Adult Ministry Principle 2: You Need a Hub

A hub is that core, foundational ministry that every other ministry to adults points to, connects with, or originates from. Most churches would identify their small group or Sunday School as that hub ministry. So when I see that printed or hear that stated, I immediately look to see if the church really believes that. I look to see if the individual is really the focus of the hub ministry.


First I look at the church's entry points 

• Are all prospects, especially first time guests, intentionally connected to a specific group for specific steps of follow-up? "All" means guests who attend worship, other adult ministry or church-wide events, parents of children and youth who attended an event, or someone who has been discovered through other means.
• Are new church members expected to connect to the small group or Sunday School group? If so, how is this done?

Secondly, I look at the church's connecting points  

• Do other ministries feed out of the hub? Is this the place where leaders are developed and sent out? Is this the place where adults mature so the church can continue to move in the right direction?
• Do missions, ministry and evangelistic activities connect to the hub--before and after the event. When activities are planned, is the hub involved? How is the hub involved after the activities are completed?

This hub provides the foundation for launching an even broader ministry to adults. But, more importantly, every possible way should be found to connect all adults, first, to the hub ministry. If this isn't done, well then the rest of ministry to adults will begin to lose focus. This takes coordination and collaboration with your key adult ministry leaders. That is where we will pick up the conversation next.