“You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you’re going because you might night get there.”
“If you don’t know where you’re going, you will wind up somewhere else.”
Yogi Berra
After a weekend away with some high school students I’ve spent the past couple of days writing ministry goals for 2012. Early in my ministry career goal writing was something I resisted. I struggled with the concept of looking ahead to what I would like to accomplish. It seemed so spiritless. Then I looked at Jesus in the gospels. Though I don’t think he wrote down goals, it seems he moved with intentionality. In other words, he had an end in mind as he ministered to people for three years. He didn’t seem to do things randomly. Don’t get me wrong. I think he left room for spontaneity, but I think he had a clear mission and a vision for how to carry it out.
I’ve since learned how spirit-led this process can be for me. Goal setting forces me to slow down, reflect on where I’ve been, where our student ministry has been, and where we think God is leading us. It’s not a rigid, unchangeable process. It’s a picture of what could be.
I’ve discovered that goal writing helps me in three ways. First, it forces me to prioritize resources and time, budget and activities, projects and teaching content. Effective goal writing forces me to plan with the end in mind.
Second, it allows me to say no to things. Well established goals provide parameters for how I spend my time, what I do, how I spend money. Though not rigid parameters I will look long and hard before doing something outside a goal area or changing a goal.
Finally, goal writing allows me to sit back at the end of the year and evaluate. It’s difficult to evaluate something if you haven’t established the standard for evaluation. Goals provide that standard.
Do you set goals for your ministry? If so, how do you go about it? What suggestions would you have for others?
