My 5 x 5 Plan for Ministry Organization in 2014

Organization. It is the bane of my existence. I try to be organized, but just can’t seem to hit a level of organization in all areas of life that I desire. If I get more organized at home, my work seems to get behind. If I try to get more squared away in ministry, I feel like my focus is not where it should be with my family.

That said, today’s post is focused mainly on my work as a minister, and one plan I want to try in 2014. The idea is adapted from a brief lecture I heard at Polishing the Pulpit a couple of years ago. The speaker, Jeff Archey, talked about his “10,10,10” plan for getting ministry work done, other than sermon/class preparation. I took some quick-thought-notes, stored them away, and look at them from time-to-time. As I began to look toward 2014, brother Archey’s “seven minutes of wisdom” session became the background for this plan.

It is actually quite simple. There are 5 areas in ministry in which I want to accomplish 5 things on a regular basis. Here they are:

• FIVE visits (at least) per week. These can be in homes, to the hospital, or in nursing homes, but my goal is to be a bit more organized with this. Also, I would love for at least one of the visits to be a personal Bible study on a regular basis.
• FIVE phone calls per week. Often, a phone call means as much (and, in some cases, more) to someone than a home visit. These could be simply checking on someone who is sick, or providing a word of encouragement.
• FIVE cards or significant emails per week. I am thankful to live in the digital era, since my handwriting is atrocious. That’s why I include emails here, but notice they are “significant” emails; in other words, on the same level with a card or letter. My plan is to use these more for encouragement of those who I see doing great things.
• FIVE books read per month. Now, this needs some explaining, because that’s a lot of books. In fact, it is a higher goal than the 50 I set for 2013. Factoring in reading through the Bible, as I strive to do each year, this would mean I would read 61 books in 2014. Most likely, I will not reach this goal, but it is really here more for organizing what I read. The plan, roughly each month, is to read:
  • One book by a member of the Lord’s Church
  • One other religious work
  • One “helpful” book (leadership, biography, finance, etc.)
  • One short book/eBook. A lot of Kindle books (especially free ones) are very short, but helpful.
  • One “assigned” book from my mentoring group
• FIVE eBooks written for the year. I am taking a bit of a break from “long format” writing in 2014, so I plan on trying to complete five short eBooks to distribute on Kindle throughout ’14 and ’15. Not sure this one will happen, but, hey, that’s what goals are for!

Now, will all this happen? Only the Lord knows, but I really like having something to shoot for. Visitation and other correspondence are areas of ministry in which I need to improve, and I think by setting out the goals this way, and having some help with the organization of it, I can be more balanced in my ministry. My ultimate prayer is that this helps God be glorified through the work at Lebanon Road throughout 2014.

COMMENTS? Share your thoughts on this “5 x 5” plan in the comments below.

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Photo credit: Rubbermaid Products on Creative Commons

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