# How to manage a ministry

God may call you to lead in professional ministry.

The qualifications of elders are *more* severe than general [spiritual mentors](spiritual-discipleship.md) (i.e., "deacons") ([Titus 1:5-9](https://biblehub.com/bsb/titus/1.htm), [1 Timothy 3:1-13](https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_timothy/3.htm)):

- Has a clean [public reputation](image.md) through established [habits](spiritual-exercises.md) that reinforce their [beliefs](jesus-gospel.md).
- Clear with their [words](language.md), and not [dishonest](people-lying.md).
- Faithful to their [spouse](relationships-marriage.md), with their spouse also having a clean public reputation.
- Their [children](parenting-3_teenagers.md) are also believers that haven't been accused of being wasteful or rebellious.
- Slow to anger.
- Free of any [substance abuse](addiction-substances.md).
- Doesn't love power for its own sake, especially [money](power-types.md).
- Soundly [understands](understanding.md) the Bible as he was taught.

No matter *what* you do, prioritize your [family](people-family.md), especially your [wife](relationships-marriage.md) and [children](parenting-children.md).

- Your children will see your private life more than anyone else you lead, and how you treat them is the most controllable thing you can do for your ministry's [legacy](legacy.md).
- In any ministry, leaders' wives are the most vulnerable because others expect her performance, but don't tend to give her much support.

Don't assume a larger leadership role until you have experience [teaching and mentoring](spiritual-discipleship.md) ([1 Timothy 3:2](https://biblehub.com/1_timothy/3-2.htm)).

## God should want it

Carefully evaluate why you want to engage in public ministry.

- The ministry will arise out of a perceived need within the Church ([Acts 6:1-6](https://biblehub.com/bsb/acts/6.htm)).
- Every inspiration comes from several possible sources:
  - [Your mind](understanding.md)
  - [Others' thoughts](power-influence.md)
  - [God's guidance](god-will.md)
  - [The devil's deceptions](spiritual-warfare-tricks.md)
- Make 100% sure it's God's guidance, since it takes His name in vain to start something in His name ([Exodus 20:7](https://biblehub.com/exodus/20-7.htm)).
- There are a *lot* of bad reasons to start (or continue) a public ministry:
  - Projected hatred of anyone due to their [sins](morality-sins.md).
  - Desire to create [social change](trends.md) to fight [injustice](morality-justice.md) driven by *any* revenge.
  - Frustration at present Christian leaders who [lead believers wrongly](conflicts-christian-1_why.md).
  - [Feedback](power-influence.md) from others for doing well in a ministry setting.
- The reason should *always* be a straightforward desire to [follow God's will](god-will.md) and expand His Kingdom ([Matthew 6:10](https://biblehub.com/matthew/6-10.htm)).
  - Ideas from Him are good, honorable, fair, pure, lovely, and reputable ([Philippians 4:8-9](https://biblehub.com/bsb/philippians/4.htm)).
  - God doesn't speak vaguely, and He *will* confirm it's His idea ([1 Corinthians 14:33](https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/14-33.htm)).
  - When you've been walking with Him for a while, [ideas you arrive at yourself](mind-creativity.md) are often directly inspired by Him.

Before taking the plunge, have the wisdom to count the cost.

- Consider the [relationships](people-4_friends.md) you'll likely gain and lose, your affiliations and [professional network](professionals.md), necessary lifestyle changes, and likely sacrifices.
- Examine the financial shift to your lifestyle.
  1. Think about all your likely future needs and research their costs.
  2. Make a budget that doesn't veer into extreme poverty or opulence.
  3. Even when it doesn't look like enough, ask what you already have (God can use anything).
  4. Consider whom to share your need with (asking money from others is an act of faith).
  5. Give the rest you [can't determine or don't know](unknown.md) to God.
- To serve the spiritual needs of others, you should have your own spiritual state sorted out.
  - While you don't need to [have your shadow completely integrated](personality.md), you should be at least *somewhat* aware of every aspect of your emotional state.
- God uses our inertia far more than our inaction, so look at what you can start now.

Your financial lifestyle will change, but if it's His plan He'll give [meaning](meaning.md) through that change.

- Live with a modest family [budget](money-3_budget.md), *especially* if your lifestyle will be funded by others' donations.
- Keep giving to serve His church as He leads you.
- God has promised He'll give many, many resources for your success by following Him ([Psalm 37](https://biblehub.com/bsb/psalms/37.htm)).

Never live far above *or* below the lifestyles of the people you serve and lead.

- Your car, house, and lifestyle are tools to assist with [guiding people to Jesus](evangelism.md).
- Do *not* compare yourself to others.
- Learn satisfaction with Jesus ruling your finances.

## Ministry types

At its core, a [church](church.md) is simply a gathering of believers ([Matthew 18:20](https://biblehub.com/matthew/18-20.htm)).

- The only major differences between churches are either [cultural](people-culture.md) or [legal](legal-safety.md).
- This definition is broad enough to include things people often do *not* [understand](understanding.md) to be churches:
  - House gatherings, including group [Bible studies](bible-study.md)
  - Charitable organizations
  - [Media networks](stories-storytellers.md) run by Christians
  - Thrift store chains
  - Christian music concerts
  - Parachurch and ecumenical organizations
- To put it another way, a Christ-like church is simply *any* gathering of people who have performed [Christ-like habits](spiritual-exercises.md) long enough that their shared [habits](habits.md) have [fostered](power-influence.md) a [culture](people-culture.md) to arise from it.
  - That Christian culture will be the hybrid of their culture of origin mixed with a sincere [Christian identity](identity.md).
  - The conventional term for "church" is more accurately a ["*worship-based* church"](mgmt-church-worship.md).

You don't necessarily have to plant a "church", and it may be wiser to create a [parachurch organization](church-parachurch.md) if you see needs that serve churches directly.

There are several ways to approach a new ministry venture:

1. Scope out [an articulated plan](entrepreneur-3_plan.md), inspired directly from [secular not-for-profit organizations](mgmt-npo.md), then adapt as things [change](people-changes.md) (a typical approach for [wealthy cultures](https://theologos.site/the-west/)).
2. Trust God entirely for the experience and act directly on what the Holy Spirit says (a typical approach for [persecuted churches](hardship-persecution-church.md)).
3. Attempt to rebuild everything from the ground up (typical for churches less concerned about engaging everyone in a community or with [trust issues](trust.md)).

If you must register your ministry with the government (e.g., 501(c)3 status), you should have a clear scope of what your primary activities are.

- You often have to classify it differently depending on what your primary activity is.
- Many times, it's the distinction between a "ministry-based church" or "church-based ministry", but it's all according to that government's requirements, and is somewhat arbitrary.
- Bear in mind any risks from [persecution](hardship-persecution-church.md) in how you indicate the ministry's activities.

## Leadership skills

Keep [working hard and consistently](success-4_routine.md), even when [you don't see results](success-5_persevering.md).

- Sometimes, for the sake of the ministry, consider [a side job](entrepreneur-4_freelancing.md), *especially* at the beginning ([Acts 18:1-4](https://biblehub.com/bsb/acts/18.htm)).
- A minister's work never ends, so enjoy any rest, even a few hours.

Get other believers to assist you in diligently [praying and fasting](spiritual-exercises-prayer.md).

Your necessary range of skills will change as you grow.

- At the outset, you will need [an entrepreneur's mindset](entrepreneur-1_why.md) because you're assuming as much or more [risk](safety-riskmgmt.md) as a new for-profit enterprise.
- If your ministry grows, you'll have to adapt [management skills](mgmt-1_why.md).

Don't over-reach your [specialization](jobs-specialization.md).

- If you're experiencing any fatigue, you're probably acting outside the range of your [spiritual gifts](spiritual-gifts.md).
- Ask for wisdom on what to do ([James 1:5-6](https://biblehub.com/bsb/james/1.htm)):
  1. Ask a believer more gifted in that capacity who can help you with it instead.
  2. Brainstorm a [creative](mind-creativity-how.md) way around it (e.g., avoiding a [specific project](mgmt-2_projects.md) entirely that's not mission-critical).
  3. If nobody can help, ask Him directly to grant you the power to perform the tasks you're trying to accomplish ([1 Corinthians 14:1](https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/14-1.htm)).

Even when the [results](results.md) fail your [expectations](imagination.md), trust He will provide an increase when you need it.

- Your entire reason for working a ministry is for Jesus to be at the center of it.
- God wants your ministry to fit a *specific* group of people He planned out in advance, so don't concern yourself as much with results as what He wants.

## Working with people

Keep your long-term focus on the large-scale impact on the Body of Christ.

- The *first* priority of the Church is to [make disciples](spiritual-discipleship.md) everywhere, with all Christian organizations operating in various capacities to that end.

A spiritual leader's job has 4 components:

1. [Advertise](evangelism.md) and teach [the message of Christ](jesus-gospel.md).
2. Connect people with other people in the global Church.
3. Foster a culture for believers to [Love each other](people-love.md) inside the group as [spiritual family](people-family.md).
4. Perform [discipleship](spiritual-discipleship.md) of their own.

Every ministry leader is responsible to foster a [culture](people-culture.md) for believers to act in the world:

- Show the world's needs, especially the ones members can meet.
- Provoke *everyone* in the group to fulfill those needs.

A healthy ministry should heal and equip believers.

- Christians are susceptible to [false doctrine](conflicts-christian-1_why.md) *everywhere* ([1 Timothy 4:6-7](https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_timothy/4.htm)).
- We're all in a perpetual [spiritual war with Satan](spiritual-warfare.md) ([James 4:7](https://biblehub.com/james/4-7.htm)).
- Believers experience far more [persecution](hardship-persecution-church.md) than the world would ever admit ([2 Timothy 3:10-13](https://biblehub.com/bsb/2_timothy/3.htm)).

Contrary to popular belief, the ministry system itself will *not* help believers grow.

1. Any ministry will provoke individuals to contribute their efforts to it.
2. Those individuals' efforts are the means of serving the needy.
3. To that end, all ministries should work to perform several possible objectives:
   - Magnify the [influence](power-influence.md) of individuals that demonstrate Christ-like behavior.
   - Give freedom for Christians and seeking non-believers to ask questions, with [mature Christians being able to answer them](spiritual-discipleship.md).
   - Give more opportunities for believers to informally [network](people-4_friends.md) with each other.

Play [political chess](groups-large.md) *very* sparingly.

- When you have [power](power.md), it's *very* easy to misuse it without meaning to.
  - Think of absolutely *every* person who could be harmed by your actions.
  - Sometimes, the wisest decision may involve coercion or deception, but trust God's wisdom for it.
- Using power itself isn't evil, but becomes evil as soon as it's [unloving](people-love.md).
- Leaders can often abuse core group members by forgetting that they're volunteers or have a life outside the ministry.

### *Constantly* communicate

Learn [effective communication](language-speaking.md).

- Your messages must share *both* God's love and His hatred of sin.
- Loving people starts with [respecting them](people-3_boundaries.md) and [their decisions](people-decisions.md).
- Most ministers must use [public speaking](language-speaking.md) and [conflict management](people-5_conflicts.md) skills multiple times every week.
- Expect *lots* of [written correspondence](language-writing.md).

Any spiritual leadership role conveys the power of Scripture, so [keep reading it](bible-study.md).

- Avoid jargon which alienates people from simple truths.
- Stay focused on Christ and the Gospel, no matter how much your [education](education.md) and [culture](people-culture.md) tell you otherwise ([1 Corinthians 2:2](https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/2-2.htm)).

Beyond teaching, you and your wife will be openly mentoring everyone in the [group](groups-large.md) while also fostering [a smaller "core" group](groups-small.md).

Share your ministry's success with the members.

- To inspire members to continue serving, tell stories of [successful](success-1_why.md) missions and ministry work.
- Find the positive, inspiring side of stressful situations and tension.
- At the same time, be realistic, and *never* [lie or embellish](people-lying.md) the stories.

Avoid *any* barriers in communication between leaders and the congregation.

- The congregation should be as much or more involved in the ministry's operations as the leadership.
- Create opportunities for members, especially the [youth](maturity.md), to voice opinions, ideas, and concerns.
- Openly show the state of your ministry's [finances](money-accounting.md).

### Members' demography

Every ministry critically *needs* 4 specific demographics of people involved in running it:

1. Wage earners
2. Missionaries/ministers
3. Poor/needy
4. Manna people

A. Wage earners constitute the majority of a ministry's strength.

- Their careers in other [specializations](jobs-specialization.md) mean they're less involved in daily ministry operations, but will be more free to contribute to needs.
  - Individually, they don't appear to be a significant portion of the ministry, but their contributions are most of the driving force of the ministry's projects.
- Since vocational ministers live off donations, they have a cultural disconnect with wage earners:
  - They frequently overlook wage earners' [financial](money-1_why.md) and [career](jobs-1_why.md) needs.
  - Their increased [education](education.md) in theological/ministry matters frequently provokes them to believe their position is more important.
  - They tend to [distrust](trust.md) when the wage earners want to be more involved in ministry operations beyond donations.
- Ask them for funds without any pressure.
  - Tell them to ask God themselves about meeting the available needs.
  - Describe the events as they actually are right now, without embellishment.
  - Clearly articulate [what you want to see](power-influence.md), and how their donation is a means to that end.
- *Never* appeal to [the sin condition](morality-sins.md) through greed, fear, or donors' pride.
  - If you want to give them recognition, do *not* announce it to them beforehand.
- Appealing to guilt or pity *does* get money, but it invalidates any blessings God could have given them.
  - Further, while they'll contribute more, they'll grow to resent your ministry when they learn [healthy boundaries](people-boundaries.md) later.

B. Missionaries/ministers are financed, at least partly, by others' donations.

- Their income sources vary wildly from one to the next.
- However, they typically receive funding through a few specific routes:
  1. Annual salary, drawn from a collective ministry offering.
  2. Volunteer donations from the part-time work of making requests through calls, emails, and letters.
  3. Specific missionary/parachurch organizations that provide partial or full aid.
  4. Some of them have at least part-time day jobs ([Acts 20:33-35](https://biblehub.com/bsb/acts/20.htm)).

C. The poor/needy will *always* be with us ([Matthew 26:11](https://biblehub.com/matthew/26-11.htm)).

- Sometimes they're under [hardship](hardship.md) they couldn't have prevented, and other times they're suffering [consequences](results.md) of their [decisions](people-decisions.md).
  - How you treat them shows your priorities ([Matthew 25:31-40](https://biblehub.com/matthew/25.htm)).
  - While helping the poor against your better judgment can be challenging, God will still honor it.
- They need love and nurturing care, even if they brought the entire experience on themselves.
  - All throughout the Bible, God shows *tremendous* patience, and we are responsible to do the same ([Luke 13:34](https://biblehub.com/luke/13-34.htm)).
  - Jesus commands us to give to the poor, regardless of how they became poor ([Matthew 5:42](https://biblehub.com/matthew/5-42.htm)).
  - We should only withhold aid to help *other* needy people, never to punish them.
- At the same time, we're also responsible to be wise with what we have.
  - If a minister isn't careful, their money will advance foolishness.

1. Ask if they have a crisis.
   - A genuine crisis means that any inaction will create severe adverse consequences.
   - If it's not a crisis, that person has time to act on their own.
2. Note how much they claim personal responsibility for their crisis.
   - Every crisis is a mixture of bad decisions and unfortunate circumstances.
3. Examine how much they can legitimately help themselves.
   - If they *can* help themselves, even partially, [empower](power-types.md) them to support themselves.
   - If possible, give them the means to work for themselves.
4. Never do for people what they can do for themselves!
   - It takes away from others who may need your help.
   - You rob them of the [meaning](meaning.md) they would have found through solving their own problems.
5. If helping them isn't within your power, ask their permission to share the need and publicly ask the ministry for help.
   - The Body of Christ needs giving opportunities to grow.
   - Ironically, as ministries grow larger they tend to give fewer public requests for help.
6. Prepare for backlash if you set *any* boundaries.
   - Professional beggars are very skilled at [influencing others](power-influence.md) to feel guilt and pity.
   - If you need, [stay legally safe](legal-safety.md) with a system that formally records the conversation involving their request.

D. God directly supplies some "manna people" without any reasonable explanation.

- These people receive God's daily provision from strange places.
  - Witnessing their lifestyle is a legitimately entertaining experience.
- God rarely gives without others' involvement because He wants to show how giving is better than receiving.
  - He wants members to trust each other and the Holy Spirit to heal and grow together.

## Working with things

Discipline yourself about money matters.

1. Don't worry about money issues, but [be aware of them](money-1_why.md).
2. [Set priorities](money-3_budget.md) with money you have and might have.
3. Diligently and responsibly take care of your needs first ([1 Timothy 5:17-18](https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_timothy/5.htm), [2 Timothy 2:6](https://biblehub.com/2_timothy/2-16.htm)).
4. [Invest money](money-investing.md) instead of hoarding it to see it grow character and God's kingdom.

Stay on top of any [logistical needs](logistics.md) to avoid wasting time for others or incurring extra costs.

Stay [legally safe](legal-safety.md) to make [persecution](hardship-persecution-church.md) more difficult for the government to justify.

- Unless they're asking for the names of each member, register and file your organization if the government expects it.
- Avoid *any* potentially questionable practices that don't honor the spirit of the law (e.g., tax evasion with cash receipts).
  - Remember that God rules us all, and He will repay any mistreatment of you if *you* were doing the right thing ([1 Peter 2:11-19](https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_peter/2.htm)).
- Members of your organization *might* commit [sins](morality-sins.md) that are [culturally taboo](morality-taboo.md), so clearly establish a non-disparagement clause on any [contracts](people-contracts.md) with workers.
- Avoid complete submission to the authorities, since we still must use wisdom against [evil](morality-evil.md) ([Matthew 10:16](https://biblehub.com/matthew/10-16.htm)).

Running a ministry requires the same [logistics](logistics.md) as most other [large organizations](groups-large.md):

- People who direct the crowds like ushers or greeters.
- [Technology](technology.md) managers like media and IT professionals.
- [Public speakers](language-speaking.md) to present God's message and share truths.
- Musicians and performers to lead everyone in group worship music.
- Recordkeepers like accountants and office workers.

### Distributing content

Distribute all public content with [open licensing](legal-ip.md).

- There is absolutely zero spiritual benefit in maintaining full copyright on everything you create.
  - If you wish to make money on a creative product, make that explicitly clear and avoid letting the for-profit motives interfere with your ministry's purposes.
- To prevent future licensing issues, release all documents as Creative Commons.
  - The [secular open-source community](legal-ip-floss.md) brings Christians to open shame with the generosity they give away their content.
- If you have overhead and distribution costs the organization can't easily absorb, give a "suggested donation" amount that's about twice the expected cost to manufacture.

Publicly show your financial statements.

- While it's often required by law, showing where the money goes generates trust with the donors and reduces risks of corruption with finances.
- Since donors *will* ask, keep close track as it happens on where the money goes.
- However, you will need to obfuscate any aspects where [persecution](hardship-persecution-church.md) may be a risk (e.g., distributing illegal Bibles).

## Managing conflicts

After becoming established, most leaders tend to [distrust](trust.md) new ideas.

- At that point, they've forgotten their role as a messenger and curator and see themselves as an authority on a subject.
- However, what they often find uncomfortable is a matter of personal preference or [theological semantics](theology.md).
- When leaders distrust, they inspire the entire group to become distrustful.
  - Unless it's [heresy](conflicts-christian-1_why.md), rejecting people with different viewpoints begins precedent that can lead to a [cult-like culture](culture-cults.md).

Healthy [conflict management](conflicts-christian-1_why.md) means you may have to exile some people from a group.

- [Disciplinary action in the Church](conflicts-christian-1_why.md) is very clear, and leads to 4 possible outcomes ([Matthew 18:15-20](https://biblehub.com/bsb/matthew/18.htm)):
  1. Reconciliation among everyone in spirit and truth, which should be the ultimate aim ([John 4:24](https://biblehub.com/john/4-24.htm)).
  2. The leader is ejected/defrocked from their formal ministry status, which strengthens the Body through a public lesson on how [sinful behaviors](morality-sins.md) and [vices](addiction-substances.md) will destroy us.
  3. The leader is ejected/defrocked, but they *didn't* sin, meaning 50-70% of the group will leave with that leader.
  4. The situation was complicated, and the leader has gained allies, and 10-30% of the group will leave or back away from involvement in the church.
- If the heresy is bad enough, know ahead of time how to deal with it, and be prepared to create [a church split](history-church.md) if necessary.
  - The risks of social pushback mean most churches do *not* have plans in place on how to exile their members.
  - At the same time, some churches veer into the other extreme and exile people over [stupid conflicts](conflicts-christian-1_why.md).

Make sure you demarcate between God's opinion and yours.

- It's inevitable that your opinion will differ from God's, since [you don't see exactly as He sees](https://theologos.site/god-sight/).
- When you're a leader, people *will* weigh your opinion as having relevance, irrespective of whether God officially holds it or not.
- However, speaking on behalf of God about something He didn't overtly say is a very subtle form of [heresy](conflicts-christian-1_why.md), and can get you in trouble long-term.

At any time, be prepared to step down.

- You *should* step down from your role and release it to someone else for *any* of the following reasons:
  - Your family needs you.
  - Your children have shown themselves as rebellious.
  - You've become absolutely exhausted in your ministry role.
  - You've become [an addict](addiction.md).
  - You've found out you practice at least some [heresy](conflicts-christian-1_why.md).
- It may seem like you're still doing God's work, but you're sabotaging His plans when you do.
  - If you're not acting out of love, you're wasting your time ([1 Corinthians 13:1-3](https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_corinthians/13.htm)).
  - If you feel compelled to do it, it might just be a [habit](habits.md).
  - Even when we persevere indefinitely, it's our responsibility near the end of our lives to [pass the role on to others](legacy.md) ([2 Timothy 4](https://www.bible.com/bible/206/2ti.4)).

## Managing growth

Ministries [scale](jobs-specialization.md) like any other [secular organization](groups-large.md).

- They grow through an exponential pattern because each person is drawing from their existing social networks from before their involvement in that ministry.
- A two-minute once-a-month task can slowly adapt to a full-time job for one person.

Never try growing faster than [God has planned](god-will.md).

- The easiest, and most [unethical](morality.md), way to grow is by [generating fake hype](marketing.md) to create a nucleus of sincere followers.
- If you create many followers with a little [deception](image-distortion.md), it's not reasonable to assume He will be proud of your work, irrespective of the [results](results.md) it created ([Matthew 25:1-23](https://biblehub.com/bsb/matthew/25.htm)).

As a church grows, expect [organizational hardship](mgmt-church-hardship.md) to come to the group, especially as [the devil notices your success](spiritual-warfare.md).

### Social effects of growth

Generally, a ministry loses its personal connection at around 60 members.

- Beyond that point, they will either segment into separate groups or the entire ministry model must adapt by splitting apart into autonomous entities.

If there isn't an intentional split, the most [influential](power-influence.md) members of a ministry will form into a core group.

- Core group members submit themselves under ministry leaders who lead by example, or they become their *own* spiritual leader elsewhere.
- Your core group are the only people who you can trust to be following Jesus, and they determine how much actual ministry service you can do.

Once a ministry has a core group, most leaders have *major* trust issues with "outsiders".

- They're not trusting the [unknown](unknown.md) that God requires them to accept.
- When they stop accepting new ideas and new believers into necessary roles, the ministry will start to decline.

### Logistics for growth

Have a plan for your ministry outgrowing its venue.

- The Bible doesn't give much guidance on how to manage growth.
- Though you must trust God, not planning becomes management crisis through intentional ignorance.

Most conventional ministries move into progressively larger buildings.

- Moving into a larger building has risks:
  - Members (especially new ones) usually experience the ministry more impersonally.
  - As membership grows, leaders must learn new skills to adapt.
  - Scaling systems together in one building can stifle God's work.
- Growing together also has benefits:
  - Large ministry events are easier to coordinate.
  - The whole group can easily work together on ministries.
  - Leaders can thoroughly and quickly manage large-scale conflicts.

Some ministries split when their venue gets too small.

- Splitting has risks:
  - Restructuring the organization often has intense challenges and often causes permanent divisions.
  - Distributed systems always have points of potential failure.
  - Large-scale conflicts often lead to bitter, permanent divisions.
- Splitting off has profound benefits:
  - The ministry stays personal for every single member.
  - It prolongs staying small, which avoids the challenges from large organizations.
  - The added service variety lets the ministry reach more individuals.

### Bylaws & rules

Typically, once any ministry grows beyond a few dozen people, it'll need some bylaws to clarify the [rules](people-rules.md) for how to do everything.

A ministry's [formalized documentation](people-contracts.md) represents its [moral stance](morality.md).

- Take your rules *very* seriously, since God will hold you accountable for it ([Luke 17:1-2](https://biblehub.com/bsb/luke/17.htm)).
- *Never* accept or condone [sins](morality-sins.md), and *never* condemn loving actions or [Christlike behavior](spiritual-exercises.md).

## Leaving leadership

At some point, you *will* need to step down from leadership:

1. At some point, your particular [gifting](spiritual-gifts.md) may have run its course.
2. It's not uncommon to experience burnout, and it will become a spiritual risk to pursue farther ([2 Timothy 2:3-7](https://biblehub.com/bsb/2_timothy/2.htm)).
3. An unknown [sin](morality-sins.md) (or its consequence) may have corrupted any further good you can perform in that role.
4. The ministry may have grown far enough that it needs to diverge into specific [purposes](purpose.md).
5. Eventually, you will be [too old](legacy.md) to maintain the ministry as needed.

If it's God ministry, He'll bring new leadership or give guidance on what to do with the ministry.

- In a similar mode to [parenting](parenting-3_teenagers.md), how we hand off ministry is the final test of our trust in God.
- Often, the hardship we experience (see above) is His efforts to separate us from any idolatry we may have within the work.

When someone else takes over, they *will* adapt the ministry differently than you had.

God appoints everything in its time, and we will suffer if we're given more time to see how things may unwind ([2 Kings 20](https://biblehub.com/2_kings/20.htm)).