The word TEAM is one important hallmark of our movement as it is what made us grow to where we are now. Every Nation was not built around one important person but every person is just as important as anyone in the whole movement.

I saw this on display during our Strategic Leaders Apostolic Meeting (SLAM) Campus last February 18, 2016. I felt like I was in that upper room in the book of Acts when Jesus appeared to the disciples. This team of 12 disciples were crazy enough to believe that the gospel can really change the world! And they carried the message with them everywhere they went, emboldened by the fact that they were doing things together.

In my time, these regional directors and hub leaders are my team of disciples. I can’t help but imagine what the gospel will do in our lifetime as we preach to every campus in every town, city, and region of this nation.

Here are two obvious benefits of working with teams:

1. We can operate within our strengths.

We can operate within our strengths because somebody will compensate for our weaknesses. I may be good with vision casting and leadership but I really suck at administration. But there’s Hannah Frofunga who’s industry-caliber at administration, Fiona and her team is so excellent with events. When we go out there and execute, it seems like everyone is so amazing at what they do. It’s not the individual that the people see, it’s the team working together.

2. Weaknesses become irrelevant.

We are not the most brilliant people in the world. If you make me stand alone, all my weaknesses will far outweigh my strengths. But when I’m with this team, my weaknesses fade in the strength of the others. The more we work together and collaborate, the stronger we become and our weaknesses becomes more and more irrelevant.

So, how do we work out teamwork?

Build relationship with your team and communicate.

During the start of the year, most of us were all new in the team. We immediately jumped to our respective assignments and started working. But Joe, our Executive Director, deliberately communicated with all of us. We created varieties of Viber groups for different purposes. We cascaded as much information as possible until it slowly became a culture (I am still learning this skill!) in the team. We had a lot of tasks to do but being “busy” was never an excuse not to connect and communicate. Until now, the Viber groups are still growing and the topics ranges from the most spiritual to the mundane.

Make a deliberate effort NOT to work alone. Intentionally involve others in the process.

If you are walking alone, find somebody you can collaborate and bounce ideas with. If you are currently working in a team environment, reach out to them. Deliberately communicate until it becomes a culture to constantly bounce and cascade information.

Jesus didn’t call an individual to change the world. He called a team of twelve disciples then sent out 72 more.

What was true for the disciples then is still true for us today. Teamwork works!

We will need others in order to fulfill God’s call. The strategy is obvious: Jesus has called us to change the world, and He has called us to change the world together.