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Last week was great… so, what happened this week?

May 2, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I seem to have discovered a pattern with my small group. Every once in a while, I’ll have a GREAT week with my group–they’ve opened up a ton, we’ve turned a new corner, decisions are made–I’m on a ministry high that week.

Then the next week totally falls flat.

This is a pattern that follows through almost every single time we have a great small group night. So, what the heck is causing it and how can I avoid it?

I think the biggest reason this happens is because there aren’t that many weeks that can be absolutely awesome. When one of those nights does happen, it stands so high above the rest that even if you compare a “good” night to it, the good night is going to be a letdown right after a great week.

Another reason could be that students recognize when a great week happens, so they don’t feel as much pressure to do the same thing the next week. They are the most critical factor in this whole process, so if they don’t participate as much, your next week isn’t going to be as awesome.

So how do we avoid the 2nd week letdown? I don’t know that it is completely avoidable. One of the things I had to do recently is go into the second week knowing that it probably wouldn’t be as great as the week before, and learn to accept that. Another thing is pray that the second week would be great despite an awesome week before. And last is prepare for the second week as if it will be as great as the week before.

What do you do to prepare for the week after an amazing week of ministry?

Filed Under: Encouragement, Small Groups, Youth Ministry

Helping Students Cross The Line

April 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I should have called this,” Helping Students JUMP Across The Line”. Last night towards the end of my high school small group, I asked my room full of 14 freshman high school guys to be totally honest with me and I asked, “Not counting small group last week or church over the weekend,  how many of them had read the Bible in the past week?”  I was shocked to see only three hands go up, and they were three of my students that if you asked me I would have guessed they would have been the three. I got every excuse under the sun, “I had sports”, “I had a lot of homework”, “I wasn’t feeling it this week”. The only excuse I didn’t get was that someone’s dog had eaten his Bible.

Though dismayed, I flashed back to my teen years and I probably would have answered the same way, BUT I wasn’t in a small group then, I wasn’t regularly  attending church, these guys do those things! I used this as a teaching moment with them to explain that just accepting Christ into your life is great, but you’ll never grow in your faith without having some regular quiet times and spending time reading (and understanding) your Bible. “But I go to church every week!” one of them told me. My answer was, “Going to church every week doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in the garage makes you a car.”

As student ministry leaders we need to realize that a student’s relationship with God is a personal decision, we can’t make it for them. But we can help them grow the relationship with God and their love of Jesus. It’s great to step across the line and accept Jesus into your life and become a Christian, but once that’s done you need to grow and strengthen the relationship. My entire lesson with these guys next week will be on this topic and how they can not just step across the line, but take a running head start and leap across the line.

Filed Under: Encouragement, Youth Ministry Tagged With: , , ,

Your Biggest Role Sometimes Is To Encourage

April 16, 2013 by Leave a Comment

As a student ministry small group leader, sometimes your biggest job is to be an encourager. We all need a little encouragement from time to time but your teen years are a time when you need a little more validation in your life. It’s a time when little problems can seem huge and a time when students are still trying to figure out who they are.

I had a student in my group who ran for ASB Vice-President at his high school and unfortunately he lost the election. This was a huge loss to him. I wanted to remind him that it’s better to have tried and failed than it is to fail to try. I was proud that he put himself out there and tried! Also, losing an election for ASB does not mean he is any less the great guy that he is. Maybe God has a bigger plan for him and he needs to not be tied down to ASB Vice-President. I’ve found that most of the time when God won’t give us what we want it’s because He has a bigger better plan for us. We just don’t know it yet.

Here’s some tips to help encourage students:

  • Be real. Be honest. Sometimes you need to tell someone something they might not want to hear.
  • Let that student know they are loved. Not just now in their disappointment but all the time.
  • I try to find some scripture that has to do with their situation. I don’t want to overwhelm them with scripture but I want to use this as a time to remind them to turn to their Bibles in good times and when life does not go their way.
  • Everyone needs to feel wanted and needed. This is a good time to remind them that God wants them and loves them, no matter what, unconditionally.
  • Realize there is power in presence. Sometimes just being there is encouraging.
  • Follow up. Don’t just make this a one-time thing. Wait a few days and follow-up with a text or phone call.

How would you feel encouraged? What would you like someone to do for you when you need encouragement? Well, whatever that is to you, do it for someone else.

Filed Under: Encouragement, Youth Ministry Tagged With: , , ,

Finding a Lesson in a Boot Cast

March 15, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I fractured my ankle and have been in a boot cast now for three weeks. One of the things I hate about this stupid boot cast is that it limits me on what I can do. Well, at first it did, now after three weeks I have discovered that I find new ways to get things done. It might take a little longer or take more effort but I can still do most things.

The first week I was really limited because it was awkward moving around with this thing. All I could think about was, wow this is going to be a long six weeks with my foot in this thing. After that first week I began finding ways to get stuff done without the boot cast getting in the way, I found ways to still get accomplished what I needed to without putting extra effort or strain on my ankle.

So what’s the point of this post today? Well this morning while I was out walking my dog I remembered the first day of the boot cast walking him and thinking what a hassle every simple task was. This morning it was no big deal, putting on the boot cast was just part of my routine. My God is bigger than this minor setback. He’s bigger than any major setback. This morning in my prayer time I thought of those who have way bigger physical limitations than just a temporary boot cast and once again in my prayer time I came back around to the fact that my life is blessed, even with minor setbacks I am truly blessed and thankful.

I’m not sure how yet but I’ll turn this into a lesson for students. I’ll use this to show them that there will always be roadblocks and bumps in the road, but God will get you around those and make you stronger in the process. What we see as problems, God sees as an opportunity.

Filed Under: Encouragement, Spriritual Life, Youth Ministry Tagged With: , , , ,

Creating a Fellowship Culture

January 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment

In our ministry, there is an awesome leader who is doing great things for the Kingdom. He has led his small group of 8th graders since the beginning of last year, and it has been amazing to watch the group as time passed. This leader is amazing at creating the type of culture where his guys truly know how to fellowship. These guys come from all over the place (different schools, different cities), but you would think they all grew up together.

This is the type of environment we should all be trying to create for our students. To use their leader’s words, those guys don’t have the “I’m just part of the group” mentality–they are brothers.

This is exactly what I wish my group could be. Granted, it’s a lot harder to create this type of culture when both my co-leader and I work on weekends, but it is still possible. We need to be more aware of opportunities to spend time with these guys, turning them from “part of the group” to brothers.

Filed Under: Cool stuff, Encouragement, Youth Ministry Tagged With: , , , , ,

What It’s All About

November 28, 2012 by 2 Comments

I’ve been having the guys in my high school small group give their testimonies about their lives and how Jesus has changed their life and where they think they are in  their walk with God. I usually have two give a testimony each week and so far we have had some pretty powerful messages from these guys. Last night I had one that was a short testimony but extremely powerful.

This was a student that has been in a group of nine and they have been a small group together for the past two years. What he told them was that in writing out his testimony he realized that he has not really given his life to Christ. He has really enjoyed being in a small group and would be spiritual during group time, but at school he has not been hanging out with the best influences. Then he added, “Tonight that all ends.” He wants a relationship with Jesus and he wants to pursue his faith and grow stronger in his faith.

And then my co-leader and I got to sit back and watch as the others in the group encouraged and loved on him and told him they are there for him. Not gonna lie, I have 16 freshman guys in my small group and sometimes I think I’m just spinning my wheels but last night reminded me why I do this and how powerful the Holy Spirit can be.

Filed Under: Encouragement, Spriritual Life Tagged With: , ,

God’s Timing

November 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment

God’s timing is perfect.

I’ve learned this time and time again, yet for some reason I still fight it. There are days when I think I know better. There are days that I think to myself, “This is the perfect timing,” but in reality, this is just my timing. I’m ignoring the fact that God has a perfect, unavoidable plan, and I’m ultimately trying to pull myself away from it.

I’ve seen God’s timing work in huge ways in my life before. If it weren’t for his perfect ways of doing things, I would not be in the same place and on the same path I am today. But because God has hit me with a theological 2-by-4 so many times, I’m learning to be more aware of his timing. I’ll admit that I’m stubborn, but he keeps reminding me.

Be aware of God’s timing. If you’re facing a decision, wait on God. It might seem like the right time to you, but ultimately God has a bigger, more perfect plan than you can imagine. Wait on God’s timing.

Filed Under: Encouragement, Spriritual Life Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Do you feel called?

October 23, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Every person in the Kingdom of God has a calling. While it may take some people longer to discern that call in their life, everyone has a calling. Everyone in the Kingdom is given gifts from God, whether tangible abilities or individual ministries. The fact that this is how things work is such a testament to how gracious and loving our God is.

I have never felt more secure in my calling. I absolutely feel that God has called me to work with people in a ministry setting. Right now, that calling also includes junior high students, which I’m extremely thankful for. I’m grateful that I wake up in the morning wanting to have conversations with students in order to lead them to God. Not everyone gets a chance to know with 100% certainty that they’re doing the right thing. I feel confident that I have that certainty.

If you don’t have a feel for what your calling is, keep seeking. Be prayerful about where God is calling you to and be attentive when he speaks. In my life, there were a lot of people who pointed out pieces of the puzzle that led to me figuring out my calling. Pay attention to those people in your life. God wants you to know your calling–while it’s not always easy to figure out, he will reveal it to you.

Filed Under: Encouragement Tagged With: , , , , ,

Don’t give up on that one student

August 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Right now I have a student that I’m discipling one on one. He’s no longer in my small group, but he has asked me to keep our relationship going to help him work through some stuff. This is the only guy in 4 years that I’ve agreed to do this for. He is a student that I connected with really well, and I see a lot of myself in who he is and where he’s at in his current life stage.

This student is someone that has given me my most glorious ministry successes, by the grace of God, but he’s also given me my most frustrating heartaches. He gets it one minute, then turns right back around the next. I may put him in a spot that breaks him out of his comfort zone and really feel like we’re getting somewhere, then he completely clams up and won’t talk to me for days. Despite our connection and the times of obvious work being done by God, the downsides can be extremely frustrating to the point of wanting to give up.

I think we probably all have that “one student” that fits this description. The one we pour into, only to be let down by a bad decision, one bad day, or even a complete turning away from their faith. These can be some of the most crushing blows in ministry.

But God has put this student in your life for a reason. Those of us in ministry have been given a huge responsibility to shepherd God’s flock, and that’s not always an easy task. But the fact remains–God has entrusted you with your students. Don’t give up. Don’t let discouragement turn you away from helping point students to God. One day you’ll break through and it will all be worth it.

Filed Under: Counseling, Encouragement, Mentoring, Youth Ministry Tagged With: , , , , ,

Care and Feeding of Volunteers

August 28, 2012 by 1 Comment

 The past couple of weeks the ministry I work for at Saddleback Church has lost a couple of really good volunteers. I was sorry to see them go and it will be a loss to our ministry. I read and then re-read their e-mails about why they were leaving and it made me wonder if as a staff person I could have done more to keep these folks as volunteers. Here’s what I came up with:

  1. Burn out. This one is huge. One of our volunteers just simply burned out. Between his full-time job and volunteering in a couple of ministries on our campus he simply burned out. Everyone needs to take a break and step back and rest for a while. It not only gives you a fresh prospective, it greatly reduces the risk of burn out.
  2. Not feeling like you’re making a difference. I don’t care what your ministry is; volunteers will not hang around long if they don’t feel like what they are doing is make a difference for the Kingdom. Do your best to constantly point out the good they are doing.
  3. Not growing. Find a way to elevate your volunteers either in a volunteer leader role or as a trainer to new volunteers. No one wants to stay at the same entry-level position they came in at in a career. It’s the same for volunteers.
  4. Sometimes even the best volunteers don’t really have a heart for your ministry. They thought they did and they did the best job they could but at the end of the day, your ministry was just not their cup of tea. This is actually a good reason to leave a ministry where you are serving. You need to be where God has given you the heart and talents.
  5. Use your older volunteers to mentor your younger volunteers. Every Timothy needs a Paul, every Paul needs a Timothy. This is a way for you to help your seasoned volunteers feel more useful if they are mentoring others, not only in your ministry but in their life. I am a huge proponent of mentoring!
  6. Find a way to thank and reward your volunteers. It can be as simple as a five dollar Starbucks gift card. Everyone wants to know that people appreciate what they do. Take them to lunch or meet them for coffee. Just do something to let them know you are thankful for them.
  7. Make sure your volunteers are getting fed.  I don’t mean food I mean that they are reguarly attending weekly services, are in a  small group and are having daily quiet times to keep close to God.

We’d love to hear your ideas on helping volunteers to stay strong and motivated!

 

 

Filed Under: Encouragement, Volunteer ministry Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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