She'd been sitting in our church for years. Every Sunday. Friendly. Consistent. Faithful. And we had no idea what she could do. Until we asked. The Asset Mapping Event Two years ago, we hosted our first asset mapping event—a two-hour session to discover the gifts, skills, and experiences God had already placed in our congregation. We invited about 25 people and used the Four Key Relationships framework from "When Helping Hurts": relationship with God, self, others, and

You've done the research. You've gathered demographic data. You've challenged your assumptions. Now you're staring at a list of 15-20 potential partnerships. Or, maybe you have multiple partnerships in place that may or may not be the right fit for your church. Schools that need tutors. Food pantries that need volunteers. Senior centers requesting help. Nonprofits seeking church partners. Every single one is legitimate. Every need is real. And you can't do all of them.

I was a couple months into my new role when I spent money on a demographic report that would alter our outreach strategy. The church was already doing excellent outreach work—homeless shelters downtown, food distributions, tutoring programs across the city. The heart for the marginalized was real and the commitment evident. But I couldn't shake a question: What about the people right around us? Were we driving past needs in our own neighborhood to serve needs 20 minutes