I am sure that most of you have a favorite sports team of some kind. I personally love football and baseball. Loving these two sports and great teams means I only have two options…The Cardinals & The Chiefs. There are many factors that go into choosing a favorite team. Maybe your team is in close proximity to where you live or grew up. Maybe your great grandfather loved them and the tradition has been passed down to you. Perhaps you like a coach or a player on the team. Some of you may like a team simply for the mascot and team colors. Regardless of the reasons; we love our teams! However, the purpose of a professional sports team is to win championships. This fact has led me to wonder why some people stick with the teams they do. I have never understood Cubs fans! They make no sense to me. How can you so love a team that is SO ineffective? I mean you haven’t won a World Series since 1908! That’s over 100 years, talk about a curse!

Teams are created to win but so are ministries. You may love your team but that doesn’t mean that they are effective…ask a Cubs fan! You may love your church and your ministry but that doesn’t mean that it is effective at fulfilling it’s purpose and mission. Many people love their church because it is all they know. They love their church because it is close to their house, they grew up there, they like the preacher, the elders, the people, the music and so on and so forth. However, none of this matters if your church and ministry are not what God designed them to be and do.

The problem with the above sports analogy is that in the long run it doesn’t really matter if your sports team wins or not. When it comes to God’s Kingdom we cannot afford to be Cub’s fans! We cannot sit idly by and watch our churches and ministries be ineffective and let it slide saying “I just love my team!” It is about time that we get honest with ourselves and the people in our ministries, most of them are completely ineffective. I do not mean to seem harsh but take a look at what John had to say to the churches and ministries of his day in Revelation 3…

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. 19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.

Paul loved these churches and was not afraid to tell them what they needed to hear. I believe we must engage in honest and sometimes painful discussions in order to be what God has called us to. I know that this blog may seem like a rant but I do not intend for it to be a simple gripe session. What I would like to do is to take an honest look at what the bible has to say about effective ministries. What is a winning ministry? How can we once again have ministries that change the world? Over the next few blogs we will look at what God has to say an effective winning ministry looks like. I hope that we can all be honest, open and ready to change and repent.