Baseball is my favorite sport. I love watching good teams get the right players, give the right instructions and strategy, and field a winning team. In my years at Dallas Baptist University, I have watched the Patriot baseball team put together winning teams year after year, bringing home championships and sending scores of players into the professional baseball ranks. Each year, they have to replace young men who have either graduated or been drafted by professional teams. And each year, they continue to assemble teams that compete at the highest levels of collegiate sports.

It got me thinking about the task of assembling teams for ministry and work. How do you identify good team members, and how do you prepare them for success?

In his Maxwell Leadership Bible, John Maxwell examines the team that Jesus assembled to be his disciples. They were tax collectors, fishermen, and others who were unloved and showed little promise from a human perspective. Yet the “team” Jesus identified and taught became the team that shook the world.

From the account in The Gospel of Mark, Maxwell points to examples of this group the Lord called, and posed some questions based on his observations.

  • What positive qualities exist that may be seen as negative behavior? (I think of Peter, who said things and did things without thinking them through.)
  • Do the individuals show initiative, even if it has been misdirected?
  • Would these people add positive chemistry and unique value if placed on the team?
  • Are they hungry to become more than something they are now? (“You are fishing for fish. I’ll teach you how to fish for men.”)
  • Do they demonstrate passion that could be redirected [toward God’s goals]?
  • Could they play a needed role on the team?

I’m sure there are other qualities and traits that can and should be considered. However, these speak to the issue of identifying qualities in a person that, if channeled in the right way, can lead to a strong team and accomplish great things. Yes, Jesus had a lot of teaching and training to do with the rough men He chose. However, He was willing to invest years in the lives of His team members… His disciples… so that they might ultimately be a powerful force even after Jesus was gone.

As I have watched the Dallas Baptist Patriot baseball team enjoy winning seasons year after year, I have thought about recruiting new team members. Many of them were overlooked by much larger schools with big budgets. Yet these players have shown that with encouragement and investment in training and development, overlooked athletes can become elite team members and achieve great success.

Final note from the baseball analogy: DBU baseball coach Dan Heefner tells his team to get one percent better each day. That seems like a small, highly achievable goal. One percent better each day. What if your team got one percent better at using media to share God’s Hope with those they serve? What could be accomplished in your ministry with your team…for the sake of the Gospel?

God’s best,