Sorry it's been spurratic bloggers!
This past weekend's retreat was great! thanks goes out to the team that I work with both students and leaders who made it what it was. A great moment came last thursday when I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to stop trying to perfect everything and just trust Him. Spent the weekend doing just that.
Something I've been thinking about lately is the phrase "how's it going?".
I think I'm going to stop asking people this unless I really have the time. For many of us (myself included), it's a standard greeting to validate someone's presence and say "I'm glad to see you", but in reality, when we say it to eachother, it's more fake than anything.
What does this have to do with our student ministries?
EVERYTHING
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
It's not OK.
Today I watched a child fall flat on his face.
It's not that I didn't want to help him or that I was hoping he'd fall, like we often do while watching stunts... I just wasn't there to catch him.
As his mom came up behind him, I kept hearing her repeat "It's okay, It's okay".
For the most part, when kids fall, they're fine. I have a two year old. I know this well...
But for many kids in our ministries, they fell and it wasn't okay.
Are any of the kids you know coming to mind yet?
Too often, we overlook hurts and habits that our kids are stuck in; assuming they'll be okay.
And they won't. The wounds that they collect through life will turn into scars and will leave marks that will haunt them.
That is-- unless we help them deal with it.
Some of your kids need to be told that it wasn't okay for someone to abuse them.
Others need to be told that although God has forgiven the things that they regret, they need to talk it out with someone in order to heal.
And still, others need to hear directly from you that you made a mistake and it's not okay that you did or said something that hurt them.
And it's not OK for issues like that to be overlooked.
When your kids fall, its ok for them to cry for a while. But then, it's up to you to walk through life's problems with them.
Because that is what Jesus Christ is calling us to do.
It's not that I didn't want to help him or that I was hoping he'd fall, like we often do while watching stunts... I just wasn't there to catch him.
As his mom came up behind him, I kept hearing her repeat "It's okay, It's okay".
For the most part, when kids fall, they're fine. I have a two year old. I know this well...
But for many kids in our ministries, they fell and it wasn't okay.
Are any of the kids you know coming to mind yet?
Too often, we overlook hurts and habits that our kids are stuck in; assuming they'll be okay.
And they won't. The wounds that they collect through life will turn into scars and will leave marks that will haunt them.
That is-- unless we help them deal with it.
Some of your kids need to be told that it wasn't okay for someone to abuse them.
Others need to be told that although God has forgiven the things that they regret, they need to talk it out with someone in order to heal.
And still, others need to hear directly from you that you made a mistake and it's not okay that you did or said something that hurt them.
And it's not OK for issues like that to be overlooked.
When your kids fall, its ok for them to cry for a while. But then, it's up to you to walk through life's problems with them.
Because that is what Jesus Christ is calling us to do.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Success
Success
How do you measure success in youth ministry?
Typically, it seems to be measured in differing aspects…
- 50 kids attended the evening session… counting the toddlers of the
volunteers
- 10 community kids showed up
- The girls stopped texting during the lesson.
- Little johnny discovered deodorant
- Nobody broke bones or limbs. WIN!
- 2 kids got saved at the retreat
- 120 kids are involved on a regular basis.
Each of these items in their own way could be considered a success… but how exactly would you rate the success of the ministry that you are a part of?
Often times, I find our youth ministries playing the numbers game. The whole idea came out of the late 80s and has been rampant ever since—that a good church is a growing church and a growing church is filled with hundreds and thousands of people. You can relate this same mindset to the youth ministry that you run and your local youth centre. I’ve even had a few friends who felt the pressure to play by the game. Numbers are recorded weekly and the tone of the comments are usually determined by the higher or lower score. If you are in a position like this right now, my condolences.
But do you ever rate the success of your ministry on the number of kids who come through the doors of your workplace?
Other times, success is based upon the number of kids who get saved throughout your year.
In the past year in our student ministries, 3 of our students publically made a first time stand for Christ. A few junior high's got saved for the 13th time. Each student had spent over a year in our ministry and made the choice that they wanted to be followers of Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord.
But is that how we measure how successful we are in our ministries?
Sometimes, success could be measured by the number of leaders are serving within your context.
We currently have 10 student leaders and 15 adult leaders serving within our student ministries.
Is that how you measure how successful you are as a leader?
In any of these areas, you can agree or disagree of how valid or weighty each aspect is to the success of your ministry, but when it’s all said and done, the only aspect I can truly say is of my own effort is if I have done what God has asked me to do in the place in which He has called me to.
Every other success belongs to God and the blessing and responsiblity should be counted as such.
So, are you being faithful to God and His Word in leading the ministry you are a part of?
How do you measure success in youth ministry?
Typically, it seems to be measured in differing aspects…
- 50 kids attended the evening session… counting the toddlers of the
volunteers
- 10 community kids showed up
- The girls stopped texting during the lesson.
- Little johnny discovered deodorant
- Nobody broke bones or limbs. WIN!
- 2 kids got saved at the retreat
- 120 kids are involved on a regular basis.
Each of these items in their own way could be considered a success… but how exactly would you rate the success of the ministry that you are a part of?
Often times, I find our youth ministries playing the numbers game. The whole idea came out of the late 80s and has been rampant ever since—that a good church is a growing church and a growing church is filled with hundreds and thousands of people. You can relate this same mindset to the youth ministry that you run and your local youth centre. I’ve even had a few friends who felt the pressure to play by the game. Numbers are recorded weekly and the tone of the comments are usually determined by the higher or lower score. If you are in a position like this right now, my condolences.
But do you ever rate the success of your ministry on the number of kids who come through the doors of your workplace?
Other times, success is based upon the number of kids who get saved throughout your year.
In the past year in our student ministries, 3 of our students publically made a first time stand for Christ. A few junior high's got saved for the 13th time. Each student had spent over a year in our ministry and made the choice that they wanted to be followers of Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord.
But is that how we measure how successful we are in our ministries?
Sometimes, success could be measured by the number of leaders are serving within your context.
We currently have 10 student leaders and 15 adult leaders serving within our student ministries.
Is that how you measure how successful you are as a leader?
In any of these areas, you can agree or disagree of how valid or weighty each aspect is to the success of your ministry, but when it’s all said and done, the only aspect I can truly say is of my own effort is if I have done what God has asked me to do in the place in which He has called me to.
Every other success belongs to God and the blessing and responsiblity should be counted as such.
So, are you being faithful to God and His Word in leading the ministry you are a part of?
Saturday, January 1, 2011
refuel and refresh
just spent a week resting and visiting family. as i look forward to january (one of the heaviest months of the year in terms of workload), I'm glad that i took a solid week to rest and refresh myself. In a few days, i'll be hitting the ground running and you'll find an update every thursday morning. Looking forward to another year with you!
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