Have you ever struggled with the idea of bringing in someone as a ministry Coach when you knew that you were over your head? Have you ever struggled with how to convince others on your leadership team that money should be spent on outside assistance? Consider the value of Jethro in Exodus 18 upon Moses or Paul’s impact upon Timothy and Titus. Consider the value that a good Coach can add to your ministry.

1. Experience, expertise, and time are brought to your leadership team. Your leadership team cannot possible stay abreast with the new paradigms that God is blessing and methods that are new and fresh. You cannot hire enough knowledgeable people to keep up with today’s fast pace.
2. Jethro demonstrates the flexibility of being available when needed and disappearing after the job is completed. FLEXIBILITY is required in the needs of today’s churches. The use of the phone and internet offer options for an ongoing coaching relationship that is flexible to a leaders’ time.
3. Fresh perspectives are needed in the ministry. A good Coach offers cross-pollination of ideas and experiences from other similar ministries that allow you to tap into a brain trust of information.
4. Maximum ministry efficiency is provided. This is made possible because of the Coach’s similar life experiences. They are able to devote time on solutions without the distractions of daily ministerial requirements. A good Coach can bring to completion a task in a fraction of the time needed otherwise.
5. A good Coach should bring sound theology to the relationship. A Coach that is grounded in theological training will bring not just ideas to the table, but ideas that are tempered with solid theology that strengthens the Biblical voice of the church.
6. A good Coach will assist you in searching for the answers that are within you. You do not want someone to do your thinking for you, rather, you need someone that can assist you in thinking into your desired outcomes.

Some object to the use of outside assistance to accomplish strategic planning and to develop healthy patterns of ministry due to the cost. The first thing to consider, is our church growing, plateaued, or declining. If your ministry is stuck or struggling in some way, then perhaps the question becomes, “Can we afford not to work with such a person?” Secondly, the issue is who is the cheapest? The old business adage holds true even in the church world, “The bitterness of poor service outlasts the sweetness of low price!” Most would agree that using a theologically trained proven Coach for strategic planning is the best way to go. The question now is, “are you willing to settle for second or third best? Should the Lord’s church settle for second best? Is your ministry worth more than second best?”

Consider the seven reasons that you can afford a good Coach.[1]

1. Rather than ask if you can afford a qualified Coach, the better question is, Can you afford not to work with a Coach? Is your ministry at serious risk? Is it likely that your ministry rests with a wise decision to bring in outside help such as Jethro or a Paul?
2. The benefit of a good Coach should more than pay for the cost of the service. At Shepherds Advantage we will equip every minister with our proven “Prove-The-Tithe” stewardship strategy as a part of every service that we offer. Our goal is to provide healthy Biblical strategies of stewardship in every church.
3. Often there are those who are willing to underwrite the cost of a Coach. Many times there are people whom God has blessed with the spirit of generosity. When a vision need is cast, there are people who may surprise you with their willingness to support you.
4. You get what you pay for and what you value.
5. If you are a small church that wrestles with the cost, consider combining with other churches in the community to share in the expense. What seems unaffordable now is possible when shared between several churches in a community.
6. The need for consulting is the primary issue. If ministerial health can be restored and hope for tomorrow returned, isn’t that what we all strive for?
7. A good Coach is cost effective for any ministry. The cost of a good Coach is considerably less than the salary package of a new staff hire.

Leave a comment below or click the voice message at the right to leave a comment. I am convinced that having a good coach in our life in the 21st century is crucial to spiritual/emotional health.

[1] Aubrey Malphurs. A New Kind of Church (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2007), 188-190.