the    sides

We are looking for a student pastor at Grace since the last one didn’t work out.

Seriously, I’ve been thinking about this for awhile and I’ve learned some things as a result of the last youth group I left. And since I’m still going to be around at Grace, I think the next youth guy ought know some things about the culture that the last bonehead youth pastor built.

I tend to recruit/surround myself with leaders and self-starters. They also tend to be incredibly relational and…well…opiniated. They want someone to remind them of the goal, listen to them, then get the heck out of the way while they minister to students. While every volunteer has their own quirks, most of the ones at Grace have a very low need for someone telling them WHAT to do.

Which leads me to this:

What Every Youth Ministry Volunteer Needs
(aka How To Make Others Think You Have Leadership and Know What The Heck You Are Doing)

1. Vision…they need someone to remind them why we do what we do the way we do it. The goal is to ruin a teenager with Jesus and release that same student back to the wild (aka Missionary). In other words, we want to see a student transformed into loving Jesus more than anything else, then releasing that student into the culture. And that doesn’t happen overnight which leads to…

2. Encourament…what they do matters in a grand, huge, monster way. I’m paid to be there, stay late, hang out, and be spiritual. They aren’t. And students know that but sometimes adults forget that students know this. The one step forward, two steps back days are worth it and the goal can only be accomplished by them investing, risking, failing, and succeeding. Which leads to…

3. Opportunities…they need arenas to be crazy, take risks, get in over their heads, laugh, cry, fail, and succeed. That means as a youth pastor, I’m more concerned about giving others opportunities to shine and show off than I am making sure my ideas are implemented. Which, of course, leads to…

4. Friendship…student ministry is best done relationally. Plus, it’s the only ministry where you get blasted from all areas – students, parents, outside leaders, other youth ministries, and other peoples who don’t get it. My job is to shield my volunteers from that. Because that is what friends do. I will know these people longer than I will be in ministry. So it is important to see them and invest in them far beyond than just what “service” they bring to the ministry. The flip side I’ve learned is this – they will do the same for you and you won’t even know it or ask for it.

5. A Rubber Chicken…if you don’t get it – ASK1 2B1.