Foundation First

Here is something that I learned recently.  And when I finally realized it, it was one of those where I wondered why I had not realized it before.  It was just one that finally clicked and made sense to me.  And it has everything to do with how I go about building my worldview and reasons for what I do and how I do it in my life.

Put simply: With anything you do (or try to get others to do), you have to start with the foundation.

The Foundation has to be first.  You need to always begin at the lowest and most central layer.  For example, if it is incarnational ministry you are talking about and trying to motivate people to do it.  You are attempting to inspire Average Middle Class Joe and Jane to step out in faith and change their life and lifestyle to live in solidarity among the poor in their community because this is a great way to do ministry and live life.  If you are trying to do this, then you can’t start with explaining to them that they should do this “because rich people don’t know enough poor people. They don’t want money, they want friends”.  You can’t start there.  You have to lay the foundation first.

There are many different layers to this type of discussion.  And you have to peel back all of the layers until you can get to the foundation.  Then it will make sense for people.  Here’s what it looks like with this situation.

1. I have dedicated my life to the Christian faith.
2. The faith of a Christian has everything to do with Jesus Christ.
3. Jesus is the best example we have of how to live a fulfilled Kingdom life.
4. Jesus provides the way for us to truly live a fulfilled life and the best ministry.
5. Jesus lived an incarnational life of compassion WITH and FOR the poor.
6. Jesus shows that being with the poor is better than simply giving them things.
7. Too often in today’s society, we believe that giving people things is compassion.
8. Rich people don’t know enough poor people. They want friends, not money.

That’s how you do it.  Once you have established the foundation, then you can build on it.  You can confirm each step until you have finally reached where you want to be.  So if I am trying to talk to someone about living incarnationally among the poor, I am going to start by talking about their faith.  Then I am going to discuss Jesus.  Then from there, we can start to converse about the life of Jesus and how that impacts our lives today.  As you build upon the foundation, there is better understanding and buy-in.  It makes more sense.

So if you want to be inspirational, clear, and relevant – start with the foundation.

Then build from there.

…but, really, foundation first.