What To Expect When Building A Youth Ministry

I could sense the frustration coming from her voice. “No one is showing up to the program,” I asked her to explain, and she told me that it had been three weeks and only one girl had been attending her new middle school program. I didn’t want to minimize her feelings because I had been there before. There have been moments in my ministry career, whether it was starting in a new parish or initiating a program where my expectations and goals didn’t meet reality.

When it comes to building a youth ministry, one of the most difficult challenges is overcoming the first few years. It’s in those years when you need to establish a foundation, build clear systems, and embrace change. I work with a lot of new youth ministers through the MYM New Youth Minister Cohort, and this is a common thread in our conversations. If you are new, starting out or making a considerable change, remember:

BUILDING A HEALTHY AND SUSTAINABLE MINISTRY TAKES TIME

I’ve seen youth ministries hit their goals within the first year, and for other leaders, it takes several years. Other factors come into play. Some of them are in our control, while others we have to learn how to work with, such as the:

• Past experience of youth ministry. If there has not been a youth ministry before this person or if it was highly dysfunctional, there is a lot of culture change that needs to take place, and that is very intensive.
• Health of formation at the parish. If you have a formational structure for children and adults, creating a system for teens should benefit because there is a foundation and future in place for them to grow.
• Functionality in the parish office. If the parish staff is overworked or dysfunctional, it does not matter how dynamic of a youth minister you have in place. As Peter Drucker, management guru is famous for saying, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

If these areas, and others, are not in place, then it’s going to delay how quickly you reach your goals.

YOU NEED A TEAM TO HELP YOU DO, DREAM AND NETWORK

It does not matter how much experience you have under your belt, if you take on the responsibility of building and leading a ministry on your own, you will burn out. Leadership only gets lonely when you do not invite others to be a part of the journey. During your first few months, you need to focus on building relationships with potential leaders. If you are not sure where to start:

• Ask your pastor, coworkers, parents, and teens for a list of people they think would be essential for your ministry.
• Schedule times to meet with those individuals.
• Share the vision and invite them to contribute to your ideas.

If you have an excellent connection, ask them to be a part of building the program. Do not get frustrated if you do not find the right people immediately. Relationships that need trust take time, and you might discover halfway into your year that you do not have the right people. Be honest if there isn’t a proper fit, thank them for what they’ve done, but don’t be afraid to move on because a bad fit will be harder to correct down the line once things get moving.

YOU WON’T KNOW WHAT YOU NEED UNTIL YOU TEST WHAT YOU HAVE

God will provide. You might not have everything you need right away, but you will have enough to get started. Before you start signing up for programs, building a calendar, and creating goals, make sure you:

• Know your budget and the expectations behind it
• Understand the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of your current ministry
• Learn the systems and structures that impact your ministry (e.g., registration, databases, etc.)

This truth takes time to figure out, and while there might be expectations to produce fruit quickly, you need to remember what Jesus tells us in Luke:

Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion? Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work, the onlookers should laugh at him and say, ‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’ – Luke 14:28-30

There are things we need to put in place before building a healthy ministry. If you are looking to hire a youth minister, remember that no matter how talented that person it’s going to be a process to make sure he or she is set up for success. If you are a youth minister, don’t be afraid to preach patience and put together a plan, with goals and timelines. The more you can communicate an idea, the more buy-in you’ll have from leadership.

And while it takes time to build a healthy ministry, there is still plenty of opportunity for life change to occur and great things to happen. Continue to trust God and remember He’s got you right where He needs you.

What have you learned in your first few years of youth ministry?

If you need help assessing your ministry and where you want to take it please check out our Youth Ministry Assessment Tool.

MYM Assessment Tool