Songbirds, Bicycles and Strategic Thinking… (Part 3)
Welcome to the final instalment of this blog mini-series. (If you’ve missed the first two parts, please do check out part 1 and part 2.)
I spent some time last week talking to my friend Lee Button.
Lee doesn’t work for the church.
He used to, but he resigned.
You see, he has a unique ability that I haven’t seen displayed in others:
He has the ability to cast vision and project a preferred future in any given situation, along with helping people and organisations discover their true purpose and put strategies in place to make this a reality.
Lee is a strategic thinker.
During our discussion, he was quick to point out that there is a difference between strategic planning and strategic thinking.
Strategic thinking is as much about internal/cultural changes as it is about external results.
Strategic thinking, as far as I understand, is about identifying the WHY before implementing the HOW.
The HOW is where Strategic Planning comes in.
Lee stopped working for the church in order to set up his own company, consulting for churches, charities and other organisations to help them reach a better future.
His company, Venture 52, works with organisations, helping them apply strategic thinking to their vision, enabling them to create not only a clearer future but also an ideal path to making that vision a reality.
This is his ministry.
This is how Lee uses the gifts he has been given to serve a wider audience.
He tells me that he believes that because of his relationship with God, who is outside of time, he is able to bring the infinite into the moment, changing people’s thinking, clarifying vision and motivating change.
Ironically perhaps (and this is no reflection on the Church, but rather on Lee’s personal gifts), he left the church in order to start changing the world.
You too have unique gifts.
They may be put to best use in the church.
Equally, though, they may be put to better use outside the church.
You may not be called to lead a congregation but a company.
You may not be called to church music but to a secular arena.
The important thing is this:
God has made you unique, with gifts and talents that are singularly yours.
Do not strive to confine them to a “ministry” role.
Use them.
Daily.
In your work. In your relationships. In your church.
And remember:
Wherever you are, there too is your ministry.
Please take a listen to this podcast episode with Lee Button and visit his site to find out more about what he does. You can also connect with him on Facebook.