Philosophy of Ministry

Seminary Paper Series 003

Introduction

This paper aims to work out the details of my ministry philosophy. This philosophy dictates why I take certain actions on the ground in my ministry setting. If we don’t know why we do what we do, we can begin to operate out of impulse and convenience instead of what is Godly. If we do not teach people why we do what we do, we will pass on practices without those behind us understanding the heart. I am setting out to unpack my philosophy of ministry in light of God’s Biblical story and will discuss three portions.

First, I will share a big picture of God’s heart, discussing how he sees leaders, how he leads, and how he expects imitation. Second, I will lay out how God sees people and how he expects us to see and interact with them. Lastly, I will lay out the principles of Jesus’s ministry, namely his values, submission to the father, and loyalty to his mission. At the end of each section, I will discuss how these theological truths inform my ministry practice.

The Big Picture

I start with God's heart because everything we imitate in him springs from who he is. As leaders, we are not simply doing things. Hopefully, we are becoming more like God himself through Christ and we can only find complete maturity in God. His heart captures the essence of our potential. He is the picture of the values that we can put on display in our day-to-day lives through him.

Though, every day I fall short. Some days I am inspired to grow more into his image. Other days, I am simply trying to make it through. My heart tends toward self-reliance. When I draw strength from myself or any image aside from the image of God as my example, it is not long before I realize I have fallen short, again.

I want to live a holy life, so I continue evaluating myself. I believe that as leaders, we are to look to God to discover his heart. We are to strive to emulate Him. This search is the daily hustle and has vast ramifications mainly because people look to us as examples—what better model to aim for than God's? What bigger downfall than to taint his name? In the words of Gregory the Great, “no one does more harm in the Church than he, who having the title or rank of holiness, acts evilly…” (Purves, 2001, 65).