"Churches and companies are certainly fundamentally different. Churches rely on inner drive, while companies rely on utilitarian rewards and punishments, but there are also many similarities between them," said a church core volunteer.
Ze Liang (pseudonym), who volunteers in a central church in Southeast China, expresses that while the church teaches him to be a good Christian in the workplace, he applies the experiential wisdom gained in the workplace to his ministry.
Establishing norms and discovering to improve efficiency
In many churches, a few full-time workers handle preaching, pastoral care, and planning, while a large number of volunteers or part-time workers manage specific tasks and varied ministries. With specialized volunteer groups and refined ministries, efficiency improvement becomes crucial, especially with life pressures and limited time.
"I finish work at 6 p.m. and take a one-and-a-half-hour ride to the church," said a young person who has just entered the workplace. He has joined the worship team but hoped for efficient rehearsals.
As the finance officer of a large company with four to five thousand employees, Ze Liang understands the role of rules, rewards, and punishments. He set several norms for the youth choir, saying that they could not arrive late or depart early and that they should complete the practices within the specified time. He divided the choir into two teams, developed a scoring system, and deducted points for violations. Six months later, the team with low scores would undertake "penalties" — responsible for serving during youth fellowship activities or other ministries as needed.
Besides establishing rules, managers should utilize talented people wisely. Ze Liang said that leaders don't necessarily have to be experts but must be able to recognize others' gifts and allocate tasks reasonably. "Nobody will be too busy to catch their breath, with no one feeling disengaged," he said.
Extensive learning and promotion of ministry innovation
As one of the oldest churches in the district, Church A has been established for 35 years. It has an effective system for pastoral care and management. However, with the shift of the district center and the emergence of new towns and new central churches, some of Church A's traditional practices have become outdated.
Previously, the church introduced gatherings and event time relying on word of mouth; performances must be presented at Christmas and Easter; Christmas gifts were always boxes of egg yolk pies costing around twenty yuan. Ze Liang believed that conformity came from indifference and laziness. After joining the church council, Ze collected information from the internet and nearby churches, and replaced Christmas gifts with fruits, greeting cards, and church event introduction cards last year, combining with the preferences of congregants and comparing prices. The latter cards could also be distributed to newcomers.
He also explored new ideas with youth fellowship members. Some of them carried out street interviews, asking people about their impressions of Christmas and making short videos as Christmas programs. He also found that believers did not understand the meaning of Easter, so he searched for introduction videos about Easter online and played them before the celebration programs. He said all these were inspired by his company's annual meetings.
Leaders should be humble, approachable, and authoritative.
As a nonlocal who came to work in the city, Ze Liang understands the importance of humility in the company. He said, "As a newcomer to City A, especially as a young person, I have to be even more humble."
As a workplace leader, he also sees that those in charge of ministries must possess both authority and affability. The leader should lead by example, so people can trust and follow him. An affable person is not aloof but gentle and humble.
"I dedicate Monday to Friday to the company, and Saturday and Sunday to the church." Seeing senior pastors and staff members serving the church diligently, Ze Liang was determined to dedicate his free time to the church, once he merely attended worship services.
"They are my role models." He said, "I’m impressed by their efforts to serve at such an old age, so I changed."
- Translated by Abigail Wu
东南某城区中心堂一位核心义工泽亮如此说，教会教导他如何做人，让他明白怎样在职场做基督徒；而他也将在职场中锻炼出的经验智慧，应用到服侍中。
设定规范，高效使用人才，提高服侍效率
对于大部分教会的日常运转来说，少数全职同工负责圣言宣讲和灵性牧养、制定方向与计划；而大量义工或兼职同工则承担起贯彻计划的具体工作和不同事工。义工群体逐渐多元，面临的生活压力和能付出的空闲时间不一，加之教会事工多样，提高服侍效率就成了许多人的诉求。
“我晚上6点下班，坐车一个半小时到教会，”一个刚刚进入职场的年轻人愿意参加乐队敬拜，但“希望晚上排练的效率能高一点”。
作为拥有四五千员工的大型公司的财务，泽亮明白规则和奖惩的作用。他为青年诗班设定几条规范，不能迟到早退，必须在规定时间内完成练习。他将诗班分成两队，建立评分机制，违反规定扣除一定分数；半年总计，分数低的一队接受“惩罚”——负责平时青年团契活动时或其他事工所需要的服侍工作。
职场的管理智慧，其一在规则，其二在人才利用。泽亮说，带领的人不一定是专才，但一定要是伯乐。能发现别人的恩赐，合理分配工作。“不会有人忙得喘不过气，有人觉得没参与感。”
广泛学习，慎重推动事工创新
A堂建堂已有35年，是城区中的老牌教堂，牧养和管理怎么做，自有一套行之有效的系统。但城区中心转移，新城和新城中心堂兴起，A堂的一些“传统”也变得不合时宜起来。
比如介绍教会聚会和活动时间势必依靠一对一口传；圣诞节、复活节一律表演节目；圣诞礼物一定是20多元一箱的达利园……泽亮认为，传统守旧背后透露出敷衍懒惰。泽亮进入堂委会后，从网络和周边教堂搜集信息，结合信徒习惯，又比较价格，去年将圣诞节礼物更替为水果、贺卡、教会信息和聚会活动介绍卡片。该卡片又成为发放给新人的信息卡。
他又与青年团契成员一起创新庆典活动内容，比如几人一起模仿街头采访，询问大家对圣诞节的理解和印象，制成短视频作为圣诞节目。又比如他发现信徒对复活节的意义不了解，就在网上找到复活节的介绍视频，在庆典节目前播放。如此这些，他说都是公司年会给他的启发。
谦虚作人，兼具权威和亲和力
作为一个来到此地打拼的外乡人，泽亮深知在公司中谦虚作人的重要性。他说，“作为新A城人，特别是作为年轻人，你要更加谦卑。”
职场领袖的身份也让他看到，事工的负责人要兼具权威和亲和力。权威来自以身作则，让人可以信赖，相信自己是可以跟随的人。亲和力则是不高高在上，反而愈加温柔谦和。
“周一到周五努力工作，周六周日献给教会。”泽亮从只愿意轻松参加礼拜，到愿意为教会奉献宝贵的空闲时间，是得益于看见老一辈牧者同工辛苦服侍的身影心志。
“我看到了榜样，”泽亮说，“心疼她们，年纪这么大还可以这么侍奉，何况我们年轻人。”
（文中人物为化名）
服侍经验谈：以三大职场智慧反哺教会服侍
"Churches and companies are certainly fundamentally different. Churches rely on inner drive, while companies rely on utilitarian rewards and punishments, but there are also many similarities between them," said a church core volunteer.
Ze Liang (pseudonym), who volunteers in a central church in Southeast China, expresses that while the church teaches him to be a good Christian in the workplace, he applies the experiential wisdom gained in the workplace to his ministry.
Establishing norms and discovering to improve efficiency
In many churches, a few full-time workers handle preaching, pastoral care, and planning, while a large number of volunteers or part-time workers manage specific tasks and varied ministries. With specialized volunteer groups and refined ministries, efficiency improvement becomes crucial, especially with life pressures and limited time.
"I finish work at 6 p.m. and take a one-and-a-half-hour ride to the church," said a young person who has just entered the workplace. He has joined the worship team but hoped for efficient rehearsals.
As the finance officer of a large company with four to five thousand employees, Ze Liang understands the role of rules, rewards, and punishments. He set several norms for the youth choir, saying that they could not arrive late or depart early and that they should complete the practices within the specified time. He divided the choir into two teams, developed a scoring system, and deducted points for violations. Six months later, the team with low scores would undertake "penalties" — responsible for serving during youth fellowship activities or other ministries as needed.
Besides establishing rules, managers should utilize talented people wisely. Ze Liang said that leaders don't necessarily have to be experts but must be able to recognize others' gifts and allocate tasks reasonably. "Nobody will be too busy to catch their breath, with no one feeling disengaged," he said.
Extensive learning and promotion of ministry innovation
As one of the oldest churches in the district, Church A has been established for 35 years. It has an effective system for pastoral care and management. However, with the shift of the district center and the emergence of new towns and new central churches, some of Church A's traditional practices have become outdated.
Previously, the church introduced gatherings and event time relying on word of mouth; performances must be presented at Christmas and Easter; Christmas gifts were always boxes of egg yolk pies costing around twenty yuan. Ze Liang believed that conformity came from indifference and laziness. After joining the church council, Ze collected information from the internet and nearby churches, and replaced Christmas gifts with fruits, greeting cards, and church event introduction cards last year, combining with the preferences of congregants and comparing prices. The latter cards could also be distributed to newcomers.
He also explored new ideas with youth fellowship members. Some of them carried out street interviews, asking people about their impressions of Christmas and making short videos as Christmas programs. He also found that believers did not understand the meaning of Easter, so he searched for introduction videos about Easter online and played them before the celebration programs. He said all these were inspired by his company's annual meetings.
Leaders should be humble, approachable, and authoritative.
As a nonlocal who came to work in the city, Ze Liang understands the importance of humility in the company. He said, "As a newcomer to City A, especially as a young person, I have to be even more humble."
As a workplace leader, he also sees that those in charge of ministries must possess both authority and affability. The leader should lead by example, so people can trust and follow him. An affable person is not aloof but gentle and humble.
"I dedicate Monday to Friday to the company, and Saturday and Sunday to the church." Seeing senior pastors and staff members serving the church diligently, Ze Liang was determined to dedicate his free time to the church, once he merely attended worship services.
"They are my role models." He said, "I’m impressed by their efforts to serve at such an old age, so I changed."
- Translated by Abigail Wu
Workplace Wisdom Transforms Church Ministry: Volunteer Leader's Innovation in Southeast China
