Growing Your Ministry Numbers

It’s that pressure that plagues every youth minister.  It’s the question we ask; yet, hate to answer.  The question, “How many teens attend your ministry?” is seen as a youth ministry faux pas.

Why does that question urk us?  It’s because that number can be used to judge our effectiveness.  Numbers do have their place and while no number will satisfy us what we are really after is growth.  Instead of worrying about the bottom line we need to focus on:

How Our Numbers Are Growing

If your numbers are growing it means your ministry is growing.  And if you want those numbers to grow at a healthy rate than you need to make sure you:

BUILD A PROGRAM THAT IS SCALABLE

If you want your numbers to grow then you need your program to grow with it.  That means looking for a structure that works with 5 people and 500.  My recommendation is small groups.  Small groups can be multiplied and duplicated. (For more on small groups click HERE)

RECRUIT BIG PICTURE INDIVIDUALS

The more teens you recruit the more adults you will need.  To help you grow and keep pace you need men and women who are willing to:

• Think outside the box.

• Recruit and invest in new leaders.

• Invest time and energy into unloading your plate.

When you have a team that’s focused on big picture growth it expands your capacity to reach more. (For more on recruiting the right people click HERE)

And once you have those in place don’t be afraid to:

START SMALL

Growth takes time and to have a healthy foundation you need to start small.  Again find people who are committed to the big picture.  This includes teens to participate in the ministry as well as the adults.

Take a preplanned amount of time to test it out before you take it to the next level.  Evaluate, and make adjustments to help the ministry grow.

CREATE ADVOCATES

You might be the champion of the movement you are trying to create but other people should share your vision.  Give people permission to invest, invite and share with others what you are trying to do.

Reward people who are going out and getting others involved.  You’ll create a positive culture where people will want to join.

EMBRACE QUALITY AND EXCELLENCE

If you want teens to come back and continue to come back you need to provide them with a quality experience.  That means:

• Clean and welcoming environments.

• Preparing in advance to get out any kinks.

• Communicating clearly so everyone’s on the same page.

When you embrace quality you show your students that their presence is valuable to you.

MAKE YOUR INVITATION CLEAR AND CONSISTENT

Never assume that an invitation will only work once.  If you want people to come back continuously to your ministry you need to communicate with them regularly.

Don’t be afraid to engage social media, text, email and send out carrier pigeons.  While you don’t want to be obnoxious you definitely want to make sure people know that they are welcome anytime.

KEEP THE FOCUS ON RELATIONSHIPS

A growing ministry is one focused on relationships.  Doesn’t matter the format you use for your ministry you need to make sure the next generation is forming community with one another and other adults.  If the relationships that form are authentic and personal you’ll see students itching to come back each week.

Growing a program takes time.  Along the way make sure you are setting goals and tracking your progress.  As you see your ministry grow the idea of sharing your numbers will no longer be an issue.