Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
 If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.

Ecclesiastes 4: 9-10

As a pastor, much of my work is a solitary effort. I work on my sermon on my own. While I consult resources such as commentaries and word studies, I am responsible for creating the sermon myself. When I teach a Sunday School class, I generally work on it on my own. I am co-teaching a class on Acts right now. Though we spend some time discussing the scriptures together, we take turns preparing the lessons on our own. When I teach and lead, I build on all I have read and seminars I have attended, learning from the authors and presenters. Yet much of my job as a pastor I do on my own.

This last week I was reminded of the value of working with a team. Our church is in the middle of a Three-Week Prayer Focus. We will conclude with a Solemn Assembly on a Saturday, a Prayer Vigil where people will sign up to pray for an hour or more through the night, and then a Celebration Service on the Sunday morning. This has become a much better event than I first envisioned because others have helped think through how to make it the best event it can be.

When I presented the idea to the chairman of the church board, he instantly saw my vision and began to dream with me as to what we should plan and how to roll it out to the congregation. As we, together, dreamed about how the event might work for our church, we got more and more excited. We could see how to invite people to participate and even how to get them to step into some new experiences of prayer in the process. I had not thought of a prayer vigil through the night, but he suggested it.

This chairman suggested we shoot a promo video with interviews of people from our congregation telling us what they thought of prayer. He knew of someone who could create the video. He asked someone to round up people to participate, and several people did, resulting in a very effective promotional video.

He suggested that we make some promotional posters. Again, he knew of someone who would do a good job with this. Now we have some great posters for the event, and even a prayer guide for the event that people are now using to guide their prayer times. Other board members were willing to sign up to help coordinate and lead the prayer vigil. They have also volunteered to make announcements and lead group prayer times.

If I had only depended on my own dreams and skills, we would still have had an event, but it would not have become the great experience it now is. I needed the Board Chair, the other board members, the promotional materials designer, and video producer to make the event that much better.

We need others to team up with if we want to do a good job on many things. Inviting others into the process makes it better because we get to dream with others and bounce ideas off each other that make the result that much better. Working together ensures no one is left carrying the load, and everyone can use their skills and abilities to expand the capabilities of the leader. Sharing the work with others prevents your project from being a lonely experience; instead, the process becomes a shared collaboration with others who have the same convictions and ideas.

I hope you have a good team around you. If not, then I pray that God will help you to find the right people to join your team.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe