Your Ministry Partner

“Jesus called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.”
--Mark 6:7

I worked with Pat at Atlanta Urban Ministries in the nineteen eighties handing out food, clothing, money and toiletries to every straggler on Ponce de Leon who found their way into our “office” which occupied an abandoned church basement. We were an unlikely pair. Me, a skinny and naïve white boy from the north, and she, a large African American from the Deep South.


As our clients dwindled at the beginning of each month because they had received welfare checks, we had a lot of time to talk. We rambled about everything and joked about anything. From time to time she would express her grief and anger over the racism she had experienced. This cracker knew just enough to keep his mouth shut and listen.


It was one of those friendships which you know will not last beyond the time you work together but during that period in your life you become quite close because of the burden you share. Our deepest moments of sharing centered on our frustrations with the clients we served. We complained, kvetched, and cackled over the overwhelming problems we faced. To an outsider we must have sounded callous and cynical. But as two people who were committed to the cause it was essential and spiritual.


When Jesus sent the disciples out to confront the unclean spirits he made sure they went in pairs. Partnership in ministry is essential and when God calls you to a task God always gives you someone to share the load. We often wish there were more and usually feel out-numbered but God always gives us at least one fellow traveler.

Our partnerships are marked by intimate confidentiality about our ministries. It is in these relationships, and only in these relationships, that we can bear our souls. Your ministry partner is the one person you can unload on. Your partner knows that whatever you say goes no farther than his or her ears and that you just need some time to vent. They give you gut-level criticism without every looking down on you. They feed our souls and jerk a knot in our tails.



As essential as your ministry partners may be, there is always a dangerous temptation for those relationships to go awry. There is a fine line between venting and gossiping. There is a strong temptation for heart felt expression to degenerate into a grip session. We can become cliquish. It is so easy for these relationships to reinforce cynicism. In extreme situations, they can cross ethical and sexual boundaries. When any of this happens, these relationships impede the ministry of the church because they malnourish our souls with the wrong kinds of conversations and information.


Prayer and vision must be at the center of our partnerships in order for them to be edifying. Praying for one another and with one another reminds us of the third partner, the Holy Spirit, who unites us. Prayer forces us to listen for the Spirit in and through our conversations. The Spirit reminds us of the shared vision for ministry that guides our partnerships.

Who is your ministry partner?