Creating a Unified Team

Ministry works better when we approach it from a team aspect. One person cannot hope to accomplish ministry at the same level of excellence as a team of people working in concert with one another. In ministry, I have served on some good teams and not so good teams. Here are a few lessons that I’ve learned:

People Who Are Informed Are Less Likely to Gossip-Often times ignorance can create a breeding ground for gossip. Also, it is a team’s worst enemy. When you keep people in the dark, sometimes their mind plays tricks on them. They read into a situation or conversation, and the lack of communication creates gaps they gladly fill with their own speculation or a pain. If you want to create a unified team, keep people in the loop! When you communicate well, you crush the early growth of gossip.

People Who Have Great History Have Unity-If you have a few key volunteers who have been with you since the beginning, you know how sweet it is to be with them, serve alongside them, and do the hard work of ministry together. You literally and figuratively have each other’s backs, and unity is your middle name. On the other hand, when you have high a turnover or a collection of young, immature, or inexperienced youth workers serving with you the total opposite can happen. Work hard to keep them around for the long term.

People Who Laugh Rarely Turn on Each Other - I’ve noticed again and again in my years of ministry that when people laugh together, they love each other more. When you are in a relationship with your people-great stories, memories and inside jokes-the stronger you are together. When was the last time you spent some time just playing with your team? When was the last time you had an award ceremony and gave out awards for everyone? Laughing together creates unity quickly. 

3 Practical Ways to Do Student Ministry Right

Youth ministry can be a challenging but rewarding experience. To make the most of this calling here are some practical ways you can do that ministry.

1) Talk through the calendar before you go public with it.
One of the biggest things I learned at my second church was making sure you clear your ministry calendar with your family calendar first. This will save you a ton of headaches as you navigate little league, board meetings, and  those  pesky things like birthdays and anniversaries. The 24 hours it takes to complete this step are critical to success in youth ministry life. Trust me.

2) Establish some (mostly) non-negotiable family boundaries.
What night is your date night? How many nights of the week are you out doing church stuff? When is the best time for the family to be all together? There has to be grace and flexibility on a regular basis, but outline what are the non-negotiables and create some boundaries for yourself in ministry. If you skip this step, you’re going to say “yes” to everything and “no” to your family. (my family used to call me "Mr.-meets-a-lot")

3) Build a team and empower them to help carry the load.
Youth ministry is bigger than one person—if it’s all about you, prepare for burnout. You can hang on for a while, but while you hang on, you’ll also bottle-neck growth in your ministry and other leaders. You are cheating others out of the opportunity to become leaders if you micromanage your ministry. Empower others to take significant parts of the ministry so that you don't have to.

Building a Team of Veteran Volunteers

Every ministry has its fair share of transient leaders-those volunteers who serve for a year or 2 before moving on to another area of ministry. Older high school students who volunteer during their senior year before heading off to college and parents of junior highers who serve for a year or 2 while their child is in the ministry, are the two predominant transient leaders in many cultures.

While there’s certainly no “silver bullet” for creating a team of ministry veterans, there are some things that you can do to be successful at building a team of veteran volunteers.

Focus on relationships more than on formal training.

If relational ministry is the type of youth ministry we acknowledge is best, then it would make sense that a relational approach to building a leadership team would take the same approach.

Empower like crazy.

I believe in the power of giving ministry away. As long as it fits within your purpose/strategy/mission/vision…Go for it! If you are a leader of a ministry team working with youth and young adults view yourself more as coach and encourager instead of a ball-hogging quarterback.

Share life.

As your team grows this becomes harder to do, but I found that a good chunk of our veteran leaders have stuck around because of the friendships that we’ve formed outside the walls of the church and activities of the youth ministry.

You are a Professional

Quality leaders want to be a part of something they perceive as being somewhat professional. Doing background checks, having good training, having clear guidelines, having their backs, and having a clearly articulated and understandable mission and vision. These are the kinds of things that quality leaders look for and want to be a part of.

Healthy, veteran volunteer leadership teams don’t happen overnight. Be patient, intentional in your efforts, and don’t quit when the going gets tough. Building a team of veterans is hard work… But it might be the most important and most rewarding hard work you ever do!

Saying Thanks

Youth ministry programs can be very busy. This is especially so if you are a volunteer. It often feels as though you’re just moving from one activity to the next with hardly any time to catch your breath. With all this hustle and bustle of activity it is easy to forget  a simple “thank you” to the folks serving alongside you. My wife reminds me on a regular basis that it is always a good thing to say thank you and to apologize (but that’s another blog article for another time). Saying thank you to those that you work with can be a very powerful motivational tool that you cannot forget about, so here are a few tips on ways that you can thank people in special ways:

Say Thanks to Those Who Worked the Hardest.
In addition to a quick word of thanks, consider a hand-written note to those who gave their blood, sweat, and tears for this particular event. Keep the faithful happy and loved and they’ll serve you well for years to come. When you go the extra mile with the highly committed…they will likely go many more miles with your ministry!

Save Thanks to Those Who Usually Go Unnoticed.
The janitor who cleans the carpet after a 7th-grader spilled fruit punch. The church bus driver who has to navigate traffic while listening to your group sing One Direction songs at the top of their longs. The mom who slaved in the kitchen to bake goodies for your bake sale. When you remember the people so easily forgotten, it makes a huge impact. So think back over your event and think of people who are too often invisible and show them a little love.

Say Thanks for No Reason.
“No reason” thanks are the best. Say thanks as a surprise. Say thanks when it’s unexpected. Say “I noticed” when you see something that needs to be affirmed.

Make a list today of those you need to thank for this past school year. Keep a running list of the people who contribute this summer and make sure you say thanks to them, too.

I would end this article with a special thanks to you for your support by reading this blog.

THANK YOU!