As the end of the spring term draws ever closer… and our ministry efforts on campus begin to shift from active and engaged, to more reflective and preparatory… I think there are three important perspectives from which we need to consider our work.

Where am I?

I think our starting point has always got to be where we currently find ourselves. What is the truth of our reality… right now — in the present? As I sit here today… what is the state of our ministry on campus?

Has it been a good year? If so, why? If not, why not?

What is working (or has worked this year)?

What isn’t working?

What is the status of my relationships with my team? Students? Members of the faculty and staff? Local ministry leaders?

What needs to be acknowledged, and even celebrated?

What needs to be corrected?

This deserves our honest and sincere attention. We are stewards of the ministry positions we hold… and the ministry efforts we have with students.

How did I get here?

After we’ve discerned (as best we can) our present state, the second step is to identify how we got here.

I think this is an oft overlooked perspective because our natural tendencies are to jump to the “future.” OK, if this is where I am, how do I get to where I want to go?

But I would suggest that without taking the time to understand our past — our recent (and even distant) history — our future could be doomed before we get to it. So it will behoove us to spend some time exploring questions like:

How is the present state of our ministry a product of our past decisions?

Where have we simply been  maintaining a “status quo?”

Where are we stuck in ruts?

Where are we able to see the “visible fruit” of past years of planting and watering seeds?

Where have we failed to capitalize on past “success?”

How has past success (or failure) side-tracked us?

What is the trajectory of our past to our present projecting about our future (without intentional change)?

Again, these questions deserve our honest and focused time and attention. There is so much that a “look back” can tell us about the direction we’re currently heading.

Where do we go from here?

After we’ve taken a good, honest look at the present state of our ministry, and better learned (from our past) how we’ve arrived in that place, it’s now time to think forward.

And I think it’s important to state that this phase in our assessment process really needs to be one of patiently and prayerfully waiting for God to offer us direction and insight… because I think the last thing we want to do is pretend to know what God is up to, or what God wants to have done next.

Attempting to carry our own agenda can be both frustrating (for us) and devastating (for those we serve and serve with). So as we enter this phase our refection needs to move to discernment.

Where is God already at work?

How does God want us to come alongside what He is already doing?

Where do we need to continue to invest our time, energy, and efforts?

Where do we need to tweak, or drastically change, what we’re currently doing?

What do we simply need to stop doing?

What can we offer this campus community that other ministries currently aren’t offering (so that we’re not competing with each other)?

Our future needs to be informed by our past and present, and not by what’s currently working in another ministry (on campus, across town, or someplace far off). We need to know our campus well enough, as well as be open to the leading of the Spirit, such that we are able to offer our students exactly what they need.

There are plenty more questions that could be asked as we assess our ministries from these different perspectives… But I hope this can serve as a starting point for us as we learn about our ministry (and ministry context) and begin to think, and prayerfully discern, our future work in that place.

What am I missing???

Is there anything you’d add to any of the lists above?