Tag Archives: vision

Six Roles of a Relational Youth Worker

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I loved the movie Battleship. What? You did too? I think that’s great. Not surprising, there’s so many of us. For the few of you who haven’t seen this masterpiece, lemme give you a quick breakdown. The movie takes a fantastic board game, adds a few underachieving dudes who never have their shirts on, and solid dialog only a fifth grader could follow. In case this isn’t enough for a blockbuster hit, they throw aliens into the mix. Perfect, right? I know.

Anyhow, near the end of the movie, humanity’s hope has fading fast. All the ships are destroyed and the heroes are scattered (but still shirtless, so they have that going for them). BUT WAIT, they have a ship: only it is ancient and decommissioned. BUT WAIT, it’s a battleship (hence the clever title) and maybe it could do some damage to the super awesome aliens. BUT WAIT, they have no crew! Except now they do because all these 80 year old dudes show up and they used to drive this thing.

So at this point, I actually shed a tear (no lies). All these old guys had pride in their ship and they knew what to do. The AIMER guy runs to aim the guns. The LOADER guy goes and loads the “ordinance” (you civilians call them bombs). The ENGINEER goes and starts the engines. They even had one guy running around to make sure the bathrooms had TP– for those embarrassing after moments when you’ve soiled yourself in the heat of battle (it happens, trust me).

Truth be told, I really did love the part where everyone knew their part and could play their roles properly.

The more you know, the more you can minister. While this definitely isn’t an exhaustive list, here are six roles of a relational youth worker:

FRIEND :: present in their life
Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. (1 Thess 2:7-8)

There’s a lot happening in this scripture, but look to the words CARE, LOVED, SHARED, and LIVES. Friends are committed to one another. Our youth ministry programs are never about the programs, they are about making connections with people.

PARENT :: sympathetic for their growth
My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you…
(Galatians 4:19)

A parent is willing to take on pain for the gain of their kids. Parents are concerned about the health and growth of their kids. They make sacrifices to ensure the best possible environment for thei children.

LEADER :: vision for their future
Where there is no vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18, KJV)

Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity… (Hebrews 6:1)

It’s not enough to be WITH students and to really WANT them to grow. We must also lead. Leadership means seeing a PATH for their future growth and never giving up on their POTENTIAL to become something great.

SHEPHERD :: passionate for their needs
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. (Acts 20:28)

Shepherds are like small business owners … they are fully focused and invested. They authentically care about the needs of their students because thy care.

DEAN :: compassionate for their correction
Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. (Titus 2:6)

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. (2 Timothy 4:2-3)

We need to discipline the people we are discipling. We need to be ready to correct and rebuke…and to encourage. We must do these things carefully and with great patience. Impulsive flashes of anger doesn’t count as discipline. Discipline is self controlled.

DISCIPLE :: authentic follower of Jesus
The priests did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord?’ Those who deal with the law did not know me; the leaders rebelled against me. The prophets prophesied by Baal. (Jeremiah 2:8)

Nothing we do in ministry is worth it if we aren’t connected to the Creator of the universe. We must continually be looking for God, knowing him deeply, following him diligently, and speaking his truth.

What about you, what do you think is missing from this list? What is another role of a relational youth worker? Drop a note in the comments below.

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my vision for our ministry (part III)

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(in case you missed part I, you can get that here and if you missed part II, you can get that here)

The THRID thing I SEE and would like to SEE MORE OFTEN:

WE NEED TO GO AFTER GOD’S PURPOSE FOR OUR MINISTRY.

our ministry exists to
REACH non-believing students, to help them
CONNECT with other Christians, to help them
GROW in their faith, to challenge the growing to
DISCOVER their ministry and
HONOR God with their life.

These purposes are at the heart of our ministry. Everything we do ought to reflect or express one of these purposes. More activity isn’t our goal. We need to be moving in concert with the Holy Spirit as he builds the kingdom of God.

While our ministry needs to have a focus on evangelism and worship (see part II), we can’t loose sight of the other things God is calling us to be and do. Fellowship, discipleship, and ministry are also important. We must “take ground” in these areas as well.

So here’s my vision for our ministry:

PASSIONATE FRIENDS WHO LOVE GOD AND STUDENTS
OUR “FRONT DOOR” PROGRAM NEEDS TO BE MORE AWESOME.
WE NEED TO GO AFTER GOD’S PURPOSE FOR OUR MINISTRY.

The first part is about the kind of leadership team we need to be. The second is focused on the ministry we need to build. The third reflects the overall balance we can’t forget.

 

 

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my vision for our ministry (part II)

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(in case you missed part I, you can get that here)

The SECOND thing I SEE and would like to SEE MORE OFTEN:

OUR “FRONT DOOR” PROGRAM NEEDS TO BE MORE AWESOME.

OK, so that’s not exactly clear as a stand alone statement.

When I say “front door program,” I’m talking about the place in our ministry where outsiders can comfortably come get a taste of Jesus and our church. For us, this is our weekend service.

This part of my vision is all about evangelism. We need to reach our student community, and this goal must be at the forefront of everything we’re doing for a couple of reasons.

Not only is evangelism a mandate for the church, but our ministry in particular isn’t doing a great job with this (yet). We have come SO FAR in the last year and a half, but we still have lot’s of room for improvement.

  • We need to hit it out of the park on a consistent basis.
  • We need to create anticipation and enthusiasm.
  • We need more student involvement.
  • We need to create a culture among our students that looks outward.

When I was in high school, I was never ashamed to invite my friends to church. I made it a goal to never come alone, and I could bring someone in full confidence that he’d have a great experience. Before my current ministry at Mariners Church, I worked at Saddleback Church with Doug Fields for 12 years, and we always had a great “front door” program.

In my next post, I’ll tackle the third and final part of our vision. In the mean time, drop a comment below: do you feel your ministry is evangelistic enough?

 

 

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my vision for our ministry

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When it comes to vision and ministry, I’ve got two observations:

  • First, vision is important, probably even essential.
  • Second, vision is often overvalued. Vision becomes too important when big ideas rarely translate into action. Almost anyone can have an idea…

That being said, here’s the big picture for our student ministry. It’s in three parts, which is biblical or baptist, I’m not sure which.

The FIRST thing I SEE and would like to SEE MORE OFTEN:

PASSIONATE FRIENDS WHO LOVE GOD AND STUDENTS

Our leadership team must be PASSIONATE. This can only come from within. It’s a personal choice to pick up the cross set before us.

Our leadership team must be FRIENDS. Friends truly love one another. They aren’t just in it to meet a bottom line or chase after success. Friends care for one another ALONGSIDE of caring for the ministry. It’s not enough to be polite. It’s not enough to crank out great ministry. We must also be compassionately caring for one another.

Our leadership team must LOVE GOD. It’s a total drag that this isn’t a “given” in ministry. Spiritual leaders are often the ones who are the most spiritually dry. I see a team were this isn’t true.

Our leadership team must LOVE STUDENTS. Some youth workers love speaking more than they love the people they are speaking to. Some youth ministry leaders aren’t excited about connecting directly with students.  In our ministry, I’m looking to build a team that genuinely loves to spend time building relationships with students–in practice, not just in theory.

 

Check out the next posts for parts two and three of my vision for our ministry.

 

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