This past Sunday we shut everything down with our youth ministry. It messed with the momentum, it frustrated a few parents and teens, but the reason wasn’t due to snow or a holiday weekend. We took the time to focus on leadership. We invited our team for some food, prayer, reflection, and sharing. It was a great experience the majority of our team was there, and I heard a few of them say, “I’m glad we did this.” You might wonder:
How did you pull it off?
If you are going to develop healthy leaders in your ministry it’s going to take some time and a lot of investment. Youth ministries that last, the ones that thrive and do what they are set out to do not only have a clear vision for what they want from the next generation but they:
HAVE A CLEAR VISION FOR THEIR LEADERS
We spent time defining for our team what it means to be a healthy leader. In other words, we told them what we expected out of our volunteers serving in youth ministry. For us that’s men and women who are:
- Rooted in Christ
- Empathetic towards teens and parents
- Committed to growing
- Collaborative with one another, teens and their families
- Joyful
Are there more characteristics to a leader? Sure, but we wanted to focus on these five because we felt they lay out a great foundation. How did we come up with these characteristics? I sat down with my strategic leadership team and we had a discussion around the men and women who have influenced our own faith. We listed qualities of a disciple of Christ and then we looked for common themes. We narrowed it down to these five and shared it with our volunteers.
SHOW THEM HOW YOU ARE GOING TO HELP THEM ACHIEVE THAT VISION
In the training, we took the time to breakdown a few of the characteristics. We had group time for them to evaluate where they were in regards to each one. We explained what resources were available to them in the church and how they can empower each other to keep growing.
Not only do you need to set a standard and expectations for your team, but you need to give them a path. Take the time to not only tell them what you want to do but how you are going to help them achieve that. They’ll be more likely to follow through knowing that they don’t have to figure it out on their own.
MAKE A TANGIBLE INVESTMENT IN THE VISION
We made the event nice. We got sandwiches, salad, and some nice refreshments. We put out tables, covered them with butcher paper and wrote our values and scripture that supported it. My strategic leadership team and I spent time planning how it would flow and what it would look like. We wanted to make sure our team knew it wasn’t an afterthought.
I don’t know what your budget looks like but if possible reallocate your funds towards investing in your team. That includes books, meals, workshops, and conferences. Don’t be afraid to pour into the adults in your ministry because they’ll learn to take that and pour it into the students they serve.
The men and women serving in your ministry got involved for a variety of reasons. Most of those reasons are good, but you can show them how there is something more. Start with a picture of what it means to be a healthy leader. Give them the tools and commit to walking with them. You’ll find yourself growing with them and seeing God continuously bless the work you are trying to do.
What are some ways that you are investing in your team?
Want to learn more about developing leaders? Check out the MYM Huddle Developing A Dynamic Team Of Volunteers.
Check Out The Huddle