On the Ministry Growth Show, we recently spoke with Scott Sabin, the CEO of Plant With Purpose, a ministry dedicated to restoring hope by reversing two of the world’s greatest interconnected challenges: global poverty and environmental change. In short, they “plant trees for Jesus,” as Scott’s father once said, but in practice it’s so much more.
Scott’s team works in eight countries around the world where deforestation by poverty-stricken subsistence farmers compounds both environmental impact and the extreme poverty level of the area. The farmers need the land to feed their children, but the land needs trees to sustain the farmers’ crops. In most cases, the farmers are aware of the vicious cycle they’re caught in, but they don’t know how to get out.
Storytelling as a Ladder Out of Poverty
So how does a ministry headquartered in San Diego equip farmers in Mexico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Thailand, and four countries in Africa? It’s not how you might expect. Early in his career, Scott discovered barging in and planting trees is just a short-term solution that does more harm than good. He learned painful lessons as a foreigner telling residents how to support their families, especially when the native farmers already knew the land better than American agricultural graduates.
God’s Word showed Scott a better way to help the poor—through the power of story.
“Part of it relates back to the whole thing of God using our talents for the kingdom. I had this image of going to Haiti or the Dominican Republic and teaching people to farm, which is absurd! I’ve never farmed a hillside in a tropical country. Where my talents are better used are in telling the stories of those who do and those who are.”
Now, the heart of his organization is to nourish the broken relationships with one another, the environment, and their Creator. The Plant With Purpose team treats the farmers as partners, not projects, by working with them to give them the tools and support to start a virtuous cycle of mutual respect for their neighbors, the land, and the God who made them all. The first tools the team shares with subsistence farmers are stories of God’s love and purpose for their lives, and how they can be a part of the solution.
As if it’s not enough to hear how stories build a ladder out of poverty, Scott doesn’t stop there. He also uses his storytelling talents to lift his own team.
Internal Ministry Storytelling
At Reliant, we teach ministries about the power of beneficiaries’ stories as a tool to mobilize donors and partners. We teach that the heroes of these stories are your donors and your beneficiaries, each playing a crucial role as a character in the story.
But Scott flipped our storytelling strategy on its head, proving that the power of story truly never ends. In addition to video, social media, and podcasting to reach donors, Scott implements internal storytelling meetings to inspire and encourage his staff.
Scott:
“One of the interesting things is that we don’t need to just do it (storytelling) just with our supporters and donors. We need to do it internally because, as the ministry grows, it’s very easy for it to become just a job. And so, we have something here that we call ‘Monday Partner Inspiration’ and every Monday we have a woman on the development team who shares a (written) highlight story from the field with everybody, and it’s somebody in their own words talking about how the program has since brought transformation to them.”
Zach:
“It’s easy to get caught up in communicating outside and externally to your donor base. Obviously, that’s so important, but remembering that your staff and your team and your employees drive the success of this organization and the effectiveness of it, and so if you can internally story tell and inspire them to continue, to first remember why they’re doing what they’re doing, but also just be inspired to continue to pursue and push through, especially when times get difficult, or you run into obstacles or challenges.”
Scott:
“Something I really firmly believe in is that it’s easy to have a job, but we want this to come from people’s hearts.”
Storytelling for Ministry Burnout
Ministry work is hard, thankless work, and burnout is high. Yes, there’s fulfillment in the calling, but there’s a lot of sacrifice, too. Workers in the field give up comforts of home for the risks, trials, dirt, and sweat on the ground to partner with beneficiaries and be part of their transformation stories. And it’s easy for the ministry stagehands to feel forgotten in the mundane chores of answering phones, cleaning floors, and paying bills from the comfort of the office, but they run the show just as much as the servants overseas.
I think Scott is onto something special. They say that when you point at someone, there’s three more fingers pointing back. We absolutely want to tell our donors “Look what your support has done!” but consider for a moment how it would feel to stop and remember “Hey, look what I’ve done!”
Storytelling isn’t just for our marketing efforts in this new digital world.
Stories light our path no matter who is walking, so today, I present to you seven ways internal storytelling meetings can prevent ministry burnout.
7 Ways Storytelling Prevents Ministry Burnout
1. Remind Them of What They’ve Overcome
When we feel hopeless, it’s encouraging to remember we’re stronger than we think. The burdens of yesterday have passed, and the trials of today will, too.
2. Remind them They’re Not Alone
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.
2 Corinthians 3-5 ESV
In 2 Corinthians 3-5, Paul wrote that God comforts us so we can comfort others. Stories help us know we’re not alone in our suffering, and that in itself is comfort.
3. Share Ideas
Stories help us brainstorm and solve problems, which empowers staff who may feel stuck. A podcast can be a great tool for communicating stories, both internally and externally. If you’ve ever considered starting a podcast, we’ve created the Complete Guide to Starting a Podcast for Ministries.
4. Affirm Their Relationship with God, Their Calling, and the Ministry
Hearing stories of how God is moving reminds us of the honor of a calling to serve our Almighty God. He doesn’t need us, but He chooses us anyway, so we can be part of something bigger, no matter how small we may feel, and our sacrifices aren’t in vain.
5. Prepare Them for What is To Come
Even as a passenger, looking in the rear-view mirror still tells us where we came from. We learn from the past so we can make better decisions in the future.
6. Provide the Same Benefits to Future Generations
“…that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”
Joshua 4:6-7 ESV
After the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground, God instructed the people to build an altar, an eternal conversation piece, so when the children ask what the stones mean, they will hear of God’s faithfulness. The power of story to encourage and inspire reaches beyond time and space, to transform hearts and souls for generations to come. This means the stories you share now will encourage your ministry’s staff long after you’re gone.
7. It’s Just Plain Fun
We all deserve a little break and fun in our day. Even babies know stories are just plain fun!
Your Turn
Who among us couldn’t use a little pick-me-up? I invite you to shine a little encouragement into your team’s day with a story of how much they mean to you and your ministry. Consider including a story in your next staff communication.
