Apprenticeship - A Lost Art in Churches?

September 10, 2008

I am stressed out by the fact that we are having a lot of work done on our house. The microwave is in my son’s bedroom and I have to wash dishes in the bathroom. Gross! Nothing is where it should be and everything is dusty. But the good part is that I have met some competent and interesting carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and tile people.

All of these workers have a formal or informal apprenticeship system. No one works alone – there is always another working beside them. And I have learned more than I ever thought I would about installing windows and plumbing as I hear overhear the masters answer the questions of their apprentices. But the thing is there isn’t a lot of talking. Most of the teaching is by watching and then doing, assisting the master as he or she does their job.

Why have we lost this concept in churches? In most churches, leadership is a burden because it means doing all the work. In thriving churches, no job is ever done alone. Visitation is done as a team; worship space preparation is done as a team. Everyone is in the process of mentoring or being mentored.

The joy is that life is more fun and more meaningful this way. Church goes beyond a maintenance model into a model of building people into deeper, more competent Christian leaders. Can there be anything more exciting?