Local church youth workers want to see things grow. They want the number of students to grow, the spiritual depth of students to grow, and their ministry to grow in effectiveness. At times, we forget about the main goal in exchange for the whirlwind. Weekly programming, over-committed students and families, personal obligations, the ministry role, and a host of life issues, can cause us to lose steam on the basics.
You can do little practical things to recharge – take a nap, schedule a day off, get coffee with a friend, talk with your pastor or boss, or catch up on something you enjoy that’s not related to ministry.
Or try these four tips to help you regain foothold on the direction of your ministry and energy to serve well. None of these cost money and all will help move things forward while, hopefully, alleviating your stress.
1. Be The Architect Of Your Ministry
You are the leader that God has called to this place for this season. Don’t take your role lightly. Help move the mission forward by documenting your vision for the ministry. Write out the why, the what, and the how:
- Why are you leading student ministry in your church? Get crystal clear on this. Having one line that is easy to remember is great.
- What strategies will you use to help accomplish the reason you are here? What programs, plans, and actions will you take to move toward the goal?
- How you will accomplish these plans? How can others help you? How will volunteers serve, interact, live life with students? How will people get involved? How will you lead effectively?
You, as leader, need to find time to be the architect of your ministry. Write down a “perfect world” scenario, and then, with a humble heart and open hands, start thinking and praying about what it would take to make it happen.
2. Follow Up With People
Follow-up is one of the best tools you have in ministry. Create a system for following up with students who visit, with families that you meet, and people who offer to help you. Take time to think about who has recently said, “If you need anything, let me know” and reach out to them. Invite them to help with a special project or role. The old 80/20 rule applies here: Spending a little time following up, inviting students, and incorporating adults, will provide 80% of the energy and excitement. As students connect, our energy and inspiration for the ministry grows.
3. Connect Students to Other Adults
Work to get students connected to a web of adults. As you create systems for this to happen, the other adults begin to shoulder the load of ministry to the next generation. It’s no longer one voice speaking to them, but many. Work to partner and align yourself with families and parents so you can be on the same team. Invite adults into your ministry program to be special guests or help with special one-time projects. Work to get students involved in other areas of ministry with adults from within the church.
4. Create a Prayer Plan
Don’t try to do student ministry alone. You must rely on God’s strength in your life to have any impact. Apart from Jesus, you can do nothing, so remain in Him. Develop a prayer plan for yourself. Invite others to join you and set up a simple email distribution list. Get five or six people to commit to being prayer partners and send requests for them to pray as needs arise. Call on the congregation to pray for your students. Set up a prayer calendar or other system for each student to be prayed for on a certain day of the month. Be intentional in prayer.
STUDENT MINISTRY RESOURCE
Here’s a resource aimed at helping youth workers grow in leadership and ministry. STUDENT MINISTRY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND DEVOTIONS is a collection of 13 one-page printable sheets (or links) for local church youth workers. Each one, available for immediate download, contains a short thought, a scripture, a quote, action steps, reflection questions, and a prayer. If it would be helpful, we’d be honored to have you purchase this resource to use it with your own church team. You can download a free sample or purchase it here.
You can also purchase this as part of our ministry bundle – which includes every digital resource we offer,
I write with church leaders in mind and I would be honored to have you join me by subscribing to the blog. You can take a look at the top posts here. The posts are categorized: pastors, worship leaders, student ministry and kids ministry. In case we’re just meeting, here’s little about my life.
OTHER POSTS:
Five Ways Senior Pastors Make A Difference In Student Ministry
How To Combat Student Busyness with Intentional Leadership