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Obstacles to Ministry Development

By Heidi Unruh, with Ronald J. Sider, Philip N. Olson, and James Krabill

Reflect on what holds your church back from deepening its commitment to compassion ministry. Which of the following sound familiar? Don’t dwell on these obstacles, but use the knowledge to strategize how to prepare your congregation for ministry.

1. Overcommitment: "Everyone’s already too busy. There’s no way we could do more."

2. Leadership:"It’s not a high priority on our pastor’s to-do list."

3. Conflicts:"Every time someone brings up community outreach, it stirs up trouble in the congregation. We just can’t agree on what to do or how to do it."

4. Internal needs: "We’ve got lots of problems in our congregation that need attention before we can reach others."

5. External resistance: "People in our church’s neighborhood will object if we use the building for service ministry."

6. Family ties: "We can’t seem to make new people really feel at home in our church."

7. Timidity:"Most people in our church don’t feel comfortable sharing their faith."

8. Theology:"We don’t believe it’s the church’s job to do social work."

9. Immaturity:"Our people aren’t ready to do ministry — they’re still learning the spiritual basics."

10. Finances:"Within two years we will have paid off our debts on our new facility. Then we’re going to get serious about outreach ministry."

11. Giving:"We already commit X percent of our church budget to missions. How can we expect our congregation to give any more to support new programs?"

12. Worship:"There’s nothing about our services that would attract and keep unchurched people."

13. Doubt:"Our congregation is so small, our budget so limited. How could we do anything that would make a difference?"

14. Familiarity:"We don’t really want the church to change. We like everything cozy and comfortable."

15. Security:"Too risky! What if people damage our property, disrupt services, take advantage of us?"

16. Far-sightedness:"We’re great at supporting missions overseas, but we ignore our own backyard."

17. Ill-equipped: "Our members aren’t educated about social concerns or trained to share the gospel."

18. Isolation:"Our congregation is so different from the people in the community. We don’t know how to build bridges from our church to the neighborhood."

19. Vision:"We don’t have a sense that God is leading us to do anything specific. We just respond to crises or opportunities as they come up."

20. Dysfunction:"We dohave a missions committee, but it’s not very active right now."

21. Expectations:"We have an annual food drive, and we invite our unsaved friends and family to church. Isn’t that enough?"

22. Fear:"Most of us feel anxious about getting involved. We’d rather let a few gifted people do ministry for the rest of us."

23. Bureaucracy:"We had a ministry plan in the works — but it was never approved by church council."

24. Prejudice:"Why should we put ourselves out for those people? They’ll probably never change — and besides, they’ll never join our church."

25. Discouragement:"We’ve already tried and failed. Nothing seems to work for us."

—Adapted from Connect the Dots Workbook: Assess Your Church and Community Context To Develop a Plan for Holistic Ministry, by Heidi Unruh with Ronald J. Sider and Philip N. Olson (2002), and from James Krabill, Does Your Church ’Smell’ Like Mission? (Elkhart: Mennonite Board of Missions, 2001), 4,5.