Our Philosophy of Ministry
This page articulates Mappings' own Purpose, Perspective, Priorities, Personality and Provisions.
Mappings' own Philosophy of Ministry
Our PURPOSE (aka Mission)
To Help Christian Leaders Faithfully Navigate their Calling.
Our PERSPECTIVE (Beliefs and Assumptions)
Mappings Affirms the Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Mappings Core Assumptions
1. A primary measurement of good leadership is the degree to which those being led are positively transformed by their interactions with the leader.
2. Leaders will rarely lead others beyond their (own) emotional, relational and spiritual maturity.
3. Who we become is more important than what we do.
4. God is more interested in our loving obedience than our leadership effectiveness.
5. Leadership decisions are sometimes driven by false assumptions that are buried below the leader’s level of awareness.
6. That which is easiest to measure often matters less than that which is more difficult to measure.
7. Leaders are sometimes called to do things that make little sense to those who desire to measure the effectiveness of every act.
8. The final standard for evaluating the effectiveness of any activity is to determine whether it helps us to love God with more of our heart, soul, mind and strength.
9. The worldview (beliefs and assumptions) of a few influential leaders will determine an organization’s culture more than any other factors combined.
10. Many leaders are seeking transactional solutions to transformational problems.
11. What our clients want is not always what they need.
12. Candid responses to tests and challenges are essential to healthy leadership and organizational development.
13. Consistent, accurate and compelling vision-casting is necessary for mission alignment and mission accomplishment.
14. Objective insights (from familiar and unfamiliar sources) are necessary for leaders to effectively navigate seasons of significant change.
Our PRIORITIES
To accomplish our Purpose of helping Christian leaders faithfully navigate their calling, we focus on these four priorities:
Ideal Leadership – Team members who embody our philosophy of ministry.
Transforming Solutions – Products and services that help Christian leaders faithfully navigate their calling.
Ministry Connections – Opportunities that allow us to influence Christian leaders.
Sustainable Resources – Assets that empower our Purpose.
Our PERSONALITY
these are the Behaviors we greatly value as we pursue our Priorities
1. God’s Glory: We value giving God honor, praise and worship through our wholehearted love for Him.
2. Humility: We value power that comes through us more than power which comes from us.
3. Motivation: We value leadership through inspiring standards more than through inspired charisma.
4. Gratitude: We value the expression of appreciation.
5. Confidentiality: We value the trust of those we serve.
6. Personal Growth: We value the positive character transformation of ourselves and those we serve as evidenced by the Fruit of the Spirit.
7. Professional Growth: We value the positive leadership transformation of ourselves and those we serve as evidenced by greater mission accomplishment.
8. Faithfulness: We value giving our best in all that we do.
9. Great Decision Making: We value God’s wisdom and timing for every opportunity.
10. Stewardship: We value wise use of time, energy and dollars.
11. Contextualization: We value communication that appropriately fits those we serve.
12. Conflict Transformation: We value growth through relational challenges.
13. Transformational Leadership: We value using tasks to develop people (transformational) more than using people to develop tasks (transactional).
14. Fresh Ideas: We value never-ending streams of (ego-detached) conversations.
15. Relationships: We value long-term partnerships for greatest leadership and organizational influence.
16. Encouragement: We value the intentional celebration of people and their development.
17. Modeling: We value the behaviors and attitudes that we encourage others to practice.
18. Mature Love: We value serving others more for their benefit than for our own.
19. Responsibility: We value working relationships where everyone is willing to be accountable to their teammates for their own attitudes and actions.
20. Feedback: We value input from a selected few to identify our blind spots.
Above the Line
Below the Line
Our PROVISIONS
Through a highly effective blend of mentoring, coaching, and consultation services*, we offer:
- For individuals – spiritual formation, leadership development, transition guidance
- For organizations – board, staff and volunteer development; strategic discernment
*For our purposes…
Mentoring: primary focus is personal development
Coaching: primary focus is professional development
Consultation: primary focus is organizational development