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Other Issues Pertinent to Beginning a Ministry

Dennis Franck, Coach, Consultant, Speaker

1. Inform the senior pastor and church leaders regularly-The leader, or part of the leadership team should meet regularly at least the first year to inform, educate, seek counsel, and pray with the senior pastor of the church regarding the ministry. This increases the opportunity for support and understanding and will assist in building and developing the group(s). Ideas for obtaining continuing support include:

  1. Continually supply materials to the pastor that educate and inform
  2. Ask for financial, promotional, prayer and moral support.
  3. Feature the pastor at an upcoming major event to increase understanding of your ministry.
  4. Interview board members concerning their family and role in the church at a meeting/class to increase their understanding.
  5. Interview other staff pastors and/or ask them to speak
  6. Send mail, newsletters and email to these church leaders.
  7. Talk to them at church events regarding the ministry.

2. Correct the congregational misconceptions-There are severalmisconceptions concerning single adult ministry that may arise and occasionally be voiced. Examples of these include:

a. “Meat market” - A place to excessively look at the opposite sex

b. “Lonely hearts club”- A place for lonely people to go

c. “Hospital” - A place for the hurting, “loser types” to go

d. “Church”-A place for people to go without being part of the larger body

These express what some individuals perceive a ministry to single adults to be. They are biased and when verbalized tend to discourage some people from attending. They need and deserve to be discussed both on the leadership team, and in the ministry group for ideas regarding resolving and changing them (see chapter eight of Reaching Single Adults-An Essential Guide for Ministry- Baker Books, 2007).

3. Include the ministry in the church budget-Any ministry worth having is worth funding. Becoming a part of the church budget is the goal. This is not always possible the first year, however, due to other ministry priorities of the pastor and/or church leadership. In this case, the following suggestions may be helpful.

a. Continue to educate the pastor and church leadership concerning the financial needs of the ministry. Give examples of costs (postage, promotion, printing, honorariums, supplies etc).

b. Receive and retain offerings toward the expenses of the ministry. Realize that single adults will give to the cause if their needs are being met!

c. Show ministry expenses to the board.

d. Continue asking to be part of the church budget. Asmall amount of subsidy is better than none.

4. Promote the ministry regularly and enthusiastically-Promote your ministry consistently inside and outside of the church. There may be new single adults who are looking for fellowship and are attending the church. There are also many single adults in the community who are not in any church regularly. Ideas for promotion include:

a. Inside the church-Flyers, bulletins, dramas, posters, videos, emails, visits to other classes and groups etc.

b. Outside the church-Websites, posters, business/ministry cards, free newspaper ads, free radio announcements, brochures in counseling offices/shopping centers etc.

Word of mouth will prove to be one of the most effective means of promotion. If the ministry is effective and is meeting needs, people will be the best promoters.

5.Provide relevant teaching- It may seem unnecessary to mention this, but it is many times overlooked when beginning a ministry. Meeting the spiritual needs of individuals is certainly one of the top priorities of most churches across the county. The personal, life-issue needs, however, should not be overlooked. Most churches are doing an adequate job of addressing the spiritual needs of single adults through teaching, preaching, small groups etc. They are failing miserably, however, in addressing the personal, topical needs from a biblical and single adult perspective! Providing teaching and discussion opportunities concerning relevant issues of single adults is one of the principle reasons for having this ministry. Issues include:

  • Sexuality and singleness
  • Healthy friendships with the same and opposite sex
  • Single parenting
  • Divorce recovery
  • Forgiving my ex-spouse,
  • Dealing with grief
  • Dating/dating again
  • Managing money

For a complete list of topics, see chapter four of Reaching Single Adults-An Essential Guide for Ministry—Baker Books, 2007.

6.Plan community outreaches-Any ministry to single adults can easily become self-centered and inwardly focused because of the necessity of single adults to provide for all their own needs, and because of the tendency for many individuals to come to the ministry while they are in some kind of crisis (spiritual, marital, relational, financial, physical etc).

A wise leader or leadership team will plan occasional local outreach opportunities for single adults to become involved in (nursing/rest homes visitation, services at the salvation army, ministry to the homeless, other area opportunities etc). These accomplish several things:

  1. Helps single adults to look outside of themselves
  2. Gives them a greater understanding of others
  3. Gives them a better, more positive perspective of life
  4. Gives them a greater appreciation for what they have
  5. Gives your ministry credibility

Nothing will change a negative image of a ministry to a positive one faster than a church hearing how single adults ministered to those less fortunate. Opportunities to report to the entire church should be pursued.