A motivated and efficient team is an impressive sight to behold. To have the privilege of being a member of a highly dedicated and productive team is even more delightful. Unfortunately, highly rewarding and effective teams are not always the norm.

Teams are formed by both necessity and by choice. Excellent teams are created when individual team members contribute with an exceptional level of intentionality and integrity.

Teams are all around us. A husband and wife are a team. The family is a team. Co-workers function as a team. Christian congregations are a team. Committees are teams. Even an individual believer is part of a team by becoming a “laborer together with God” (I Cor. 3:9).

Being on the “team” can be a highly gratifying experience or it can be pure frustration and misery. Individual team members may bring their personal weaknesses and faults with them. They may be impulsive, temperamental or easily offended. They may carry prejudices or grudges. These are things that can hinder or destroy a team’s effectiveness.

Gifted, capable and enthusiastic individuals don’t always make good team members either. They may tend to dominate, charging ahead on their own, not consulting with fellow team members. They may be arrogant, thinking their ideas are the best. They can ignore or belittle less aggressive team members. They may take “ownership” of the task or responsibility at hand, not respecting the rest of the team. They are often impatient with those who move forward more deliberately.

Unfortunately, there are some team members who would rather not be a part of the team at all. They are members of the team only because of the pressures and obligations of circumstances. They may have been put on the committee or the board, but have little vision or passion for the work assigned. They may be married, but invest very little for the success of the marriage.

From a Christian perspective, honorable visions and projects are built on the foundation of glorifying God. Some projects may be easy to classify as “non-spiritual” or secular in nature. But, if these projects have imbedded elements or goals that do not honor God, it becomes difficult to be a committed team member when one’s conscience is being violated.

God created us to glorify Him by learning to work together. The church is described in the Bible as a body. Every member of the body contributes something towards functioning effectively. To be a good team member, we must learn to respect all the team members and help each one develop the gifts and abilities given to them by God.

DSJ