The Twelve Foundations are essential principles for starting a ministry and guiding it through its first several years. They are especially helpful during the beginning stage of a ministry because they provide a clear framework for what needs to be done and how the ministry can continue to develop.
For me, the Twelve Foundations were like a North Star. They gave me direction and helped me know where I was going. When I started this ministry in Korea in 1999, I followed these principles from the very beginning, and they became a practical guide for me.
After many years of ministry experience, Dr. Melvin Steinbron developed these principles from what he had learned through both success and failure. By the time I started the ministry in Korea, he had already spent about twenty years developing and practicing the Lay Pastors Ministry in the United States. Therefore, he had accumulated a great deal of experience about what helps a ministry succeed and what can cause it to fail.
I followed his guidance carefully from the beginning. Looking back now, after many years of ministry, I sometimes feel that I have already internalized these principles. They are no longer something I have to consciously think about every day. However, I still strongly recommend them to anyone who is beginning a ministry.
Most ministry materials focus on how to start a ministry or how to operate it during the first few years. Very few materials explain how to keep a ministry alive and fruitful for many years. I believe one reason is that many ministries start quickly but die quickly. People know how to begin, but they do not always know what comes next or how to continue when the initial excitement disappears.
The Twelve Foundations help answer that question. They provide a pathway from the beginning of a ministry to its long-term continuation.
It begins with Vision and ends with Maintenance. I believe this is very meaningful. Vision gives us the reason and direction to begin, while Maintenance helps us continue toward the destination. For me, it took about six years to fully understand and master this progression. I believe that every new ministry should intentionally work through these foundations during its first two to four years. Eventually, they become part of the natural life of the ministry.
1. Vision
The first foundation is Vision.
Every ministry has to begin somewhere. There must be a starting point—a moment when something important becomes clear in our minds and hearts. We begin to see something that is needed for the church, for society, or for people. That moment is where vision is born.
For me, my vision for this ministry came through my teaching at a theological school around 1995. I was asked to teach pastoral care, which was my major area of study at that time. While preparing for the class, I discovered Dr. Melvin Steinbron’s book, Can the Pastor Do It Alone?
I began teaching the students from this book. Eventually, they asked me to translate the book into Korean.
I still vividly remember that moment. Something very strong and compelling began to work in my mind. Looking back, I believe that was the moment when God gave me the vision for this ministry.
Dr. Melvin had a similar experience. After serving as a pastor in three different churches, he became deeply dissatisfied because he felt that he was not adequately equipping his congregation for ministry. He stopped and thought about it again and again. That dissatisfaction eventually became a vision.
The form may be different for each person, but we all need that moment when something becomes deeply important to us. A strong vision is crucial to starting a ministry.
2. Ownership
The second foundation is Ownership.
Dr. Melvin strongly advised me to develop ownership of the ministry. His advice deeply influenced me.
I believe several things helped me develop that ownership.
First, the vision came from within me. I personally became convinced that this ministry was something I had to do.
Second, LPMI USA and Dr. Melvin gave me a formal Certificate of Appointment. It was only one page of A4 paper, but it gave me a tremendous sense of responsibility. It made me feel that I had been entrusted with something important.
Third, local churches began asking me to come and help them. Sometimes I visited three churches in one week to equip their leaders. As I continued serving churches, my ownership became stronger and stronger.
Eventually, this was no longer simply a ministry I was doing. It became a ministry to which I had committed my life.
3. Structure
The third foundation is Structure.
Structure is necessary, but especially in the beginning, it should be simple.
Sometimes people make a new ministry complicated too quickly. Too many people become involved, too many committees are formed, and too many procedures are established. Instead of helping the ministry move forward, the structure itself becomes a burden.
My advice is simple: Make it simple!
In the beginning, a small group of committed people is often better than a large organization. Jesus himself began with a small group of disciples. I believe that seven to nine committed people can be a very reasonable size for starting a ministry.
Later, when the ministry has become established, more people and more complicated structures may be necessary. But during the startup stage, we should be careful not to become distracted.
I experienced this personally when we started PACE International Seminary in Nagaland, India. In the beginning, Aloto and I were the ones discussing the idea. I repeatedly told him, “We need to start first. You and I need to make the decision and get started.”
Later, more people could become involved. But first, we had to start.
And we did.
4. Call
The fourth foundation is Call.
A ministry cannot be sustained simply by an idea or a program. The leader needs to have a sense that he or she has been called to this work.
When difficulties come—and they will come—the call becomes an important source of perseverance.
Vision tells us what we see.
Call tells us why we must continue.
5. Equipping
The fifth foundation is Equipping.
Once we begin a ministry, we have a responsibility to equip God’s people for ministry. This is especially important for ministry leaders.
Equipping does not happen only inside the local church. There are many ways people can grow.
We can take lay pastors to visit other churches that have been doing the ministry successfully for several years. When two teams of lay pastors meet, share their experiences, and learn from each other, both sides can benefit greatly.
Regional conferences and national conferences are also valuable opportunities for equipping.
I have attended international LPM conferences in the United States almost every year since 2000. I have learned many things through those conferences, and they have helped equip me personally.
In Korea, we also held five conferences over a ten-year period. Lay pastors from different churches gathered together, learned from one another, and were re-equipped for ministry.
Equipping is not a one-time event. It is a continuing process.
6. Accountability
The sixth foundation is Accountability.
Ministry leaders need someone who can encourage them, ask questions, challenge them, and help them remain faithful to what they have committed themselves to doing.
Accountability helps turn good intentions into faithful action.
7. Affirmation
The seventh foundation is Affirmation.
People need encouragement. Lay pastors who faithfully care for others may not always see immediate results. Sometimes their work is quiet and unnoticed.
Therefore, leaders need to recognize their efforts and affirm them.
A simple word of appreciation can give someone the strength to continue.
8. Support
The eighth foundation is Support.
No one should try to carry a ministry alone. Leaders need spiritual, relational, practical, and organizational support.
When people know that others are standing with them, they are more willing to continue when ministry becomes difficult.
9. Fellowship
The ninth foundation is Fellowship.
Ministry is not only about doing tasks. It is also about building relationships.
People who serve together need opportunities to meet, share, laugh, pray, eat, and encourage one another. Fellowship creates a sense of belonging and strengthens the relationships that sustain ministry.
10. Communication
The tenth foundation is Communication, and this is one of the foundations I think about most.
When I started the ministry, Dr. Melvin advised me to produce a monthly newsletter, even if it was only one A4 page.
I followed his advice. For the first ten years, I continued producing newsletters. But eventually, I produced them even more frequently—sometimes weekly, sometimes quarterly—and they grew from two pages to four pages and occasionally even eight pages.
Something interesting happened.
At first, I made the newsletter. Later, the newsletter began to lead me.
People were waiting for it, so I had to produce it. Because I needed stories and information to include, I had to keep working. I needed something new to report, so I had to continue visiting churches, meeting people, training leaders, and developing the ministry.
In this way, the newsletter became more than a communication tool. It became a force that kept our ministry moving forward.
I am very grateful for Dr. Melvin’s practical and precious advice.
I gave the same advice to Aloto, who is now developing LPM in India. He understood the importance of communication and has continued publishing regularly.
11. Evaluation
The eleventh foundation is Evaluation.
We need to stop from time to time and ask:
What are we doing?
What is working?
What is not working?
What needs to change?
Where are we going next?
Without evaluation, a ministry can continue doing the same things simply because they have always been done that way.
Evaluation helps us learn from our experience and make necessary adjustments.
12. Maintenance
The twelfth and final foundation is Maintenance.
I consider Maintenance one of the most important of the Twelve Foundations.
When I teach this, I often say that Vision is the most important foundation because it gets us started, while Maintenance is the second most important because it keeps us going.
Maintenance may not look exciting. It often involves small things, daily routines, repeated tasks, and ordinary responsibilities. But without those small things, a ministry eventually dies.
I like to compare Maintenance to an airplane flying toward its destination.
The airplane may have a clear destination, a powerful engine, and an excellent pilot. But it still needs regular maintenance. Without it, the airplane may never arrive safely.
Ministry is similar.
Most people are excited about starting something new. But after the excitement disappears, the real challenge begins: How do we continue?
Marriage provides another good illustration.
A wedding ceremony may last only a few minutes—or perhaps an hour. It is beautiful and memorable. But the wedding is only the beginning. Marriage may continue for twenty, thirty, fifty years, or even a lifetime.
The difficult part is not the wedding ceremony. The difficult part is maintaining the marriage day after day.
Ministry is the same.
Starting a ministry may be exciting. But keeping it healthy, faithful, and fruitful year after year requires Maintenance.
When I taught this principle to the students at PACE International Seminary, they were deeply impressed by it. I believe they understood something very important:
A ministry does not survive because it started well.
A ministry survives because it continues well.
That is why the Twelve Foundations are so valuable.
Vision gives us the beginning.
Ownership gives us commitment.
Structure gives us order.
Call gives us perseverance.
Equipping gives us growth.
Accountability keeps us responsible.
Affirmation gives us encouragement.
Support gives us strength.
Fellowship gives us belonging.
Communication keeps us connected.
Evaluation helps us improve.
And Maintenance keeps us going.
The Twelve Foundations are, in a sense, a journey from vision to longevity—from the starting line to the finish line.