It's a wonderful book so far on the nature of Christian ministry. The premise is that in ministry there are people and programs (please forgive my blanket and vague categories). In the analogy, people are represented by the vine and programs by the trellis. The authors set out to make the case that in Christian ministry there is a need for both the trellis and the vine. In other words, they go hand in hand. However, they note that too often in ministry it is the trellis that gets all the attention and begins to overshadow the vine. They propose that though this focus on programs creates a sense of accomplishment and growth in ministry, it is actually a less than adequate way of accomplishing ministry. It is their proposition that genuine Christian ministry needs to be more vine focused. It is people that matter most in the end.
This book has been marvelous at reminding me what my focus and vision should be for the Student Ministries. Though we utilize programs in ministry, they should be for nothing more than supporting real Christian discipleship and evangelism. We must never let the trellis replace the vine, lest we end up with an inanimate ornament that will only fade in the end.
For His Kingdom...
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