
When Ministry Formulas Don't Work
From On the Road to No Place Left by Pheaney
April 1, 2026 · 26 min · Season 9 · Episode 12
About this episode
The episode discusses the dangers of reductionism in ministry and the importance of patience in disciple-making.
Chuck Wood II and I talk about the dangers of being a reductionist in ministry. Read the article we discussed here: https://pheaney.substack.com/p/beware-reductionism Quotes: The trap we can fall into is being too reductionistic with ministry and how we go about it, thinking if I just follow a few easy steps: Boom, we're going to turn out a movement. Or if I do A, B, and C, then I'm going to have a new healthy disciple. We need to just be aware that that's not really how life works, not even how the kingdom works, if we read the Gospels and we read Acts. If you're struggling with the messiness and long-term timeline that this takes, go and look into the mirror and ask the question, how is God so patient with me? And when you come to that answer, then you will extend that same patience, that same endurance and persistence in your disciple-making ministry as well. Season 9: On Pioneering/How to Stick, Episode 12 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pheaney.substack.com
People in this episode
Host: Pheaney
Guest: Chuck Wood II
Topics covered
- ministry
- reductionism
- discipleship
- patience
- kingdom of God
Keywords
- ministry formulas
- reductionism
- discipleship
- patience
- kingdom
- Gospels
- Acts
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: pheaney.substack.com
Books & works: Gospels, Acts
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