Have you heard this one before?
“I have so much going on with fixing broken computers, doing training for staff, working with scheduling conflicts for the sunday service with the volunteers, ensuring that we have the microphones working with full batteries, ensuring that the website is running well, and ten other things, I cannot possibly worry about “dreaming big.” It’s just not a luxury I have.”
Another version of this fear to dream big might sound something like this.
“I could do X, Y, or Z, but how would I get the money for this, hook it all together, or figure out the right people to run the whole thing? Nah, I don’t think I can go down that road.”
Dreaming big should not be a problem that you need to solve for, but an opportunity to start something amazing.
Dream Big Or Go Home
We have a few ideas for why you and your church tech team need to work on dreaming big and make it a core purpose in your ministry.
- Give New Life
The idea of dreaming big is actually one of the best ways to keep a ministry from becoming stagnant. With a ministry that is always looking to make itself better, the possibility to stop growing instantly becomes harder. While there are issues of the details like manpower, budget, and learning to use it to be barriers, the freedom to continue to dream is free and opens up huge opportunities for growth for the whole church just because you took a chance. - Give Ownership to the Team
Dreaming big is not something that should be done by just one person, especially someone who is the figurehead of the team. Giving your ministry permission to dream big not only frees you up to do what you need to do, it validates purposes for the team, diversifies the ideas beyond one vantage point, and pushes for you as a ministry to begin to do things with excellence so you can eventually achieve these dreams. - Create Community and New Leaders
There is nothing more inspiring than being given the freedom as well as the support from your team leader to go outside of the box and learn how to take what you are doing to the next level. Not only do you begin to see excitement and passion on your team’s faces, but people begin to talk about how you are coming up with innovative ideas. Moreover, even if a single project does not come to fruition, you have invested in people to own a part of the church and are building into new leaders.
Dreaming big is not something that has to be scary or cost money, just take the time to focus in on how you can dream a little bigger.
What is one of your big dreams for your church?
Chris Wilson says
One thing I’ve noticed, it’s not that I don’t want to think big when it’s busy it’s just more difficult and there are physiological reasons. When you are stressed and your body is pumping adrenalin it focuses you mind on the tasks in front of you but it also blocks you from thinking more creatively or accessing other parts of the brain at the same time. It’s why it’s so common to get eureka moments when your out and about, reading a book or even just having a bath (bringing it back to Aristotle oh yeah) so I’ve cut my load to make sure I have time to think big. Because, as you say, it’s vital.
Jeremy Smith says
Love your input here! Great points. I wonder, not if, but where studies are on this.