Five Reasons Church Leaders Don’t Get Involved in Their City’s Unity Movement: Part 1

(Adapted from Well Connected: Releasing Power, Restoring Hope through Kingdom Partnerships by Phill Butler)

You may not have said one of these statements out loud before, but if you listen closely, you might notice a small kernel of truth that mirrors your own perspective.

Reason #1: “Working with others isn’t our style or our history.”

Which is another way of saying, “We’ve never done it that way before.” History is important, but it’s a terrible reason to ignore what God might be doing right now. If the Holy Spirit is still active (and He is), our methods shouldn’t be fossilized. Come to a For Columbus event and see what this movement is all about!

Reason #2:  “If we succeed together, how would we share the credit?”

We imagine we dilute impact messages to donors and supporters when we share about partnerships. The truth is, in God’s economy, there’s always enough “credit” to go around, because the glory’s supposed to go to Him in the first place. Once donors understand the value of multiplying impact through partnerships, trust and investment grow because we’re stewarding resources by better understanding our strengths as an organization, along with our limitations. One hugely successful event, the OSU Fall Kickoff, did not platform particular churches or ministries, but came to fruition when everyone agreed to lay down their logos.

Reason #3:  “I’m responsible to my board or constituency.”

Of course you are. The question is, do they understand that kingdom impact often happens when we join forces? Maybe the real challenge isn’t the collaboration—it’s learning how to explain the value of collaboration to people who’ve never seen it work. Here in Columbus, we’ve seen it change the lives of urban students, survivors of human trafficking, and many more. 

Reason #4: “We’re doing well on our own.”

That’s great news—and also a little dangerous. Solo success can lull us into thinking we’re stronger than we really are. Sometimes our “track record” is less about God’s blessing and more about us avoiding situations where our weaknesses would be exposed.

Reason #5: “Our work is so unique that cooperation would have little or no value for us.”

We get it. You’ve been entrusted with a ministry vision that feels one-of-a-kind. But sometimes “unique” is just another word for “I haven’t noticed the bigger picture yet.” God’s Kingdom is much larger than our particular lane, and that larger picture often needs more than one paintbrush. See what For Columbus is all about at one of our events, or look into joining a network to spend time with leaders interested in a similar cause or neighborhood.

If reading this stirred something in you (even if it was just a polite eyebrow raise), let’s talk. Email us at info@forcolumbus.org and we’ll carve out time–coffee’s on us. Our mission is pretty straightforward: unite the “Big-C” Church of Columbus so we can be unapologetically for Columbus. No one pulls off citywide transformation solo, so let’s figure out how to do this together–learning, failing, laughing, and trying again–until we get it right!