I’ve been watching a lot of great football lately. In fact, just this last Monday night we watched the BCS Championship game while here in Mexico. The weekend before we left it was one of the best NFL weekends of the year, wildcard weekend. 2 high stakes games on Saturday and another 2 on Sunday. Football overload. But you know what strikes me about watching great football teams? They make it look so easy. They simply take the field, get first downs, make great plays and score. So why is it so easy for 3-4 NFL teams to consistently win but the other 26 struggle? (Dallas Cowboys) The answer is a life lesson most of us learn early on, great teamwork is hard work.
To really go deep into the philosophy and psychology of teamwork, you must think both individual and group at the same time. You must take many minds and meld them into one. A group of individual minds working together to achieve a common goal. But the real question is, how do you get all of the individuals pulling together equally with the same level of effort to achieve said goal. That is the million-dollar question that when answered, will land you a world class team.
I’m sure you’ve heard of the 80/20 rule. That in any given organization or team, 20% of the people do 80% of the work. In my personal and professional experience this ratio has been very true. But what if you were to massage that number and get it much higher? More people pulling the weight? When and if you can make this shift, you see great things, like Super Bowl champion great things.
Today we’re in Numbers chapter 18 and we see God talking a little teamwork. In lieu of the recent upheaval and discontent within the nation of Israel, God takes some time to clarify and reestablish what he expects of His priestly tribe, the tribe of Levi. Recall that there was one High Priest that was in charge and he received directions either directly from God or from Moses who received the directions directly from God. If you’ve ever been a boss, you know that being the boss is not always that great. Problems, bad attitudes and dissension always finds the boss first. Along these lines, God clearly delineates to not only Aaron but His entire team, the expectations He has for “Team Levite.” Think of Aaron as the quarterback and God as the head coach. And it’s time for the halftime pep talk.
“The Lord said to Aaron, “You, your sons and your family are to bear the responsibility for offenses connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses connected with the priesthood. Bring your fellow Levites from your ancestral tribe to join you and minister to you when you and your sons minister before the tent of the covenant law. 3 They are to keep guard over you as you perform all the duties of the tent”. Num 18:1-3a
Let’s look at a few valuable lessons God gives us here about teamwork within your ministry as well as life in general.
1) One person makes a really poor team. You can’t do it all by yourself, don’t even try. The first thing God does is establish an entire team for running the Tabernacle and everything that revolves around it. He chose the tribe of Levi way back in Numbers 1 as the tribe that would be responsible for the care, transport and operation of the entire Tabernacle. God commands that Aaron’s sons, his family and his fellow Levites will all be on the team. Even today God builds teams to get His work done. Whether it’s Sunday school teachers for 5 years olds, missionaries, deacons, or church staff, God build teams to do His work.
2) Teams have to have a leader. And you may not be it. The problem with most teams is that everybody thinks they should be the leader. A football team with 6 quarterbacks will be a poor team indeed. God builds teams according to the individual's spiritual giftings that He has given them. And that means He will use you in amazing ways…if you allow Him. Allow yourself to be used by God in whatever position He needs you in, don’t let selfish pride interfere with God’s team.
3) A good team accepts responsibility. Either good or bad, a great team accepts the responsibility for what it produces. Notice in our study verse, God clearly tells them that the tribe of Levi is responsible for offenses against the tabernacle and also for offenses against the office of priest. If the team does good, you celebrate the victory together. If the team loses, you suffer the loss together. Out of my 6 years of playing football in school, I can tell you, I learned so much more about myself, others and my team from losing than I ever did from winning. It’s easy to win, but oh so hard to lose. Responsibility is something that is very absent in our world today. The team is responsible for the result and as a team member you are responsible for your best input to the team.
4) There’s safety in numbers. A team offers support, safety, comfort and camaraderie. Don’t be a loner (revert back to #1) By joining a team, you will greatly magnify your gifts by combining them with other like-minded followers of Jesus Christ. Part of that benefit is safety. The primary goal of a great football team is to protect its quarterback and running backs the best it can. On a ministry team this goes much deeper. There’s a spiritual protection that should exist. Prayer, fellowship and group study of God’s Word will offer a spiritual bond within the team that will protect when the evil one attempts to attack the team. Don’t miss out on the safety of joining a ministry team.
5) A team will bear each other’s burdens. Notice our study verse says that the team members will “minister” to Aaron and the others as they perform their duties. There will be times when we all struggle in our walk with the Lord. That’s when God’s teams really shine. Some may be low and some may be high, but as a team all members are brought up to soar with God. We are called to share in each other’s burdens (Gal 6:2). Those that are under burden from the world and the evil one can expect prayer, help and counsel from those on the team. And later as those lowly are raised up, they will help others in need. A beautiful circle of “ministering” within the team.
God never intended for us to walk the walk as a follower of Jesus alone. The benefits of teamwork are seen all throughout God’s Word. There was a team of 12 disciples. The Israelite nation itself was a huge team built upon the 12 sons of Jacob. God’s gift of marriage between one man and one woman can be a powerful team. And yes, even God’s church is a team. A group of fellow believers in Jesus Christ, working together to share the gospel of Jesus with the nations and then make disciples out of those believers.
Teamwork makes the dreamwork. And if you want to study and learn about the best a team could ever hope to be, study God’s Word. There you will find the original dream teams.
Blessings and prayers for your day from beautiful Cozumel, Mexico.
Comments