Running Out of Contacts? Try this.

Running out of contacts? Turn to your pastor and other pastors that you know. They are usually very supportive of ministry or mission work, and have loads of contacts. Although this seems simple enough, you may be asking, “Where do I begin that process?” No worries. Here are some tips.

• Start with your closest friends in the ministry first. Ask to sit down with them to talk about reaching out to their networks.

• Set up a meeting and take a notebook. Scheduling a time to meet is often one of the biggest struggles in today’s busy world, however once you get a time to meet, enter into the space both prepared and receptive to new information.

• Ask open ended questions. Your questions should be specific to your mission, yet open enough for the person responding to really contribute what they know. Ask things like, "Who do you know that would be interested in sharing Jesus with the Japanese?" Don't ask, "Do you know anyone I could talk to about this?" Closed questions like this are an obstacle to growing your network. They make it easier for the person to say no and move on.