One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned about ministry—especially when you’re just starting—is how important it is to DIY (Do It Yourself). It saves you money, and it lets you get hands-on with troubleshooting. If you’re the type of person who likes to roll up your sleeves and find solutions to problems, this approach is for you.
Now, I’m not saying you can find everything with a quick Google or YouTube search. Sometimes, you need to invest in a course or a mentor to get specific skills. But learning that skill yourself will contribute directly to whatever you’re trying to build.
This DIY approach becomes even more critical when you want to elevate or take your ministry to the next level. If you recognise that your ministry needs a specific tool to grow or move from one platform to another, learning how to use that platform yourself—or learning from someone else who can teach you—will give you the skills and knowledge you need.
Not only does this empower you, but you can sometimes turn that learned skill into a service you offer to others, which will, in turn, bring money into your ministry. Learning things on your own can also open up solutions you might never have considered.
When you’re learning from someone else, they often determine the information you need. But when you step out there and troubleshoot an idea or an issue—like building your ministry’s website—you’re in control.
There are a lot of free and paid resources, like courses, that can walk you through building a website step-by-step. Not everyone has the budget to hire a full-time web designer. But you can learn what you need to know on a budget, and you can invest in certain packages or services that give you the skills you need without the full cost of a designer.
For me, troubleshooting doesn’t have to be complicated. It could be as simple as using a search engine.
One thing I’ve realised about building an online ministry is that people procrastinate or are unable to move forward because they don’t use a simple tool like Google. I know you have to use the right keywords and phrase your search a certain way to get the results you need. But once you know what you’re looking for and how to put it into the search engine, you’re going to find your answer. Sometimes you have to go through a couple of different people’s content to find the one that brings the solution for you.
I had an issue on my own website when I wanted to add a “scroll up” button. I don’t have coding experience, so I was trying to figure out how to add it. I even asked my brother, whose background is in coding. He was able to do the research and found the right resource.
He sent me a link, and I tried to troubleshoot it myself. By going on Google myself and putting in “how to do this,” I was able to find a couple of sources, which eventually led me to a link that let me add the button to my site. I was able to accomplish it!
Not everyone is naturally inclined to troubleshoot, but I’ve found that when it comes to problems I can solve by doing a quick Google search, it’s incredibly satisfying.
There are things you can do yourself without having to pay someone else. There are things that others can give you a quick guide on or send you a link to. You have to ask—ask Google, ask someone you know with that skill set—and then do it yourself.
There’s a level of control we need to have over our ministries. There’s also an awareness that you can do things without relying on someone else to do it. Until your ministry gets to that place where you can’t do it, then do it!
I really want to encourage you to sit down. If there are things you want to solve in your ministry, set aside a day or a half-day. Make a list of all the things you’ve been procrastinating or putting off because you lack the desire to go out there and do it yourself. And then, see if you can do it.
If you know it’s something you can do, then do it.
If it’s something you might need help with, then make a list and find people you can delegate that task to.
This will make it easier for you to move forward in your ministry. Always count the cost before leaning on someone else to build or help you with things you could learn to do yourself.