The people of Matthias Media (2 of 5)

Of the most obvious statements that have revolutionized people from our book The Trellis and the Vine is this, “ministry is about people.”

Often it comes with a fuller context of ‘ministry is about people not programs’. When we hear or see it written, we know it is true. But it still creates light-bulb moments each time I do a training with a staff team or say it around the meeting rooms at our own church. 

Why? Because we are often so flat our running our programs, as a leader, or keeping up with all the events and activities, as a church member. 

With all the things we do in and through our churches  - small groups, training events, youth group, Sunday school - we do them for the good of the people God is placing in front of us. And so, as The Trellis and the Vine states, we need to keep the following mind shifts in place to keep ministry from being a list of programs and associated numbers and instead be a list of people we are called to serve with the Word and deploy to spread that Word. 

• From running programs to training people
• From using people to growing people
• From filling gaps to training new workers

This is, of note, why I’m unashamed to keep promoting the ideas and resources that fuel Matthias Media. They advocate for this kind of thinking about ministry and then provide helpful tools to do the work. Or, to pinch a quip from my friend Mark: “to fuel growing people growing people.”

And this is what has been passed down from the beginning of Matthias Media. A commitment to the movement of the Word by and through the people of God to all others in their midst. As I mentioned in my last post about our heritage, the obvious yet revolutionary idea was championed by the founder of Matthias Media, Phillip Jensen. Then, Tony Payne and Ian Carmichael carried on and shared the idea through growing the ministry for the next generation. It never was about, nor we hope never will be, a ministry about a person but about all of God’s people ministering the gospel to all the people in their midst. 

Now as we celebrate the 20th year of Matthias here in North America, the ‘Christ-centered people-first’ work is being lived out and shared through both the resources and people of Matthias Media US. 

The Matthias US team is more than a staff that develops and ships resources - they are serving in their churches and communities as disciple-making disciples. The people behind this ministry are doing the same thing you are doing, ministering to people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

The next time you need an idea about a resource to help you with growing people (yourself and others!) please give us a call. We’d love to hear from you and point you in the right direction and pray for your work. 

–Marty

Pay It Forward: Keep the momentum going!

As we look ahead to the next 20 years, we want to make it as easy as possible to get these resources into the hands of pastors, leaders, and friends who need them. If God has used our books in your life, you can now pass that blessing on to someone else.

Here is how it works:

1. Fill out the quick form with the name and address of a friend, pastor, or loved one.
2. Donate to cover the cost of a book bundle.
3. We’ll ship the bundle directly to their front door on your behalf.

Thank you for partnering with us in gospel work!