#274: A FRANK TALK ABOUT MINISTRY: Part 6 – What They Don't Teach You in Seminary

I would add that the five people, some of the five people, don't necessarily have to be alive.

provided that you immerse yourself into their legacy to the point where you feel like you know them very well.

All right, so let's say it's, for example, Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

This would mean, if he's one of the five, you have read every biography on Bonhoeffer.

You have read his complete works, more than once maybe.

You've seen every documentary on Bonhoeffer.

If there's any video footage of Bonhoeffer, you know his life inside and out.

It is as if You knew him personally and you spent a lot of time with him, okay? So that would count as one of your five.

But this is a critical observation.

I found it to be true across the board because it will determine your destination in life.

Who are those five people going to be? The greatest ingredient to your impact on other people.

The greatest ingredient above all others to your influence.

And that's what ministry is.

It's impact and influence.

It's the ministry of life, giving life, the Lord's life to other folks, whether they're Christian or not.

But the greatest ingredient, and this is what's so unfortunate, it's the most neglected ingredient, is your own transformation.

Let me paint a picture here.

Let's round up every pastor in America from young to old.

And we say, you have a choice.

We're putting on a number of conferences and we're going to have some of the most gifted speakers and teachers at each of those conferences.

One conference is how to grow your church from the best church growth experts in the world.

Another one is on leadership skills.

from the greatest leaders who've written and spoken on this topic.

Another one is evangelistic strategies.

Another one is how to make disciples from the greatest disciple makers on the planet who still breathe oxygen.