Being a Kingdom Connector
In the pursuit of seeing every people and every place reached with the Gospel, we are going to meet a lot of people. A LOT OF PEOPLE. While we don’t have a personal responsibility for every person we meet, we have the opportunity to impact each person God places along our path.
The modern term we have given to someone who is gifted at meeting people, building relationships, and making connections is a “networker.” Usually, the focus is on building up one’s own career as the desired result of being an effective networker. As a follower of Jesus, our focus should be on building His Kingdom. Do we see any examples in Scripture of people making connections and building relationships? Instead of being a networker for self, do we see anyone being a Kingdom Connector?
Like any skill, we never want to elevate it beyond its place, but there are some overlooked examples of networking in the Bible. I also believe that being a Kingdom Connector is an overlooked skill of a Sent One. Hear me clearly: We can’t replace seed sowing with networking and expect to see the fruit of new disciples. But I do think we can accelerate what God is doing through some simple skills that will help us build Kingdom connections.
I want to take a look at one biblical character to build my case, although I think you can see glimpses of this type of thing in other places in Scripture.
Barnabas, the Kingdom Connector
He is first introduced to us in Scripture as a Son of Encouragement. (Acts 4:36)
When Saul came back from Damascus as a new disciple, no one wanted to risk being with him for fear his conversion wasn’t real. It was Barnabas who made the connection. (Acts 11:26-30).
When God did an amazing work through everyday believers to birth the church in Antioch, it was Barnabas that the Jerusalem church sent to the new church (Acts 11:19-24). We know he had some personal connections to Cyprus, where some of the Sent Ones who started the Antioch church were from, so it was a natural connection for him to make. (Acts 4:36)
After a little time in Antioch, Barnabas went to find Saul and brought him back to labor with him in the church there. I would guess that, because Barnabas knew Saul, he also knew his gifts and knew that the church in Antioch needed just such a person. (Acts 11:25-26)
At the start of the first missionary journey, Barnabas is listed before Saul in the story (Acts 13:2,7). But after Saul’s name changed to Paul, Barnabas is always listed second. I think he was willing to take a step back to let a new leader emerge.
Barnabas insisted on giving John Mark a second attempt as a Sent One, even though he had deserted them on their first missionary journey (Acts 13:13). When Paul disagreed, Barnabas felt so strongly about John Mark that he parted company with Paul to take his own journey. (Acts 15:36-39)
What would the ministry of Paul have looked like if Barnabas had not introduced him to the Jerusalem church? How would Paul’s life have looked if Barnabas had not seen his potential and brought him to the church at Antioch? They were sent out by the Holy Spirit together from the church in Antioch. What if Barnabas had not stepped out of the way as Paul became the gifted leader we see in Scripture? If we are honest, we probably all want to be Paul in the biblical narrative, but Barnabas plays about as important of a role in Paul’s life, humanly speaking, as anyone can. Are we willing to be a Barnabas?
What does this look like practically? Here are some personal best practices I have found helpful in my attempts to connect people for the Kingdom.
Get back to people.
Relationship precedes strategy, and if we are not responding to people as they engage us, we are burning relationship bridges before they get built. Please hear what I am NOT saying: You do not need to have your phone on you all the time, instantly checking every notification. In fact, I have found most people who do that are actually terrible at getting back to others. I am saying we should value interpersonal communication. Start with the person in front of you, of course, but if you have chosen to use messaging services, actually respond in a reasonable amount of time.
When someone comes to your mind, reach out to them.
We have some great articles and podcasts on Sent Ones about listening to God’s voice (Check out this one and this one.). I’m still a rookie in this area. But when someone comes to mind, I take that as a sign from God that He wanted me to think of them. At a minimum, you should say a prayer for that person, but a best practice is to take a minute and send them a message. Spontaneously letting someone know you were thinking of them and asking them how they are doing is one of the best ways to be a son (or daughter) of encouragement, like Barnabas.
Introduce people regularly and generously.
We fear that WE may lose out on opportunities when we introduce two people, but networks grow stronger the more connections there are. For example, if I know friend A and friend B, there are two connections, me to each person. If I introduce them, there are now three connections, and while I can’t control that connection, the network is stronger. Multiply this way of thinking out to 100 or 1,000 people and think about how many additional connections there could be. If we give away connections and introduce people, the strength of the Kingdom network expands. Remember that we are trying to build God’s Kingdom, not our own, so make connections as often as possible.
Take people along with you.
This is so obvious that I missed it in my first draft of this article. What did Barnabas do? He took Paul along to Antioch. Paul followed that same behavior by taking Silas and then Timothy on his second journey. I can’t take a lot of credit for one of my main disciples who is now a Sent One in Southeast Asia, but one thing I think I did well was get a lot of time with him training, sharing the Gospel, and in gatherings of disciples. Where are you going this week or this month? Who can you take along with you?
When you make connections, practice the “Double Opt-In” introduction.
What do I mean by that?
A Single Opt-In sounds like this: “Hey __, I know someone looking for training who lives close to you; could you meet with him? Here’s his number: ###-###-####.” The person receiving that message didn’t get the chance to opt in. My experience is that this type of introduction very rarely leads to any connection.
A Double Opt-In* sounds like this: “Hey __, I know someone looking for training who lives close to you. Would you be interested in meeting?” Wait for a positive response, which you usually get, then make the introduction.
It’s a small, simple shift, but I have seen the connections I attempt to make yield way more fruit by getting an ‘opt-in’ from both parties.
A real-life story to illustrate: C&D from Southeast Asia asked if I knew anyone in Chicago who could help train their friend R. I reached out to my friend M who was starting a house church there. After asking both R and M if they would like to meet, I made the introduction. R has been a part of M’s family’s house church for months now and is pursuing the lost and getting trained at the same time.
To see the Kingdom advance on multiple fronts at home and abroad will take an army of like-minded Sent Ones pursuing the lost, pursuing simple discipleship, and pursuing reproducing churches and leaders. No one person can do that, so it is essential that we become Kingdom Connectors, making and building relational connections as the Lord leads.
*I learned this term and technique from Jordan Harbinger. I would not recommend his podcast, but I would recommend this networking class, which you can find here: https://courses.jordanharbinger.com/courses/6-minute-networking