Godward Toil

D6 Ministry Urges Radical Family-Centeredness

Our pastor mentioned D6 ministry in a meeting earlier this week.  I thought I had heard of it, but when I went to explore the website, I realized I hadn't.  The ministry is founded on the biblical premise, found in Deut 6:5-9 and elsewhere, that parents have the primary responsibility for instructing their children in the ways of the Lord, and that ministry to children should be aligned accordingly.  That primary responsibility rests on parents from a theological perspective.  But the D6 ministry leads mostly with a practical argument:  that children will always be with their parents and families more than they will be in Sunday school or anywhere else, so that's where the emphasis will be.   It's a productivity argument for focusing on families.  They even have a T-shirt that emphasizes the 1:167 ratio of hours in Sunday school to hours elsewhere. 

The family-inclusive small group my wife and I are working on is precisely in this model.  And I think the D6 Ministry's radical commitment to family-centeredness can challenge and inspire all churches to think outside traditional models of children's programming.   Whether or not one dives in with the kits and materials of specific ministry, that is a helpful and biblical challenge for those who desire massively productive ministry to children.

Current focus for biblical productivity: Church teams and children

I'm part of a new leadership team that is starting at our church to support and strengthen our ministry to children.  My wife and I are also working to launch a family-inclusive small group that aims to equip ourselves and other families to have vibrant and productive God-focused lives together, including discovering and practicing the most fruitful ways to have family devotional time, family scripture memory, and generally live a Deuteronomy 6:7 life with our children.

So there are two topics about which I'm thinking a lot right now, and will likely blog about in the near future:

1. Church team productivity.   I deeply desire for our team to be fruitful for God in every sense.  Part of the spiritual call to leadership is to steward well the time and energy God has given team members.   We want our work to matter for the kingdom.  We want to be wise and skillful for God, leveraging any available tools and resources to accomplish the work He has given us.   And we want everyone on our team to be strengthened by their service.
2. Productive avenues of teaching and discipling children.  Our church has adopted a phrase to describe our mission: "To make more and better disciples."   How do we do that more and better as a family and as a church with our children?

I'm thankful that God has shown me and my family some of what he wants us to focus on in 2009. In pursuing these callings, part of my personal discipline needs to be discerning how much will be useful to share here.  The questions I have to ask myself before opening an editor to compose a blogpost remains the same:  1. Could posting this thought/observation/link help me or someone else be more fruitful in God's kingdom?  2.  Will posting distract or strengthen me from actually doing?  We'll see how often both of these answers are yes, but I feel energized by God's leading and the synergy I'm sensing in what he is calling me, my family, and my church to right now.

Procrastination and your ministry

Michael McKinley over at the 9Marks blog has posted about something God is showing him about procrastination and his ministry.  I always appreciate McKinley's thoughtful and honest approach:

"But recently I've come to grips with the fact that my procrastination does not serve well the people I lead. It works out OK for my sermons since my family has learned to adjust to my way of doing things (yikes... I don't like the way that sounds). But I notice that large administrative tasks that I must address as the pastor (e.g., the church budget) often get done at the last minute, with unnecessary stress to people who are more organized and scheduled than I am."

In response, he points readers to a series of posts by CJ Mahaney about productivity and procrastination.  I had missed these posts, so I'm grateful that Michael passed on these links, which I join Michael in commending to you.