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We don’t have 1000 people knocking on our door each day; we have exponentially more. Some of them come to our front door, which is our website. Others come through our side doors, which are our social media platforms. Then there are others who come through email and the phone.
There are two primary types of ministries: monologue or dialogue.
Monologue ministry is hard work, but it’s not as hard as interacting with the folks who consume your resources. We have chosen an “interactive ministry” because it aligns more closely with the ministry of Jesus Christ; He interacted with His constituency.
We don’t assume that a person can read a piece of information and automatically know how to apply it to their lives (Acts 8:31). We are not able to do that with what we read. We want others helping us in our sanctification, which is why we have created contexts where we can help folks in their unique walks with God.
But here is the problem: if you’re asking God for an interactive ministry, it’s not sustainable unless you have a predetermined strategy to serve the folks that God brings to you. Whether you’re helping one person or one-hundred people, you must have a plan to serve them.
We adapted our strategy from the ministry of Jesus. He did two primary things:
Everyone is not the same; people are different. For example, a person’s desire to change their lives is unique to the individual, and we have to discern their seriousness before we mobilize to help them.
This perspective does not imply our lack of desire to help or no compassion for the hurting. It does imply our need for discernment because we cannot be everything that everyone wants us to be. Jesus was willing to help his mother, brothers, and the rich young man, but He placed criteria on them before He jumped at their requests.
Jesus was never uncaring, but He did not give every person equal access to His calendar. He knew that His time was God’s time (John 6:38), which motivated Him to learn how to manage the minutes, hours, and days that His Father gave Him. We can help an unlimited amount of people, but they must do it our way, not their way.
If you are serious, if you really want help, we are willing to do that for you. We have nearly two-thousand articles on our website. We’re nearing one-thousand podcasts on our site. We have more than two-hundred videos. And we have an interactive forum.
If you need help in finding these resources, we have a support team that provides technical assistance. (They don’t give advice but will direct you to where you may receive counseling.)
We have a team of counselors whom I have trained. If you want specialized care, you’re welcome to make an appointment with one of them. You could spend two years on our website perusing all the content–for free–and still not consume it all.
And you can do all of this without talking to me, though you would be receiving my care through the resources that I have built and the counselors that I have trained. If you are serious about finding help, it is right in front of you.
There are thousands of folks who understand our model for ministry, and they do what they need to do to receive help from us. It’s a simple thing: they come to our “sanctification center,” which is our website.
Most of them are free members, who need assistance with a personal problem, relational issue, or situational difficulty. Some of these folks “feed themselves” by reading our articles, listening to our podcasts, or watching our videos.
Many of these free members jump on our forums so they can talk to us, which is a service that we provide for anyone. If they are willing to come to our place, we are eager to give them our attention and care.
Then there are those who do what these members do, but they choose to support our ministry. We give these supporting members a private forum, plus a few other resources like our full-length teaching webinars.
Then there are our Mastermind students. This team is our smallest group. These individuals want me to train them. They are the ones who receive the most of my time because they are the ones making the most significant investment to receive our care.
Determine how important your issue is. If it’s important to you, it’s important to us. We will never turn you away, but you must find help according to how we provide it. Eg., if you want us to come to your favorite place, i.e., Facebook, we can’t help you.
We are not omnipotent or omnipresent, and we don’t have unlimited staffing where we can interact with thousands of people on dozens of platforms. If your issue is important to you, I promise that we will not turn you away, but give you compassionate and competent soul care.
Come to our sanctification center to find it.
Rick launched the Life Over Coffee global training network in 2008 to bring hope and help for you and others by creating resources that spark conversations for transformation. His primary responsibilities are resource creation and leadership development, which he does through speaking, writing, podcasting, and educating.
In 1990 he earned a BA in Theology and, in 1991, a BS in Education. In 1993, he received his ordination into Christian ministry, and in 2000 he graduated with an MA in Counseling from The Master’s University. In 2006 he was recognized as a Fellow of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC).