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It’s team building day at the office. We know what that means; time to hear the famous moniker: “There’s no I in team.” There’s no room for your selfish thoughts, only all of us pulling together for everyone else. Stop with the I’s and me’s; it’s we’s and us’s. No matter how many times we hear it, the speech is powerful and uplifting. I mean, who wouldn’t be for making sure our team is one cohesive unit, doing everything in the name of unification? On the surface it sounds great, but in actuality it is not only bad advice, it borders on unbiblical.
Organizations are living organisms. They are not mechanical entities; they are the collection of people who show up day in and day out. Therefore, the only way to grow our team is to invest in its people. Each individual is personally valued by God and to be valued by us.
There is an "I" in team: Individuals. Every team is made up of a group of individuals, each with his or her own strengths and weaknesses, his or her own accomplishments and struggles, and his or her own skills and inabilities.
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Organizations are living organisms. They are not mechanical entities; they are the collection of people who show up day in and day out. Therefore, the only way to grow our team is to invest in its people. Each individual is personally valued by God and to be valued by us. We serve a God who will leave the ninety-nine to save the one (Matthew 18:12–14; Luke 15:4–7). Therefore, strong team leaders will know how to minister to the weak, harness the best from them, and invest personally each team member.
We serve a God who will leave the ninety-nine to save the one (Matthew 18:12–14; Luke 15:4–7).
This is why Paul uses the body metaphor in 1 Corinthians 12. While we are all part of one Church, we are many, each with a specific purpose. Paul specifically states that we are not to neglect any particular part, for “the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’ On the contrary, those parts of the body that are weaker are indispensable” (1 Corinthians 12:21–22). Each has an individual gifting that needs to be invested in. Building the team isn’t about making sure every empty Planning Center slot gets a name filled into it, but knowing how each person is shaped to serve and then develop the talents God granted them. We are to focus on encouraging one another, building each other up to do the work that each are called to do (1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 3:13). It’s more than knowing whether they have an ear for mixing or focus for ProPresenter. It happens when we know their story, and they know we care.
Does that mean we’re not supposed to focus on building our teams?
Of course not. We indeed should. However, we don’t do it by pointing our team members to the team, but to Christ. In Colossians 3:23–24, Paul proclaims that we are to work for the Lord, and not for human masters, because “you serve the Lord Christ.” Likewise, in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16–20), Jesus does not tell his disciples to build the church; he tells them to make disciples and point them to Him. Only then will the team be united under a common goal: advancing the gospel of Christ. We invest in people, teaching and discipling them, for the benefit of them, the whole, and the lost. We celebrate their successes and mourn their losses.
What if we viewed the tech booth as a sanctuary for discovering Jesus rather than a collection of AVL equipment that needs to be staffed?
What if we viewed the tech booth as a sanctuary for discovering Jesus rather than a collection of AVL equipment that needs to be staffed? When individuals worship together and seek God together, we unify. It is only then that the "I’s" in team become inspired, invested, involved, and invaluable.
