I have found that motivation is closely related to ownership. When people have ownership of a ministry, they become fully motivated and committed to it. Of course, we need to be careful to distinguish motivation from manipulation. Both can make people move, but manipulation is not healthy for a long-term ministry. It may produce a short-term response, but it can also create misunderstanding and damage trust. Therefore, we should avoid manipulation as much as possible and learn how to motivate people in healthy and appropriate ways. Every ministry begins with motivation, but lasting ministry requires ownership.
So, what is ownership? Ownership means thinking, “This is mine. This is my responsibility. This is my ministry, my mission, and my calling from God.” When people have that kind of ownership, they take full responsibility for what they have been entrusted with.
Ownership can come from within ourselves, but in ministry it is often given to us by others, especially by the leader of the ministry. A leader needs to give people real responsibility and enough freedom to make the ministry their own. Without ownership, people have difficulty becoming truly committed, dedicated, creative, and willing to develop themselves.
Creativity is especially important for personal and ministry growth. When people have ownership, they begin to ask, “How can we make this ministry work? What can I do to make it better?” They do not simply wait for instructions. They begin to think, solve problems, and develop new ideas.
One way to express this attitude is:
“God wants this ministry in our church, so we have to make it work.”
Dr. Melvin Steinbron has emphasized this same principle. He writes that someone has to “own” the ministry. That means someone must be responsible for it, manage it, and be accountable for its condition and progress. He also points out that a small group of people can share the vision and take responsibility for the ministry.
Melvin uses the example of Moses and Jethro. Moses was trying to carry the responsibility of caring for the people by himself, and Jethro showed him that this was foolish and unsustainable. Moses needed to share the responsibility with others. The same principle applies to caring for a congregation and to managing a ministry that cares for the congregation.
For example, in a church of 2,500 members, we have a Ministry Leadership Group of eight people who share the vision and provide leadership for our Lay Pastors Ministry. They are not simply attending meetings; they are helping to carry the ministry.
What, then, are the signs that someone truly has ownership?
There are at least five signs:
- They attend meetings regularly.
They consider the ministry important enough to give it their time. - They think about the ministry outside of meetings.
The ministry remains in their minds even when they are not formally working on it. - They talk about it at home, with friends, and with others.
The ministry becomes part of their everyday conversation because they genuinely care about it. - They agonize over its problems.
They care deeply enough that they may even lose sleep over difficult situations. The problems of the ministry have become their problems. - They feel joy when the ministry succeeds.
They celebrate its success as if it were their own because they know they have helped make it possible.
These are strong signs of ownership. When people move from simply participating in a ministry to owning the ministry, their motivation changes. They no longer work merely because someone told them to. They work because they believe, “This is my responsibility before God, and I want to see it succeed.”
That is the kind of motivation that can sustain a ministry for many years.