It’s only words - or is it?

In the days before Customs & Excise took over the Inland Revenue, it often seemed as if it was the Department of Acronyms. People and groups would often have lengthy titles so w called them by the initials. At various times I have been a PELO, TACO, TAVO and (yes, you can laugh) LILO. It was even rumoured that a gentleman in Manchester named MacDonald was the Excise Import and Export Intelligence Officer, with a particular specialism in livestock.

Often the reverse process is used: a word is read as an acronym, with each letter standing for another word or phrase. I'm sure many readers would know what - in a church context - JOY stands for. (Unsure? Jesus first, others second, yourself last). TEAM is another example, a common meaning given being "Together everyone achieves more". I quite like that, though, as I'll explain below, it isn't the only version.

We are getting more used to each other in the Parish of the Good Shepherd, and working increasingly well as team, recognising that together we can achieve a great deal more than we can as separate congregations. Which brings me to some of the characteristics of a good team. Firstly it has a strong, shared identity, under-pinning rather than dominating what it does. The purpose of a team is to serve its members and thereby enable them to serve others; the team itself is not the final goal, but what it does. You may have noticed how sports teams - especially in Rugby - get into a huddle before a match starts, as team bonding. The huddle is great for those in it, but unless it translates into performance it is meaningless

Then, a team recognises the strengths of each member, appreciating the different experience and expertise that each brings. It is well worth reading what St. Paul says about teams in 1 Corinthians chapters 12 to 15, especially where he is ticking them off for not working as a team! What we are finding in our 5 churches (and 8 congregations) is that between us the range of gifts folk have to offer is much wider than for each alone, and we are becoming better at sharing these with one another. The key to this is of course good communication: making sure we know what talents each person can bring, then making each of our partner churches aware.

Another key to a successful team is good management, which is not just one person, but the whole management team. A football team would not, for example, be very
successful if the Manager did all the work - they are supported by specialist coaches, physio, commercial manager, club secretary, the kit manager, groundsman, and so on. Each has an important contribution to making a team successful, even though this is not often noticed. A parish is not so different, save that most of the management team are volunteers.

An effective team also knows its limits - what it can't do as well as what it can. It then sets objectives within its capabilities, or, to use another acronym, SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely. It can be too easy to drift along, doing what we have always done, in the way we've always done it. By setting objectives a team can value what it does that serves others and look for new ways to do so.
One thing a team does not have to be though is together in one place. So long as it is together in purpose, it can be scattered, assemble at different times and places, and be no less of a team when all its members are of on their own. The team I am a member of at work now is co-located, which has the benefit of us being able to share our work, work things out together, and adapt quickly to changes. However the last team I was in was scattered all over the country and we met about once a month. It was no less a team for that, and we found ways of effectively working together to serve others.
I noted earlier that there is another interpretation of 'team': "To each a ministry". I hope it has been implicit but clear in what I've written that to be effective a team must recognise, nurture and develop the ministry of each member. Not that all those ministries will be high profile - most will be scarcely noticed, such as brewing up or washing up after a service, or looking after our neighbours, but still an important service to others, an expression of the love that lies at the heart of our team identity. As Paul put it to the Corinthians, no team member can turn round and say they don't need any other, however insignificant they may be. Some of the greatest blessings we receive are through those who carry out the simplest tasks, faithfully, joyfully and lovingly.

So is a team a matter of words? Perhaps, but if it really is a team, it is much, much more.

Added: 28th May 2009 || Submitted by: Revd Rob Fox.

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