Do You, Then Do the Ministry (w/Clayton King)

Clayton King preaches most weekends at NewSpring Church in South Carolina, he leads Clayton King Ministries, and he's written 17 books (the latest one being released during the pandemic). But than that, he's a normal guy who loves Jesus. He likes to go outdoors, and he rides a motorcycle with a random playlist to clear his mind.   In this talk he begins by discussing the Good-Fast-Cheap Pyramid. "You can choose 2 out of the 3," he says, "but not all three." The problem is that we've got to make sure we choose the right 2— and that involves recognizing the season we're in… Think about it… If you want fast and cheap, the work will be shoddy. A contractor you hire with this approach will give you a "rush job," then move to the next project. The work won't be good, but it will be done. If you want cheap and good, it's not going to be fast. It will take some time. A contractor you hire here will squeeze you in when they can, most likely doing bits and pieces of your job around other projects that are making them the big bucks. The work will be cheap, good… and slooowwwww. If you want good and fast, it won't be cheap. The contractor will postpone every other item on their calendar and stay up all night making sure your job gets done. They'll focus like a laser, making sure you get what you want— and that you're happy. But you'll pay handsomely for it. The project will be good, fast… and expensive.   Here's the tension-- We want to grow fast, but anything that's unhealthy ALSO replicates when you move fast. So, we must keep the Good-Fast-Cheap pyramid in mind. When things move fast, we often miss some things which seem insignificant in the moment…. * What time you wake up * Your exercise routine * How you order the first moments of you day * Making time for the people who matter the most (your family) * The time you go to bed It's easy to allow the important things to slip and slide during a rapid season of growth. However, these are the things which sustain us, and so they must be prioritized— even if that means intentionally slowing down. Look back at the contractor example above— they put everything else off in the third option (good and fast) in order to finish you job. But they did so at the expense of other projects, as we often do in ministry. Therein lies the problem.   Clayton reminds us not to simply measure "fast fruit" but "faithful" and "long-lasting" fruit. In order to sustain ministry, you've got to build structures and systems… as well as care for your own soul. We see Jesus do this, by the way. He routinely slipped away from the masses (and did the "slow down, slow grow"), as well as told those he healed not to tell people who He was. Take the Sabbath. Pause and enjoy your family. Stop and enjoy the life you've been given…   ++++++++++++ Links for this show— Clayton's website: https://www.claytonking.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clayton_king/ Clayton's newest book, Reborn: https://amzn.to/3mHI6nv Schedule a strategy session with Courage to Lead: www.CourageToLead.com/strategy