“It seems like the same people are willing to help with the ministry every year. Why can’t we get more people involved?” This litany is repeated over and over in congregational life.
The church might be able to learn something from a secular organization: Toastmasters International, an organization of clubs for people who want to learn to improve their speaking. Every week, several members give speeches, and other members give them feedback. I first joined Toastmasters six years ago, not long after I moved to Portland, Oregon from Massachusetts. I wanted to meet some people as well as continue to develop my speaking skills.
One of the things I noticed immediately about Toastmasters is people get invited to join in right away. There are no “pew-warmers” in Toastmasters (in the case of my club, we meet in the chapel of a Methodist church, so we actually sit in pews). Part of every meeting is a short time for impromptu speaking where people are invited to give a one to two minute speech on a subject that is given to them on the spot. Even guests are given the opportunity to participate, if they want to.
Then, as soon as new members join, they are scheduled for their first speech, the “icebreaker,” where they give a short speech about themselves. And then they are scheduled in the various roles needed by the club. Each member is given a manual of speech projects with progressively more challenging speeches, and has the opportunity to proceed at their own pace through the manual.
I wonder what church life would be like if church participation and membership were more structured than they often are. People come to church at many different stages of life and in many different emotional and spiritual states. But if we set up structures that would challenge people to grow spiritually and emotionally and in ministry skills, everyone would benefit.
In Toastmasters, people also come in from many different life situations. Ruth, a member of my club, was barely able to look up from the floor when she gave her first speech. Now she faces the group with confidence, telling vivid stories from her experiences with square dancing, church life and her travels. Ruth has faced many difficulties in her life. One of her biggest challenges has been that she never learned how to read. She belongs to the church where we meet, and a woman in the church taught her how to read. Ruth gave a speech which was a project based on reading a book aloud, and she read a children’s book to us. I have rarely in my life been so moved by a presentation. The structure of Toastmasters has helped Ruth to grow, gain confidence, and take on new opportunities for both speaking and leadership.
A central part of every Toastmasters meeting is evaluation. Everyone who speaks gets a kind but helpful evaluation. “I liked the way you did this, and here is something you might work on,” is the usual way comments are given. The feedback I get at Toastmasters helps me improve. I can see the growth in others as well, from beginners to professional speakers.
I do a lot of speaking in my current ministry with clergy who want to be better leaders and churches who want to develop their ministries. And as a local church pastor, for many years I preached a sermon every Sunday. But I’ve appreciated the opportunity to get honest and helpful feedback. I prepare for upcoming talks by practicing at Toastmasters. If the group laughs at a joke, I figure it’s safe to tell to another audience. If they tell me they were a little confused by a section of a speech, I know I need to work harder to make myself clear.
In church life we frequently shy away from evaluation. Pastors often get no more feedback than “nice sermon, pastor,” or “I hated the new order of worship.” Thoughtful feedback even to pastors can be rare. And we find it very difficult to evaluate volunteers, to help them develop and grow in their role, beyond the occasional denominational training event. We are often terrified of chasing away much needed workers. What if we developed a way to gently evaluate everyone in a volunteer role in the church, at least every year? “I liked the way you did this, and here is something you might work on,” could be an essential part of the feedback.
Implementing new approaches to ministry is easier said than done. Church life is much more complex than a Toastmasters club, and involves many more people. Yet we sell people short when we don’t offer opportunities for personal and spiritual growth, when we don’t ask them to serve, or when we ask them to serve and never give feedback. People are more likely to volunteer if they think they will get the support they need to do a good job.
One of my biggest thrills as a Toastmaster is watching people grow as speakers, and become more confident than they ever thought possible. One of my biggest thrills in ministry has been to watch people develop and grow. I got an e-mail from a former church member two years after I left that congregation. “I want you to know I did the minute for mission in church on Sunday,” she said. “I promised I’d let you know if I ever got up in front to do anything.” My dream for all of our churches is that we would have people doing ministry they never thought possible.