QB camp for Pastors
The other day I was watching Gruden's QB Camp on ESPN, which I really enjoy, and had a thought, 'what would it be like if this existed for people in ministry?' Now football is a lot more quantifiable than ministry, but I think there are some definite parallels we can make between Gruden's QB Camp and coaching in ministry.
- We need someone, or a few someone's, who take the time to watch us. In football this is watching film, but in ministry this is watching how we spend our office time, how we act towards parents, students, volunteers, how we teach, how we lead, etc. We need people who will watch all of this and not be afraid to critique us. We can't grow if we don't learn. We need correction, we need encouragement, and we need to be held accountable.
- We need someone to coach us in a practical, hands on way. Receivers don't learn how to run routes by looking at a whiteboard, they learn to run routes by running them under the supervision of their coaches. In the same way we need people who can coach us on the fly, who can correct mistakes, show us the ropes, and let us learn by doing. Hands on coaching is a must.
- We need someone who will pour their wisdom and experience into us. No matter what your profession is, learning from someone who has wisdom is always a benefit. I've yet to discover a situation where wisdom isn't a good thing.
- We need someone who isn't impressed by us. This may sound harsh, but it's true. We need people in our lives who don't care how big of a youth group we lead, how many books we've written, how awesome our blog is, etc. We need people who keep us grounded, who remind us that we can always learn, and who remind us that ministry isn't about us, it's about God.
Who is coaching you through ministry right now?