Building the Church’s Future: Multiplying Ministry Through Training Disciples

Relying Too Much on YouTube

Sunday morning was here, but the worship team was not. Like many small churches, our worship team consisted of one family, and whenever they would have a family trip over the summer, our church was left with one option for worship service: YouTube videos. As the pastor, I spent much of that Sunday morning searching through poorly designed lyric videos that also didn’t contradict our church’s statement of faith (Hymns are especially difficult to find).

The inevitable problem of missing volunteers during a Sunday morning service doesn’t end with the worship team. There have been multiple occasions where our sound and tech person had a family vacation or wasn’t feeling well, and we scrambled to figure out how to operate the sound board without it spontaneously combusting. We’ve had to quickly adapt our children’s lessons when a regular teacher wasn’t available (Again, YouTube was very handy). 

So many small churches have this same problem: We put too much stock in one person or a select few people, and we forget to do the hard work of multiplying ministries by investing ministry skills in others.

Wouldn’t it be great if the worship team could take a family vacation without it seeming like the church is closing every July? 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if there weren’t just one sound and tech person who knew the church’s sound board and computer, but instead, there was a team of capable people? 

Imagine how effective our children’s programs could be if there were a rotation of teachers every single month!

There is a way to make this possible, even for small churches like ours. This way is ancient, having been taught by Jesus and the apostles. This way is simple enough for even ordinary people to apply to their lives. Let’s re-learn the way to multiply our effectiveness and grow the Kingdom of God together.

Healthy Churches Multiply Ministry Through Discipleship

The apostle Paul has a simple command that every disciple of Jesus and every church can apply: “The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:2, NIV).

The apostle Paul is challenging all of us to multiply—not by creating more programs, but by investing in people. When we take what we know and invest that knowledge into other people, we are multiplying our effectiveness beyond ourselves. Once those people have been trained, they will also invest in others, and the Kingdom of God will continue to grow. Whether we are training people in evangelism, podcasting, or even mowing the church property, all of our ministries can have a greater reach when we show someone else how to do it.

Jesus uses another phrase to refer to this practice of training up people: discipleship. A disciple is someone who learns to live and act like their teacher: “Everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40, NASB1995). When Jesus left his original followers and ascended to heaven, he charged them (and us) with the task of multiplying disciples wherever we can. Ministry multiplication is one practical expression of discipleship.  

The command is clear: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19–20, NASB1995).

But, how can we do that?

How to Multiply Your Ministry

Pray & Ask

Scripture tells us that we won’t receive anything unless we ask for it (James 4:2). That principle doesn’t just apply to prayer, but also to anything we do in ministry, especially training new people. Unless we personally invite someone to learn our ministry, we won’t have anyone to train. Nobody can read your mind, so you must ask someone to join you first.

If you want to multiply and train someone up in your ministry, the first step is simple: pray and ask.

• Pray and ask God to show you someone to train
• Ask that person if they are interested
• Specify what you are inviting them to do (time commitment, responsibilities, etc.)

Share the Ministry

If you’re going to train someone in your ministry, you cannot just tell them about it; you have to allow them to try it and do the actual work. This can actually be a fairly difficult step for many people, since you started in your ministry because you enjoy it deeply. 

It can be difficult watching someone else step into your shoes. However, we must always remember that this benefits the church overall when we have multiple people in roles, not just one person. You are doing ministry work by sharing the load with someone else.

Although this can be emotionally challenging, the second step to multiplying is sharing the ministry. This means:

• Step back and let your disciple serve to the best of their ability 
• Guide them (not do it for them)

This can be hard for some pastors and teachers. It’s important to work hard at sharing the pulpit and the classroom. It will be beneficial to you and the church in the long run. When you need time away, you can be confident that YouTube won’t be discipling your congregation, but a trusted congregant who you’ve helped along the way.

Encourage & Correct

Just like working in a secular job or learning a hobby, there will be growing pains early on as a new person learns your ministry. They will “mess up” at some point. It will be your duty as the mentor to speak in a way that encourages them through their mistake, while also helping them correct the mistake for the future. 

Use gentle, uplifting words that don’t make them want to quit, but encourage them to grow from the setback. The apostle Paul says it this way: “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them” (Ephesians 4:29, NLT).

The biggest key to this step in the multiplying process is remembering your own story: There was a time that you messed up, too.

As you mentor someone in your ministry, the third step is to encourage and correct. Here are some reminders:

• Expect the mess
• Remember your own story and mistakes
• Speak gently (they are already beating themselves up for the mistake)

Defend Them

Unfortunately, you’re not the only person who will notice when your disciple has made a mistake: Others in the church congregation will notice too (especially if you are running PowerPoint slides and make a typo on the worship lyrics).

Unfortunately, you may find that some members may be more critical than others. It is your duty as the mentor to defend your disciple, take responsibility for the mistake, and help your disciple move forward from the criticism. 

If at all possible, it can be a tremendous help to your disciple to take the brunt of the criticisms and lay down your life for the flock member that you are serving. As Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13, NASB1995). 

To serve your disciple well in their ministry training, defend them in the face of criticism. You can do this by:

• Inform the leadership of your church about who you are training
• Request that all questions/criticisms go to you first

Encouragement to You

Jesus called some pretty “normal” people to be his followers and chose them to further his mission to the world. If he called them to train others in ministry, you can do it too. This is not an impossible, spiritual task, but a manageable goal that any believer can accomplish. You don’t need to be a pastor or have a special degree: You just have to be willing.

If you want to stop relying on YouTube and pursue the Jesus way of training up other volunteers in your ministry, it’s not complicated. Start today by looking around for potential disciples. Your church will be healthier and stronger because of your efforts in this. 

Who can you invite to serve alongside you?