The Super Bowl is coming but I am not talking about football.
What was the best team or group you have been part of? Was it a work team, your family, a sports team, a group of friends, What was your best one?
More important why was it the best? What made it better than the others?
Take a minute here, don’t just blow by this is an important question for you. What caused you to feel progress, connection, value and belonging? What made the difference for you?
Being on the right team or with the right group is a big deal. It can easily be the best part of your life or the worst part of your life. We all remember the group projects at school (eww flashback, sorry)
Without any hesitation I can tell you the best team I am a part of is the team I am on now. Actually it is two teams there is the team I work with every day, the staff in our office and the other team I am with, You.
I am going to say it and I know it is hokey….Team Mt Ridge. Being part of Team Mt Ridge has been and continues to be one of the highlights of my life. I shared about it recently in a message “It’s Good” if you missed it you can see it below.
This place called Mt Ridge is special!
What is it exactly that makes a good team? More importantly what should you look for and what should you be to make your team great.
1) Relentless Support – Have you ever had a bad day? Ever messed up, missed a deadline, treated someone else on your team poorly or had to be the one the rest of the team or group had to carry for a while? Of course. This is everyone. The right team supports you instead of sticking it to you.
I am not talking about an employee who won’t work, a mooch who manipulates or an entitled drama person. I am talking about a friend, family member, team mate, coworker who has a setback. A great team circles around them and relentlessly supports them.
As the pastor at Mt Ridge I have made mistakes public and private. My teams have always responded with hearts expressing grace and forgiveness. It has happened enough times that I now know this, they genuinely want what’s best for me and they are willing to stand with me even when I fail.
We encourage, support, and enable each other to experiment. If mistakes are made in the pursuit of inviting people to follow Jesus, we learn from them and move on. We love working together and we love each other.
Wow, that is a great team
2) Great Teams Know There IS an “I” in Team. Each person on the team matters. We don’t all do the same thing or produce the same results. We have different gifts and abilities.
People, family members, co-workers, team mates are not commodities on a great team. Each person is a an important part.
I am happy to say. I know I am not the smartest person on my team. The list of things I can’t do is much longer than the list of things I can do! I value so much the wide variety God has placed on our staff team and The Mt Ridge team.
Great teams and great team mates realize each person is different and valuable in their own right. They bring their own set of unique perspectives and contributions.
This comes with an air of desperation (the good kind). Desperate to include others, desperate to care for others, desperate to connect with others. The energy, passion and devotion we share draws us in more deeply.
Think of it this way, how did the last great team you were connected to treat you? Were you just a place holder or a number. I doubt it. You felt important and that you had a meaningful place on the team.
3) Big, Hairy, Audacious, Goals – Being a team is great but being on the team for the sake of being part of a team doesn’t work for long. If there is no compelling purpose, no meaningful actions or accomplishments the team doesn’t last.
Great teams have a great vision and move toward something. The truth is the mission is actually what holds the team together. It seems counter-intuitive but the truth is you are most committed to your team when your team is most committed to the mission. A team only committed to being a team is soon spinning its wheels.
Bringing People Back to God is the big, hairy, audacious goal for the team I get to be with. We are relentless in our support for each other, we value each person but what pushes us in the hard moments is following Jesus well together.
Mt Ridge is a team because of our shared commitment to Christ. The love of Christ compels our team members to continually develop new ways to connect with our community and invite them to know Jesus.
What are you teams like, The ones you love? If you are part of Mt Ridge you are part of a great team, and I am glad you are a part of our church.
You’re Doing Great!
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