Have you already launched your youth ministry?
Many of my friends are either launching their youth ministries this week or the next. I am personally taking an extra week to launch on the 18th.
Getting back into the swing of things for the fall can feel a bit overwhelming. Here are 5 ways to make sure your youth ministry is ready and primed for the fall.
1. Have a plan. I hope that you already have a plan developed, or are working on one. I always ask the question heading into the fall, what is the one thing I want to see happen by the end of the year? Once you ask that question, then you can start making a plan to accomplish that goal. One of the best tools for creating a plan is Michael Hyatt’s ebook: Creating a life plan…Did I mention it’s free? Go and start planning!
2. Build rest into your schedule. Fall is a quick sprint. Before you know it, it will be over! The question is how burned out will you be? I have been repenting over this in the past few years. If I am honest, I am a workaholic. I love to work. I will never rest until I am burned out. I bet a lot of you are like that. If you want to know how to build rest into your schedule please check out my series: Redeeming Rest.
3. Make people a priority. People matter. Actually, people matter more than a program. This is something youth pastors need to fight for. We need to spend a lot more time with people. We need to be developing students, and leaders, partnering with parents. We need to make sure the program is good enough, and then spend the rest of the time with people.
4. Make sure you are communicating effectively. Is your facebook page up to date? Do you have a facebook page? If not, check out our guide called: Timeline for Facebook Pages: The Almost Complete Guide. I am sure that a lot of the teens you work with are on facebook multiple times a day. How many times are you on facebook? If you don’t know where to start we have a free ebook called: 5 Ways to Communicate Effectively in a Digital World.
5. Read! Stay a learner as long as you can. I have youth pastor friends who have become set in their ways and are no longer relevant. Actually, I don’t know if it’s relevant, or just plain unteachable. Either way it will kill you. Pick up a few books, and start reading. Set a goal for how many books you can read this month. Obviously, you need to still read your Bible.
I hope those 5 simple things will make sure this fall for you is amazing! I am praying for great things for you and your ministry. Thanks for checking out the website.
