What would happen if Blake didn’t finish that swing?
His form is flawless. His timing is perfect. Connecting with the ball is inevitable.
I’m no baseball expert, but I know enough to know that if he doesn’t finish his swing, every other step he took won’t make a difference in the world. The ball is not going as far as he wants it to go.
Many times in ministry we don’t finish our swing.
We approach the plate, set our feet, and keep our eye on the ball. We make great contact but if we don’t finish our swing… all other efforts are diminished. The ministry ‘hit’ doesn’t go as far as we want it to go.
What is finishing our swing?
It’s follow up.
Good relational ministry demands that we follow up.
- Call the parent within 24 hours after a challenging conversation. Ensure them that you are available to them. Then make it easy to get in touch with you. Don’t avoid their call
- Contact that volunteer within a week after a great training event. Recap to ensure they know what direction you want them to go. Equip them with tools to go deeper, should they desire (i.e. books, articles, podcasts, etc)
- Provide ‘next step’ opportunities for a new believer immediately after their decision. Don’t let them leave without knowing where to go, what to read and/or who to turn to with this life-changing decision they’ve made
- Set a calendar reminder to follow up with someone walking through difficult life-circumstances. Don’t let the worst part of it be the only time they have your attention. That’s when everyone flocks. Let them feel your presence & concern when they’re not on anyone’s radar
[bctt tweet=”Relational ministry is more about consistency through the varying moments of life… mundane and life-altering.”]
Consistency requires follow up. Follow up is finishing your swing. Finishing your swing takes the ministry efforts and knocks them out of the park.
Finish your swing.
You had me at baseball. Great post, great point, I wonder why I put most of my time on the program and not on the follow through. I discipline we must get right. thanks fro the reminder. hope all is well, keep doing your thing. Dustin