PLATFORM MINSTRY

Introduction

Over these couple of years I have been advocating the Holistic Approach as a good vehicle for the Gospel but it must not take precedent to the actual presentation of the Gospel. The presentation of the Gospel is the most important and people are saved because they hear the Gospel, not because their stomachs are filled. However there are certain people or communities that are so overwhelmed and so consumed and inflicted by problems that they feel the only important thing in life is the alleviation of those problems and partial meeting of their existing needs.

Well, this short piece does not totally advocate the church planting holistic approach but relatively conveys a proposal for the consideration of employing Platform Ministry which I am convinced (from experience) would also do well as a vehicle for the Gospel and a tool for Church Planting Ministry in a Gospel Destitute Area.

What is a Ministry platform?

Well, basically a ministry platform is a free of charge series of community services provided by a local church, ministry, or mission as a vehicle for the Gospel of the Lord Jesus to a Gospel Destitute community on a specific timeframe for the purpose of planting a Local Church. It is of secondary importance to the presentation of the Gospel itself but its employment partially assists in the establishment of a Christian Fellowship in a designated community and the alleviation of certain social needs that exist and threatens the wellbeing of a community, and as we manifest God’s Love through our Christian Service.

The Planning

The employing of ministry platform in Church Planting and Community evangelism requires a lot of prayers and the engagement of a person with good public relational and ministry coordination skills, to pray, strategize, market, and execute its approved plan, that at the end of the day a local church is planted.

The Benefit

Ministry Platform is an excellent way of serving a designated community for the purpose of planting a local church. It manifest our Christian Love and service; it help us and the church put into practice God’s Truth we’ve learnt; it helps us see and feel for ourselves what community members are going through; it helps alleviate existing problems and meeting the existing needs; and it gives the community members a taste of the Christian Life, service, and community living as oppose to the one they know. People are saved by the Gospel of Jesus, but there are certain people who are so consumed with their problems that they cannot hear the Gospel unless their problems are dealt with. Ministry Platform offers just that.

The Danger

The danger to the employment of Ministry Platform approach is that it uses up more energy and resources. If the ministry leader is not careful, than the ministry could become another social service organization. If there is a lack in our connection with the Lord of the Harvest, than our satisfaction will rest on the platform ministry losing sight of the church planting vision.

The Vision, Mission, Objectives

The vision, mission, & objectives, must be clear to the Team Leader and his Team. The vision must be the driving force. The vision must captivate all members of the Ministry Team. Whatever success gained from the Ministry Platform, the Team must use it to empower their church planting work. Therefore it is important to be both strategic and tactical in using the ministry platform so that all who come to be served have a time to hear the Gospel, see the Gospel, feel the Gospel, take the Gospel, and come-back for the Gospel.

Biblical Base

In ministries like this, a question that is often asked is whether a ministry such as the “Platform Ministry” is Biblical. I would respond saying that Jesus did may not have used Full Holistic Approach but he sure did apply a “Platform” approach in certain situation aligned with to his mission. The feeding of the 5,000 & 4,000 respectively, the healings, and the miracles could all be categorised as “Platform” approach for as his response to the Scribes in Matthew 9:6 “6 "But that you may know that the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins"- he then says to the paralytic, "Rise, take up your bed, and go to your home." Therefore, a “Platform” approach is necessary in certain situations to make clear to our target the love of God in Christ Jesus.

RESEARCH YOUR COMMUNITY

Researching the community is very important before starting a platform initiative. Look at all the areas necessary to help you make an educated decision on what to do. You may have a preconceived idea of what you want to carry out which is normally according to your strength and preference. But when you research your community, gather needed stats, talk to community members, look at the level of development and the capacity of the community members to sustain that development, and finally the spiritual component of the community, you will be in a better position to make an educated decision in strategizing and implementing a much needed platform initiative.

The Strategy

The strategy needs to be laid-out so that it focuses on the planting of a new local church in a Gospel destitute community or the evangelization of the unchurched in an already evangelized community.

LOOK AT THE NEEDS

George Bradshaw, one of the great sociologists, categorised man’s needs into four categories. The categories are 1. Normative needs -­ compare the current situation to a set of professional or expert standards; 2. Comparative needs – compare the current situation with the situation of others; 3. Felt needs – focus on the thoughts and dreams of the community itself; 4. Expressed needs – are inferred by observation of the community’s actions. But for the purpose and objective of this paper, I would just like to simplify these needs in just three categories. These categories of need are to be taken into account when looking at the strategy of applying Ministry Platform Approach.

The existing needs – We know for sure that peoples “real need” is Jesus. We all need Jesus, but the existing physical or social needs differ from community to community, and from people to people. I would therefore suggest that you ascertain the existing needs in your designated community. The existing need comes out because there is an existing problem. If a community’s existing problem is poverty, than the existing needs could be financial advice, financial planning, small business training, and other workshop that can help alleviate the existing problem.

The actual need – This is something that you will need to be careful about. It requires a good community background research (but not detailed). Sometimes you may find your designated community with an existing need but that existing need may not be the actual need. And in order to meet existing needs, you first have to deal with the actual need. For example, the community that I work in lacks a lot of needed resource to be able to develop itself. That is the existing need but not the actual need. The actual need is mentality reform. Therefore if they are given the resources, it will not solve the poverty problem unless their mentality is reformed. And how do I deal with this mentality reformation? Well, presently, I bring in the Gospel, and secondly, I do reality discussions on issues that affect my target group such as the expansion of the desert (Sahara), climate change, Development, etc; and I try to link these issues to the solutions which are in Christ Jesus.

Demanded Needs – A demanded need is something that some community members see they can gain from the work you are doing. It is not an existing need, nor an actual need. It is a “want” could be termed as a “dreamed need” and most of the time it is driven by the desire for personal gain or personal and community comfort. Demanded needs, at most time, do not really help in the achievement of a Church Planting vision. For example; during our last Vusuya Survey, we found that a major “Demanded Need” was the Road upgrading. We foresaw that it will not really help in the church planting work and the community network was not is a position to take their grievance to the local authority so they passively demanded us to do it for them.

ORGANIZING

Strategically organizing the Ministry Platform is important to maximizing its effectiveness and be an added advantage to the work of Church Planting. The Ministry Platform coordinator and the Team Leader must be sure to include Evangelism, Open-air Crusade, Prayer, and Christian Counselling in the Ministry Platform Plan. Therefore a ministry platform could be planned to run for a period of four months. Within those 04 months, you could plan for 2 crusades, 01 workshop for Students, 01 workshop for Family Finance & Business, 01 workshop for family & community health with free medical Clinique, 01 workshop on community & racial integration. Christian counselling service and prayers are provided for those who need them. Words of Wisdom (not sermon) are offered at the opening of each workshop to link the each platform to God’s purpose and desire for each individual. The full focus of the Platform ministry culminates into the 02 crusades which could be done after the first 2 months and at the completion of the 4th month.

Platform Marketing & Financing

This is probably one of the difficult areas we have always encountered. The reason being that in this kind of work we move forward without actually seeing the existing financial resources. Is this new? Not really! The Biblical principles of marketing & financing are not like the world’s ways of marketing and financing. Reflect on these principles which we have been using for a while and be encouraged.

MINISTRY PLATFORM PRINCIPLES

Submit your financing proposal - Luke 11:9 (ASV) - 9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

The principle here is “Ask God for your NEEDS”. Therefore ascertain your ministry needs first, and ask God for it. What is actually needed for the ministry to go forward and that without it the ministry will be greatly affected.

Matthew 9:37-38 (ASV) - 37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest indeed is plenteous, but the laborers are few. 38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he send forth laborers into his harvest.

The Principle here is, “God knows your ministry needs and he has already made them ready at your request.” The context of the passage is related to ministry, and verse 38 implies that the workers are already prepared. Why? Because God will only send forth a person he has already prepared. And where the workers are, there the resources will also be. The two main reasons we don’t receive our ministry resources are 1) we don’t ask; 2) We are praying for a Demanded Need and not the Real Existing Ministry Need (ref ‘c’ below).

Purpose Driven Proposal –

1 Kings 3:11 (HCSB) - 11 So God said to him, “Because you have requested this and did not ask for long life or riches for yourself, or the death of your enemies, but you asked discernment for yourself to understand justice…”

1 Kings 3:13 (HCSB) - 13 In addition, I will give you what you did not ask for: both riches and honor, so that no man in any kingdom will be your equal during your entire life.

The principle here is “Ask according to what is important to God.” The people are always important to God. Our resources submission to God must always be for the good of the people, not ours or for our own vision accomplishment and glory. King Solomon did just that, genuinely, and God was touched by it, and supplied Solomon with all that he needs to better govern the people of God. Our Platform Ministry resource proposal must always be purpose driven; people for God’s Glory.

Do not submit absurd resource proposals –

Mark 10:35-38 (HCSB) - 35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached Him and said, “Teacher, we want You to do something for us if we ask You.” 36 “What do you want Me to do for you?” He asked them. 37 They answered Him, “Allow us to sit at Your right and at Your left in Your glory.” 38 But Jesus said to them, “You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

The principle here is; “do not ask for a Demanded Need”. This is also seen as absurd proposal. The Lord Jesus replied to James and John requires our attention for it could also be said of us if we are not careful “you don’t know what you’re asking”. In relation to the ministry, we need to ask according to what is requires and be specific about it. Be relevant in ministry supplication request as the Lord Jesus taught, “Give us today our Daily Bread”; what is actually needed on a ministry basis.

Determine your Ministry Cost thoroughly –

Luke 14:28 (ASV) - 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doth not first sit down and count the cost, whether he have wherewith to complete it?

The principle here is “Work out how much you actually need for the ministry.” Don’t just guess the figures. The cost and budget of a platform ministry must be determined by actual figures and cost on the day. The King who doesn’t complete his tower construction could also be one draws out an imaginary figure or budget from his head rather than actually sitting down and do the actual accounting.

Approach designated people –

Luke 22:7-12 (Darby) - 7 And the day of unleavened bread came, in which the passover was to be killed. 8 And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare the passover for us, that we may eat [it]. 9 But they said to him, Where wilt thou that we prepare [it]? 10 And he said to them, Behold, as ye enter into the city a man will meet you, carrying an earthen pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he goes in; 11 and ye shall say to the master of the house, The Teacher says to thee, Where is the guest-chamber where I may eat the passover with my disciples? 12 And he will shew you a large upper room furnished: there make ready.

The principle here is to “approach only designated people whom you believe will support the ministry.” This requires a prayerful consultation with the Lord in the leadership of the Holy Spirit. He will guide you to those who will definitely support your ministry. Do not waste your time sharing your vision for Platform Ministry to those who will not make any contribution. As you share to those designated people, be specific and clear about the vision and objectives and don’t “beat around the bush”.

Prayerfully respond to people’s Inquiry –

Nehemiah 2:2-5 (Darby) 2 And the king said to me, Why is thy face sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sadness of heart. And I was very sore afraid. 3 And I said to the king, Let the king live forever! Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lies waste, and its gates are consumed with fire? 4 And the king said to me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of the heavens. 5 And I said to the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it.

The principle here is to “always seek God’s counsel in responding to people’s enquiry.” We would agree that we have responded to many enquiries from certain people in the past concerning our ministry without consulting God. And I would certainly agree that I have responded pathetically to some of the enquiries. It is important to always seek the counsel of God in this matter for he is the one who raises up genuine supporters to support His work of Kingdom expansion. Do not be carried away by your people’s skills or networking skills for to do so without consulting our Lord is disastrous.

Be willing to Contribute yourself –

1 Chronicles 29:2-3 (KJV) - 2 “Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance. 3 Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house,…”

The principle here is “be willing to contribute yourself financially to the fulfilment of your vision”. King David’s vision was the construction of the Temple. Though he did not live to see it, he contributed a lot from his own pocket. Ministry leaders and Platform Coordinator must be willing to contribute financially and not solely rely on the contributions from supporters. This is not just in personal expenses in the ministry but specific pledges in monetary terms.

Give all fundraising money to the Ministry –

Acts 5:1-4 (BBE) - 1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, got money for his property, 2 And kept back part of the price, his wife having knowledge of it, and took the rest and put it at the feet of the Apostles. 3 But Peter said, Ananias, why has the Evil One put it into your heart to be false to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? 4 While you had it, was it not your property? and after you had given it in exchange, was it not still in your power? how has this purpose come into your mind? you have been false, not to men, but to God.

The principle here is “be transparent about your Ministry financial account”. Don’t think that just because you were instrumental in raising the fund, that you also have the right to reach into the coffer. When you use your “God Given Vision” to source money from “God Raised Supporters”, it becomes logical that the money raised belongs to God, therefore it must all go to your God Given Ministry. You see? It’s God who gave the Vision, establish the ministry, and raised the supporters. What right do I have than to the coffer when all belong to God?

Do not ask for money; simply present the Vision –

Nehemiah 2:2-4 (ASV) - 2 And the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid. 3 And I said unto the king, Let the king live forever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire? 4 Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven.

The principle here is “Trust God that the vision & burden he gave will attract God Raised Supporters”. This is an important principle because majority of Kingdom works normally make this mistake of asking for money instead of presenting the vision. If you have a God Given Vision, it will certainly attract God Raised Supporters. I have bolded the King’s question to Nehemiah above as this is the needed opening to presenting the request for needed resources after the Vision has been present by Nehemiah. After presenting your God given vision, the ‘Possible God Given Financier’ will than ask, “So what is it that you want?” This is the indicator that tells and allows you to then present you resources needs including finance. Therefore, be prepared to present your God Given Vision with clarity and burden of heart for people, and wait for the indicator.

Networking

Do not try to do everything on your own when you know very well that it is impossible to carry the whole load as a “Lone Ranger”. To do so is to be egoistic. To do things alone demonstrates that I am either unclear of the scope of the work, or I want the glory for myself. The glory must all go to God, and those involved in Platform ministries need to broaden their networking scope. The broader the network the more the channels of God’s resources; therefore try to Network with the Nets That Work and not with any available Tom Dick and Harry, and this requires fervent prayers requesting for God Knitted Nets that Works to the Master Fisherman, the Lord Jesus Himself.

Finally

I have talked a lot here, hopefully I have said something. The niggling issue that some may have is the issue of success. How successful is the employment of Platform ministry? Well, I don’t want to be tempted into illustrating stories of success in its employment. It’s just a tool that can be utilized in the work of church planting.

I have convinced myself that any church planting work in any Gospel destitute area will always succeed because the mandate is to go to “all nations” from the Lord Himself, which to me implies success. So throw away your fears, read this piece again, and tell God that you want to be used mightily in the expansion of His Kingdom through the planting of new local church in Gospel destitute areas. You will surely see success, the manifestation of Calvary in the present.

An Orphanage Ministry In West Africa

The Nabobong Evangelical Hospital in Africa