal Priority = Discipleship
This is one of the engines that drives our “discipleship machine.”

35. The Engine Close Up Create Value Sustain Change Capture Momentum
VISION:
Make Disciples
Sustain
Change
Capture
Momentum
The Engine Close Up
© 2006 Man in the Mirror, Inc., Morley, Delk & Clemmer
Used by Permission

36. Moral – Spiritual - Financial3 G
Growing Godly Guys
Moral – Spiritual - Financial

37. The BIG Idea
Build a seamless process to move men across the wide-deep continuum (from spectators to participators)

38. Three important leadership roles to look for
Man in the Mirror
Newest
Ministry To
Men
Whenever God does a new work he taps potential leaders and gives them an assignment. I believe that networking leaders is the key that unlocks the door of ministry in the local church.
Select a small leadership group that will work closely with you as a team. These special leaders will share your calling, burden and vision for lay activation. These will be the top leaders; the people that you think can give direct leadership to different ministries within your church. The size of the LMLT will vary depending on the size of the church, the need and the willingness of others to assume this role.
Three important leadership roles to look for
Salespeople. I call these people the “persuaders” because they know how to get other people excited about an idea. They are forever salespeople because it is just in them to try to persuade others to join in on a plan or idea. They are great to have on your team because, by instinct, they help others feel the excitement of the challenge and they convey the spirit of “we can do this” when it comes to ministry.
Doers. These are the people who can “cut to the chase” and get the job done. They are front-line people who, as we say, can “deliver the mail.” They have the skills to deliver ministry so tasks are completed properly and on time.
Administrators. These are the leaders that possess the natural talent to coordinate, plan and troubleshoot. They have the ability to see “what’s coming down the pike” and be proactive in helping solve potential problems. They not only do the work, but because they are leaders, they uphold others who also are working. 38

39. Listing of some of the Spiritual Gifts
Man in the Mirror
Church of God
Men’s Discipleship
Use the Spiritual Gifts survey results. Gifts are discovered through ministry rather than ministry being discovered by the identification of gifts.
The evidence of the right match between a person spiritual gifting and their ministry is fruitfulness and fulfillment.
Mention the two books: What You Do Best In the Body of Christ and Spiritual Gifts Can Help Your Church Grow.
Listing of some of the Spiritual Gifts
Service Intercession
Teaching Hospitality
Leadership Prophesying
Faith Administration:
Missionary Wisdom
Helps Giving
Shepherding Mercy 39