TAP

I am getting more and more involved in TAP, which is Transforming Action through Power.  This is a Gamaliel project active in South Bend.  I am active in their clergy caucus and have met several times with their organizer.  TAP is faith based community organizing, building on the principals developed by Saul Alinsky.  Interestingly, what I learned with Hopeful City is coming in handy as are some of those relationships.

This Saturday there was a big gathering of TAP clergy folks at Indian University South Bend.  We started the day off with a drum circle lead by RythmWorks of South Bend.  This group group was awesome!  They will do all sorts of things around team building and I would recommend them to any group or organization.  A rhythmically challenged white guy, even I was able to take part in the drum circle.  This exercise was used to demonstrate the importance of all the parts in an organization and emphasize both the wealth of diversity and the strength of individuality.  The drumming set the stage for the rest of the day and was a good way to ease into what turned into a long meeting.

The goal of the meeting was to build cohesiveness and remind the group that there is a lot of power in organizing.  There were about seven congregations represented by both clergy and lay folk.  We talked about what the organization is and how we can meet our goals.  We also talked about funding, increasing membership and future training opportunities for TAP members.  A lot of ground got covered.

One thing the conference did not touch on was the issues.  To me, there is no clearly defined issue in front of the group.  There is talk about education, but the issue is not cut in a way that it can be clearly stated.  I am attempting to form a coalition around the vacant and abandoned housing issue.  This situation is very obvious and so far I have gotten several folks on board with the issue.  Most everyone I talk to is disturbed by the situation and now I have to do my homework, cut the issue and develop some alternatives, as well as the alternative that most speaks to the TAP group.  I'm further challenged to get folks from Memorial and Westminster churches involved.  These are primarily commuter churches and so they don't have the investment in the neighborhood. 

A challenge of my position is the development of a congregation or following.  Without a church or home base this is harder to do than a traditionally called clergy.  There are people in the neighborhood upon which I can call, but TAP is more used to working with congregationally based groups and my more unorthodox group throws them off.

Winter gardening

It is getting cold and winter is arriving.  Already the days are getting shorter and shorter, but there's work to be done.  The community garden is moving along.

 Thanks to Patrick the utilities were notified.  I couldn't read this scrawl at first, but Lou pointed out that it's OK to dig.  We were hoping to do some tilling, but there doesn't seem to be an available tiller except for what can be rented.  Renting is a cost I hoped to avoid so we might be turning the soil by hand.

I was outside two hours today working on staking out the garden.  It's hard to make out, but there are string lines marking the beds.  It wasn't until I had half of it done that it occurred to me that I should measure the lawnmower.  It turns out that our mower is 27" and I spaced the beds 24".  I figure we can make allowances when we make the actual beds.  I also found that we're going to have to cope with some shaded areas unless the church allows us to cut some limbs.



I spent much of last week completing the INSPIRE Grant.  This isn't a huge grant, but they have several requirements that need to be met to satisfy the grant.  I thought that it wouldn't be all that tough to complete the grant, but I was wrong.  Diana Hess of the Neighborhood Resource Corporation who reads the grant, was really helpful making suggestions and offering some direction.  If the grant isn't approved I think I have a could other sources to which I can turn, but I wanted to get the grant resources so I could begin some work on the garden.

I had submitted a program to the South Bend Housing Authority, but it has yet to be approved.  I think that things are good to go and then I'm hit with another hoop to jump through.  This seems sort of disorganized, but it is a governmental agency and I don't figure that many people offer their time and talents to assist that program.  We'll see what happens.

I'm putting together a neighborhood association in the far Northwest come spring.  Ryan Yazel in Keller Park wants to work with me to put together an association there and we hope to start work on that this winter.  I've been talking to members of TAP (Transforming Action through Power) and hope to take a larger role in that organization.

While I thought that I would have a lot of down time in the cold weather, so far that hasn't been the case.  There are enough little odds and ends to keep my pretty busy.  Keep me in prayer as I brave the cold and please pray for Westminster and Memorial churches as they deal with some issues touching their ministry.

Community Garden Party

 The garden gang

 Saturday was the organizational meeting of the community garden initiative.  Pat wasn't optimistic, but he was proven wrong.  We had a good turnout and there is hope to add even more to this venture.

This is the group!  I was really excited by our meeting on Saturday.  We have a good group of highly invested people from the neighborhood.  Even more than that, these folks want to meet again next month because they know of several more people who would like to be involved in the garden effort.  Many of those present have experience with gardening and LaRena, the woman behind the big book, is a master gardener.  This is gonna be great.

We surveyed the site and talked about next steps, of which there are many.  We hope to get some roto-tilling done before the freeze and even talked about building some beds so we're ready for summer.  Valerie stepped up to be the secretary and Sydney is willing to be one of the storytellers.  Gene had said that he would be another story teller, but he couldn't be at this meeting.

We discussed the future plans for this group and talked about creating a neighborhood association.  I thought there would be a lot of resistance to that idea, but people were on-board.  I believe God has blessed this group and our purpose.  There's a lot to do and we pray for ongoing good weather in which we can complete those activities.

Busy, busy, busy

I haven't blogged for such a long time.  So much going on.  In fact, we had some confusion and I'm doing this in Fran's office 'cause I had to drop off Ross for choir.  Blogging needs to be regular and I have a meeting later and so here I am in her office. 

The community garden organizing meeting is this weekend and I'm working to get that together.  I have a grant to write and contacts to make.  I was worried, but God provided a master gardener from right in the neighborhood.  Props to LaRena who is excited and ready to get to work.

Met up with Ryan today and we discussed community development in Keller Park.  Ryan is really wanting to work on that since the CCDA conference.  We talked about some good plans to culminate in a spring clean-up and concert.  What's even better is that he doesn't want to tie it to the church so we open it up to a lot more people that way.  Then we went and looked at some locations that would be possible neighborhood gathering places.  Like me, Ryan would like to come up with some sort of coffee house/drop in center in the community.  A lot of work to be done.

I'm still working with the Housing Authority to put a program in place.  Just got an email from those folks and it's being put off until the first part of December.  The longer this thing stretches out the lower my motivation is.  The hurdles make me wonder if this isn't God's will that I'm active at LaSalle Landing.  Gene and I talked about this motivation level today.

TAP is a community organizing group in South Bend affiliated Gamaliel and I'm doing stuff with them now.  I'm meeting a lot of other pastors and it seems like something that is a positive step for my ministry.  I'm also going to start volunteering at Stone Soup at the end of the month.  Stone Soup provides assistance with utilities and rent as well as budget guidance.

As I think about what I am doing and my ministry it occurs to me that there are two levels to the work.  The system is broken and on one level my work touches individuals.  LaSalle Landing, the community garden and Stone Soup speak to that level and provide that help.  The other initiatives like TAP seek to address the larger, systemic issues.  I had never really considered this two-fold approach, but that concept makes sense to me.  What it also does is keep my busy, busy, busy.

Not an exciting blog, but I had to get something out there.  I'll post more next week about the garden.

ubiquitous depression

Depression is a verifiable clinical syndrome.  Most of us know about this depression and quite a few people have experienced the disorder.  It occurs to me that our society is experiencing a form of depression.  Last week I met with another community organizer and we talked about our impression of people being disconnected, uninvolved and apathetic.  These sound like the symptoms of depression.  The more I  thought about this diagnosis the more it seems to fit for large sections of our society.

Lets face it, if you had to live in a neighborhood in which vacant and dilapidated houses were sprinkled throughout, it would not compliment your mental health.  One of the largest landmarks in the neighborhood where I minister is the Drewry Brewery.  The defunct brewery has been scheduled for demolition for some time, but no action has been taken.  Instead, the abandoned facility is dangerous and a magnet for undesirable activities.

This sort of environment can do little other than breed an atmosphere of apathy, isolation and, as I said, depression.  The nation's economic situation coupled with poor employment options only adds to the general malaise.  So, what's the solution?  Prozac in the drinking water?

This is what the community developer/organizer walks into.  This is the situation I face every day.  What does motivate people and move them out of their doldrums is an issue.  When there is an issue that breeds strong feelings a neighborhood can get energized and organize around that issue.  Sometimes an organizer needs to present an issue in a way that it clearly impinges on the interests of a neighborhood.  The next step is to teach people how they can make a difference and impact the process.

I am working on organizing the neighborhood around the church with a community gardenin hopes that this will appeal to folks' altruism and benefit the surrounding community.  As we work through the planning and organization during this fall and winter, I know that people can be motivated to organize around issues that impact on their quality of life and house values.  I also think that the changing administration, with the openness for input, will also contribute to involvement in the process of neighborhood organization. 

We Are Not Alone-the value of relationship

One of the hardest things about my ministry is the inherent sense of innovation.  This approach to doing ministry, modeled after the first century, is so old that it's new to most people.  Concepts like making relationship, listening to people's stories and community building do not fit well and are not highly valued in our culture.  21st century American society uses paradigms that place a premium on the quick fix that one gets from a targeted programmatic intervention, not consensus building and inclusion.

I found a great joy last week when I connected with Mike Mather at Broadway Methodist in Indianapolis.  A conversation I had with Tim Knauff, a Lutheran in South Bend, led me to Mike, who is doing a ministry virtually the same as I.  Arrangements were made and I got in contact with Mike, who introduced me to De'Amon Harges.  De'Amon works with Eric to make relationships and then connect people in the community, which is a mirror of my work in South Bend.  It was awesome to talk with people who have an active ministry doing what I do-suddenly I don't feel so alone.

This blog posting turned into an object lesson in relationships and networking.  Just look how I was encouraged and nourished by relationships. It would be easy to create a programmatic response with appropriate outcome data for the areas to which I minister, but that action invalidates the people I seek to serve.  Spending time on relationship builds up, validates and acknowledges people to fulfill the greatest commandment.  Even though I write about ministry, there is immense value to enhancing relationship in marriage, friendship and work associations.

I recognize the value, the necessity, of sitting in this formative time of relationship making, but the notion of a quick fix is very seductive.  It just seems wrong somehow to not take action, however, jumping to a solution and doing what I think is needed, the way we have always responded, is clearly not the right way to go.  The importance of spending time in relationship was underlined by Mike in Indy and by another friend who I met in Indianapolis, Bob Lupton of FCS/Desire Street in Atlanta.  Mike and Bob both talked about some of their mistakes and one common theme was the failure to make relationship with those they sought to help.  People who are doing effective community ministry talk about how the relationships of a successful ministry are years in the making.
 

We miss out on a lot when we fail to slow down.  When time spent in discernment and relationship is neglected, we lose ears for the still small voice.  I was just reading an article today about how our society has done away with downtime and eliminated sacred space.  Sure, there is action and excitement in community ministry, but it is when we take time for reflection and relationship that the real work is accomplished.

Big visions and little dreams

I was talking to a Lutheran pastor last week who told me about a Methodist church in Indianapolis that had a person they called a "roving listener".  That's a pretty cool title for what I feel like I am doing in the far northwest side of South Bend.  I just go and listen.  It's more fulfilling when our conversations can touch on God, but that only happens about half the time.  A lot of people have trouble doing what I do, which is amazing to me because talking to people comes so natural to me.

I have been working on developing a vision for my ministry and talking to all these people is a help.  It occurred to me the other day, though, that I am at a point where I need to decide if this is a little dream or if it's a place for a big vision.  So much depends upon the willingness of the churches to invest in me and this ministry because I can do a bunch of little things in the community here and there that meet some needs, but to create a lasting and powerful ministry is going to require time. 

I've started by submitting an initiative to the South Bend Housing Authority which has been favorably received.  I'm waiting to hear from them about some of their requirements before I can start teaching some elementary computer skills classes.  I have a vision of expanding that program to the point where it can be self-replicating in other housing projects throughout the city, but, again, that is a vision that requires investment.

I met with a woman today who told me how to start up a soup kitchen and it sounds like something I could do.  That's part of my huge vision for the area-a soup kitchen, food co-op and clothing.  Putting something like this in place will require a lot of work, time, effort and volunteers.  This is something that I could do.

Part of the issue is having the faith to step out and do this.  It worries me to think about the funding (particularly my salary), but I also know that I need to have faith in the venture.  If this is God's will nothing can stand in its way.  I preach about having faith and God's everpresent support so I suppose this is the time for me to live out my words and stand on my faith.  I believe this is what disciples are charged to do so I need to just do it.

neighborhood good news

I am surprised by the way different people hear the gospel message.  For example, I met with a guy and his understanding of disciple making and evangelism was connected with church growth.  He framed all his outreach as how it grew the congregation and so he had no interest in working on community ministry.  I didn't pursue this discussion to far, but read the gospel in such a different way.

Later that day I found myself in the far northwest neighborhood and I spent a lot of time talking with Richard.  I talked to him and a couple other guys about food pantries as well as soup kitchen.  They were really excited about the possibility of something like that moving into the area.  There are no real social services in the far northwest so people have to travel a long way to get food.  This possibility would be good news to the neighborhood.  We talked about God and church and other religious stuff and it was interesting to hear their theological take on things.

The two churches I work for generously provided me with the opportunity to attend the AND Conference at Granger Community Church.  GCC is the local mega-church and, while their worship style doesn't speak to me, the conference featured some huge names.  I have idolized Alan Hirsch for years and he was the main speaker at the gathering.  I ran into Alan in the bathroom and had him sign my book.  I got to hear him speak twice and he gave me a copy of his new book.  I also got to hear Mike Breen, High Halter and Brandon Hatmaker.

The message is that the church has to change.  The church must go out to that part of the society that it does not touch and impact people missionally.  Just what I am doing!  I wonder if I am moving too quickly when I hear these guys talking about spending years doing evaluation and interviews before acting.  It was fulfilling to hear other talk about what I have felt since seminary.  The challenge is figuring out how to do it.

church versus ministry

I didn't publish a post last week as I usually do because we had two missionaries from Nicaragua staying at our house.  I was doing translation work all week and was simply too tired to post. 

The last couple weeks were spent meeting up with people including other pastors.  These experiences have been weird to say the least.  I met with one committee and was describing my ministry to them when one individual asked me what I wanted from them.  Apparently, this church, which is wealthy, is used to being asked to fund mission and ministry.  I was taken aback and told them I didn't want their money-what I was asking for was their prayers and I wanted them to prepare themselves for when I asked them to participate in my ministry.  I'm thinking I didn't make a good impression because we had such different ideas of doing ministry.  Financial support is essential to a community ministry, but those supporters need to buy into the vision and I guess I didn't cast a good vision.

Another pastor I met with is a very faithful guy.  He is pushing the church he serves to do more Bible study and to become serious about inviting others to church.  He told me about some of the outreach things they had done and how many people they had served.  The down-side to the mission work was that not one of those people were grateful for the assistance nor did they attend worship at that church.  For this pastor, mission meant growing the church and he felt that was his calling as well as the Biblical mandate.  He went on to say that it was his thought that doing ministry to the community without directing them to a church was sort of a waste of time.

These were some pretty crazy conversations.  My understanding of mission and ministry is so very different. Helping people with their relationship with God is one thing, but church membership is another entirely.  When Jesus asked Peter if he loved him he said "Feed my sheep", not go to church.  Jesus didn't even say to go buy sheep food, but to feed the flock.  Mission and ministry are about making relationships.  To love people, care for them and feed them we have to know them.  This is the model of the Christ; Jesus became fully human to know us.

I did have some fun last week at a conference with Pat Meagly, Delray Brooks and Kevin Bacon.  I was at a session meeting and got funded to go to a conference with Alan Hirsch presenting.

Best of all I'm beginning to get some vision of where this ministry should go.  I feel resource poor, but I fe
el like God's gonna make it work.  It is really hard getting my ego out of the picture so that God can work.  I started getting scared, too.  I'm asking for a Damascus Road experience but I don't want to be struck blind.  Before you laugh, I'm praying hard for God to give me a vision and that's how God worked in the past.

Please pray for me, follow my blog, give comments and offer direction!

Vision quest

I had a good week running around the neighborhood, but, once again, I felt drawn to the Keller Park area.  I spent time helping Mack repair his garage, since he's physically not able to do that.  I talked to a young guy who had his clothes taken by a guy who was allowed to move into the home but turned out to be a gang-banger and thug.  I had no money and no way of helping this guy; it occurred to me how resource poor this area is.

I had time to sit with Gene a little on Friday and he suggested that I do some work on a vision for the ministry.  He mentioned and I re-read Habakkuk today.  "Though it tarry's, wait for it." resonates with me.  I have been praying for this vision and waiting for it, but I still feel very unsure about the whole thing.  I've generated a list of projects and talked to a lot of people to get their impression so I need to let this steep.  My friend suggested I give it 40 days which would take me to the 9th of this month.  I don't like to give God a deadline, but maybe it's me that needs this deadline.

I spent the day doing a lot of reading on casting visions and so on, but there's not a lot to read about this.  I feel like my situation is so unique that what is written doesn't apply.  On the other hand, I know that's just not so and I continue to look for Biblical examples that are similar to my situation.  I started reading Jeremiah because I have a sense of being unsupported in this ministry.  Don't get me wrong, I know there are people I can touch for emotional support, but there aren't too many to walk with me.  I sort of sense that God sent me out to develop a community or identify others to walk with me in that task.  I just feels like a big job.

As I think about the coming week I think about how I can work on this vision.  I know I'm going to have to spend time in prayer and meditation, but that's hard because it's not really "doing" anything.  It's hard for me to shake that impulse to do rather than simply spend time with God.  I don't have a prayer closet or a place in which I feel especially close to God.  I need to develop such a place or mind-set here in MI.  I know that prayer and meditation are vital disciplines to my ministry.

New Stuff

It took a conversation after worship with Dave H. to help me realize that I have been touched by miracles this week.  Probably the most awesome thing was what happened to a homeless couple I met a couple weeks ago. 

I met Rob and Lisa about three weeks ago when I ran into them walking the streets.  They were out of work and so had lost their place.  On top of that, Rob, who does carpentry, had his tools stolen, which is along story.  The couple was in the process of suing to get the tools, but things were just not going their way.  I saw this couple a few other times and spoke with them to find that their lot had not changed.  Imagine my joy when I saw them this week and they told me that they had a place to stay!  Granted, they still struggle, but, as Lisa put it, "God is helping us and it's just a matter of time.".  This is a miracle.

Everyday I am talking to people who struggle with difficulties, but they are not beaten.  I talk to felons who can't get a job but keep trying.  I talk to people who live in neighborhoods plagued by crime but are not willing to leave.  I talk to people who are discriminated, marginalized and silenced: down but not out.  The majority of people I talk to have a faith that God has not deserted them and that God is present in their lives.  This is the miracle!  God touches peoples' lives so that even in the valley they rely upon the divine presence.

Society is quick to discount those who have less and by the world's definition are less.  Even the church forgets that this was the group of people to which Jesus ministered.  Christians love success stories and even those who are in the process of change, but we have a hard time meeting those who are in the depths.  We feel a lot more comfortable with people who share our values and goals in life, people who are doing what we thing they ought.  Our perceptions are conformed, not transformed.

I pray that God touches my heart so that when I talk to anyone they see Jesus in my eyes.

Making Contacts

The last week of community ministry has been pretty inspiring.  I met with a couple of pastors who have hearts for community ministry.  It was a pleasure talking with guys who are so missional but grounded in the Word as well.  Some doors are opening and I continue to pray for discernment.

I met today with a guy who would like to do a bi-racial church plant.  This man has connections in the neighborhood and this seems to be a beneficial relationship for both of us.  A difficulty is that the churches I'm working with are not so excited to share their worship space with another congregation.  I am enthused to consider preaching and teaching with this guy and starting something new that isn't being done in South Bend.  However, I have been a pastor long enough to realize how attached congregations can become to their buildings.  I pray that God will make God's will known so that this gets worked out.

In conversation with one of these ministers it was pointed out to me that I might be overextending.  I am concerned that the two churches feel a part of this ministry and I feel as if I have been focusing primarily on the more southern part of the area.  The area to the north is more affluent and I think there is less need, but I am making that assumption without speaking to folks.  My intention is to begin to invest some more time in the northern part of the territory.

I made multiple phone calls today and I'm trying to get together with the area pastors.  I don't know who would be interested in partnering up, but we will see.  I've made some appointments, but I've also left a lot of messages.

It seems to me that God is active in this ministry.  God is moving things in such a way that ministry opportunities are present.  I think this brings folks up to date and so I'm going to slow the frequency of posts to weekly now.

Oh, I got a call to discuss and interim position.  The position would be 2/3rds time in a church about an hour from Niles.  It was a temptation to accept this call, but I ended up saying no.  I don't know this sort of temptation is happening at this time.  Depending on your pneumatology, one could see this as the intervention of evil to frustrate the work of the Spirit.

First Steps

The last post was about this huge undertaking that I'm grappling with in South Bend.  I touched on some of the challenges I faced jumping into this and my friend, Rev. Steve in CO, emailed to ask how I dealt with these.  I had actually meant to write about this in the first blog, but was too tired Friday night to write more.

The first thing I did was to go to the Chamber of Commerce and get a map.  The next thing I did was to get some business cards made.  With map in hand, I set about getting to know the area around the two churches who were supporting the ministry.  I prayed as a I rode in a hap-hazard fashion through the area; I tried to allow God to guide me in my travels.  If I felt moved I stopped and talked to people about the neighborhood and so on.  Sometimes we pray and sometimes we don't, but they all know I'm a pastor and that's a possibility.

I am looking for partners in this ministry and so I turned to the internet to research churches, social service providers and neighborhood associations in the area.  I developed a small list from this study and set about visiting those organizations.  There are not too many in the area targeted, which is an indication of need.  The people I did talk to emphasized the need to better define the area I wanted to serve, as well as creating more tangible goals.  The idea of being minister to a neighborhood simply did not make sense to most people and it made even less sense when I told them that I was praying for discernment and that they were part of the process. 

Part of my research involved visiting the denomination's web site.  The PC(USA) is not well equipped to deal with community ministry, despite our spoken support of emergent communities.  If one's goal is to plant or develop a new church, the PC(USA) has a wealth of resources, but that is not my overt goal.  The denomination did recommend a book by David Bos and I was anxious to read that as his wife was my adviser in seminary. 

I went to Better World Books (awesome place) and got the Bos book along with several books on community ministry.  I apologize to Johanna, but the book by David Bos just did not meet my needs.  What I did find was a tremendous book by Carl Dudley.  Basic Steps is an awesome primer for the community minister.  The volume outlines steps to take and offers some direction on how to evaluate information about the community.  I was reassured as I read this to find that my ideas were all right on target with the process recommended by Dudley.  I was also interested to read his small section on the hidden people in the community as well as the intangible rewards and obstacles.  While I had thought about those items that can't be quantified, Dudley made sure that I didn't forget those elements.

Along with all the research I continue to go through the neighborhood and talk to people.  I pray as I go and stop and chat with most people.  Through the process of conversation I have begun to limit the area in which I hope to do ministry.  It has also occurred to me that I am able to begin several small to medium initiatives rather than focusing on one big programmatic thing.  I have also looked at the area and decided that there are three adjoining neighborhoods in which I plan on ministering.  The composition, needs and resources available in those areas are all different so there is a need for different ministry.

I found that in chatting with people I am directed to others in the community or other resources.  These "secondary" contacts have proven to be the most helpful.  These contacts are people who are active in the community and have a good idea of what needs to be done as well as how it might be accomplished.  What I keep finding out is that I need to know more.  It seems like every conversation sheds light on another facet of an issue in the community.

I am ready to begin planning some action, so I am now getting ready to deal with the supporting churches.  I don't know how they will react to my requests to use their facilities and what hoops I will have to go through to make these things happen.  I also know I have access to some funds, but I don't know how that process is going to work, either. 

Please follow this blog as together we can explore this incredible community ministry.

Warming up to South Bend

I knew it wouldn't be too long until something like this happened.  Fortunately, I didn't get banged up too badly, just some scrapes.  You see, I've been biking around the Far Northwest area of South Bend doing community ministry for the last three weeks. I hope this chronicle will provide people with a better understanding of community ministry, the growth it brings to the churches involved and a glimpse into the world of ministry.

I began this ministry three weeks ago with the mandate to go and do ministry.  Two Presbyterian churches, Memorial and Westminster, put their money together and got a little bit more from the Presbytery of Wabash Valley to finance this ministry.  I am amazed that two churches could agree and work together like this.  In my years of ministry I have never experienced two churches working together like this without animosity-props to Rev. Ted Lester who laid the groundwork.  For such a partnership to exist it must be of God!  I have said and written for years that the church must change how it interacts with the world and this initiative is proof that others have the same perspective.  This awesome opportunity to do church differently became mine August 1, 2011.

No limits, no guidance, just go and do.  It is often said be careful what you pray for and so it goes.  As my wife reminds me, this is something that I have asked for since I became a minister some 10 years ago, but this is just huge. Imagine-I was sent out into South Bend, Indiana, a city I didn't know all that well, and told to do ministry.  Scary, exciting, challenging...I think I have an idea how those first disciples felt when they started the first churches.

The most overwhelming part of the ministry was all that needed to be done.  There was no boundary regarding the area I was expected to serve, but I reckoned that I should look at areas around the two churches that were funding the ministry.  I also knew that a resource was the church building.  Even with that in mind, it was a challenge to define the area of ministry.  Stakeholders, providers, possible partners and the very people being served had to be identified.  A lot to be done!