What do we value?
We value God’s power over human effort.
We value transformation over conformity.
We value mutuality over hierarchy.
We value authenticity over entertainment.
We value modelling over celebrity.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
Stewardship Not Ownership
1 Peter 4:10-11; Romans 15:1-7; 1 Corinthians 10:24, 33;
Philippians 2:1-18; 1 Corinthians 4:2; Luke 16:10-13.
Review the story of Paul in 2 Corinthians 12.
Stewardship is a life-style. It is not just about ministry. Our life and the way we choose to live it is our reasonable worship and service to the Lord. We must recapture a sense of stewardship for our relationships: family and friends; our time; conversations; our job and our place in Christ.
Many Christians give God a part (tithe) of their lives in church attendance (meetings), but are fully in control of the rest of their time themselves. We own our lives rather than living them in extended stewardship above the Christian norm. Jesus must be Lord over everything and every part of our life must feel His redemptive and loving touch.
He is a faithful steward over our lives and it is fitting that our stewardship towards Him be just as intentional.
• Fix your heart and mind on stewardship.
• Be a steward of the manifold grace of God.
• Our stewardship is always for the benefit of others.
• Ownership causes strife, stewardship produces rest and peace.
• Even Jesus did not please Himself.
• Glorifying God is a steward’s main motivation.
• He who is faithful in small things will be trusted with much.
ACTION
Write your own obituary!
Imagine that when you have passed on to be with the Father, a Christian magazine wanted to write an article on your life as an example of good stewardship. What would you want the main points to say? Identifying these main points will be us something definite to aim for so that we can become as intentional as the Father.
VALUE STATEMENT
Stewardship is the intentional pursuit of God to involve Him in everything. The Holy Spirit ruling your life with your full cooperation.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
Living Generously
1 Thessalonians 5:18; 2 Peter 1:2-15; Ephesians 3:14-21; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15;
1 Peter 4:9; Romans 12:13; Luke 6:30-38; Acts 20:32-35.
Review the story of David’s generosity to Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 9.
Giving is not just about finances or ministry. It is also about bestowing life, love and laughter into the life-styles of others. It is about having a generous nature with all that God has given us.
Whatever God gives must be multiplied in us. God does not intend lack or reduction, so your willingness to sow is a major clue to your ability to receive. His generosity, graciousness and extravagance teach us to pray with outrageous confidence. He has a capacity to release beyond our ability to conceive or request.
There is usually a subtle and elegant test that surrounds our giving to the Lord. He will make a request for increase just as our resources (human and financial) are dwindling and we are feeling the pinch. Faithfulness is critical to the life-styles of generosity that God has called us to walk with Him.
• God is your provision, not your resource.
• Give “such as you have” … love, peace, friendship …
• The spirit behind your giving means more to God than the gift you release.
• It is better to give than to receive.
• You cannot plant and harvest on the same day, so always plan your giving in advance of your need.
ACTION
Whatever you need, be the first to give it!
VALUE STATEMENT
If God can pass it through you, He will give it to you.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
Character Before Gifting
1 Corinthians 12:4 – 13:3; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 18: 9-14;
Titus 1:15 – 3:11; Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Timothy 4:6-16.
Review the story of Samson in Judges 16.
Christ in you is your only defense against the enemy, carnality and your own vanity. Listen to the righteous assessment of godly people around you. Accept what they can see about you rather than what you cannot see about your own morality.
We all have blind spots about ourselves where we struggle to be faithful. This is when we need the love and support of people who are for us and want us to succeed.
The best way to change is to fasten your attention upon God and godly people and allow both to speak into your life. Do not be overly sensitive to criticism. Nor inflated by praise. Instead, recognize your brokenness, acknowledge your gifts and refuse to take yourself too seriously.
• Humble yourself and God will exalt you.
• Pay attention to your character flaws … the enemy does!
• Gifts are for the common good, so is your character.
• Membership of the Body depends upon your Christ-likeness not your spiritual gifting.
• You will destroy with your character what God has built with your gift.
• Discipline yourself in godliness … the best form of control is self-control.
ACTION
If you were in court, charged with being righteous, godly, and an example of good character, what would be the evidence that would convict you? Meditate on that and do what seems good to the Holy Spirit.
VALUE STATEMENT
Not valuing character will diminish your gift. When your progress in godliness is visible, your trustworthiness will increase and your anointing will expand.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
Grace and Truth
Ephesians 4:15, 25-27; Hebrews 4:14-16; Colossians 3:12-17;
John 1:14-17; Luke 6:36-38; James 2:12-13; Matthew 18: 15-20.
Review the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery in John 8.
God is determined that our relationships be earthed in reality and not fantasy. He is committed to truth and trust, mercy and grace, and loving acceptance.
Speaking the truth in love, understanding the weakness of people and enabling them to become confident in God’s mercy and grace, are all great tests of our own maturity in the Lord.
As we give these things they come back to us, pressed down, shaken together and running over.
• Mercy triumphs over judgment.
• Grace and truth come by Jesus Christ.
• Always grace before truth.
• Be merciful, just as God is merciful.
• Grace humbles us and makes our heart accessible to others.
• Humility and compassion are the keys to truth telling.
• Pardon and you will be pardoned.
• Truth telling releases people to experience God’s grace.
ACTION
Think if an issue you may currently have with an individual. Pray about them until compassion fills your heart. Make sure there are no grounds for hypocrisy in you. Think of the truth you need to express. How should you say it? How would you like it spoken to you? Do likewise!
VALUE STATEMENT
Truth is not just about being right, but also about doing right. Truth given without compassion and love may destroy someone’s world. This is your opportunity to win someone’s heart to a greater love in Christ. When acceptance and truth combine with loving kindness … people are made whole.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
Word Given-Word Kept
Philippians 2:1-4; Colossians 3:12-17; Jude 20, 21;
Colossians 2:1-7; Romans 9:1-5; Romans 1:8-15.
Review the story of God’s Word to Abraham in Genesis 15.
Every situation (good or bad) is an opportunity to express what the Lord has put in our hearts. Relationships are about promises. Word given and word kept. There is not commitment that is not first spoken and meant.
In football terms, declaring your commitment gets you out of the stands and into the game. It makes you a participant not an onlooker. The strength of Paul’s declared commitment was full of passion.
Romans 9:1-5
In every circumstance we must declare our intention. In times of tension and difficulty, silence can be wounding. Never assume that people know how much you are for them. Always declare it with thoughtfulness and love.
• Be intentional to one another.
• Plan to be someone’s good friend.
• Live out who you really are with people.
• Being devoted to people means being committed through good times and bad.
• Take time to upgrade your current friendships.
• Express affection and compassion.
• Maintain the same love even when people are inconsistent.
• Declaring your commitment makes a difference to you as well as others.
ACTION
Meditate on the people around you, who mean the most to you. Think about them and what they are facing and declare a commitment to that friendship. A word, a card, a gesture, a gift, a phone call will make a lot of difference to someone and you will feel better about yourself.
VALUE STATEMENT
Declaring your commitment to others is the best way of understanding and receiving God’s commitment to you. The scriptures are God’s declaration of commitment to humanity. His whole heart is in His word to us. When you declare your commitment, your heart follows your involvement.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
BELIEVING THE BEST
1 Corinthians 13: 7-8; Romans 12:10-12; Philippians 4:8;
Titus 1:15; Colossians 3:12-17; Luke 6:31.
Review the story of the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19.
How we see people is often a mirror image of how we see ourselves. How we accept others is a significant indicator of our own self-acceptance in Christ. We believe the best about others because we believe the truth about ourselves in Jesus.
Giving others the benefit of the doubt will lessen the doubts we have about ourselves. This enables us to express an incredible depth of love and freedom to people. We are bestowing the gift of acceptance and receiving it afresh in each human transaction.
• Be patient with defects – yours and those of others.
• Treat others how you would love to be treated.
• Love is the perfect bond of unity.
• Be devoted to one another in love and prefer one another in honour.
• Do not be wise in your own estimation, be humble.
• Respect what is right, cover what is wrong in grace.
• Practice Philippians 4:8.
• Relational breakdowns are really opportunities to believe the best … cunningly disguised.
ACTION
Ask to Holy Spirit to enable you to see people as He does. Think of how you would speak to them with this newfound understanding. Be aware that tense moments in relationships give you special opportunities to practice loving acceptance by believing the best.
VALUE STATEMENT
It is impossible to grow relationships when living in an atmosphere of disapproval. Believing the best about people is not about ignoring their faults but about recognizing that everyone Christian wants to change and become like Jesus. We are always a work a progress and therefore deserving of mercy, grace and love.
Whenever we see Christ in one another, He is Present!
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
OPENNESS AND HONESTY
Romans 12:9; Ephesians 4:15;Romans 2:1-11; 2 Corinthians 4: 1-2;
Romans 6:12-14; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 2 John 1:5-10.
Review the story of Esther 3.
A truly humble person does not fear being exposed. The great weakness in the Western Church is our refusal to accept that brokenness is a part of all life in the Spirit.
His power works best in humility. Living in accountable relationships enables us to walk in the light with God and expose our own inner darkness. This removes the strategies of the enemy that can destroy our relationships and us.
Self-disclosure is vital to the process. We end up with a group of friends who each know a part of our life and together know it all.
• Public and personal integrity through accountable friendships.
• It is the un-shared areas of our life where Jesus is not Lord.
• Humility and honesty have the same root.
• Self-disclosure is a process.
• Humble people are small in their own eyes, honest about their struggles and open to discussion and willing to admit the need for change.
• Rest in the truth that you are loved, accepted and forgiven in Jesus Christ.
ACTION
To begin the process of openness and honesty, start to look around and discover who, in friendship, may be trusted with certain parts of your life. Begin to develop a friendship with those people.
It takes time and love expressed before we can trust ourselves to self-disclosure. The important thing is having a plan for friendship that includes accountability.
Value Statement
Relationships of openness and honesty allow us to drop the mask and the image we unconsciously present to the world and ourselves. In this way we live in conscious freedom and joy before people as we do before God.
We rejoice that we are deeply loved, blessed with faith and highly favoured in Jesus Christ.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
EIGHT RELATIONAL VALUES
FOR HEALTHY MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES
NON-NEGOTIABLE LOVE
John 15:9; Romans 12:10; Colossians 3:12-17;
1 Corinthians 13:1-13; 1 Peter 4:8; Matthew 5:21-24.
Review the story of David and Jonathan. 1 Samuel 18 & 20.
There is nothing we can do to make God love us more and there is nothing we can do that would make Him love us less! His love is based on who He is within Himself, not on our performance.
He is consistent and faithful in how He loves us. His love is never on the negotiating table when we are in sin or conflict with Him. How can we be anything less for each other?
His love enables us to be true to one another when we have difficulties. Keeping His way of loving in the forefront of our minds in times of complexity helps us to be true to others.
• Love means being patient and expressing kindness.
• Love does not remember slights, hold grudges or recall bad history.
• Love is unselfish and thoughtful.
• Loving people, bearing things and believing the best of others.
• Truly forgiving and forgetting is the hallmark of God’s love in us.
• Love is not provoked and foregoes vengeance.
• Love never fails.
• Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.
• Love is an action not just a word.
• Real love allows people to change.
ACTION
Think of someone recently where you have not fully been the loving person the Holy Spirit was expecting you to be in the situation … correct your behaviour and seek to be reconciled.
Take time to thoughtfully upgrade your love with the people around you.
VALUE STATEMENT
Non-negotiable love is being the best expression of Jesus Christ to another human being. Putting love first and last in every situation keeps us in the abiding Presence of God.
Non-negotiable love can heal and seal the problems that occur in all relationships.
At Mission O, Ministers Matter!
