volunteers | More Than Dodgeball

Josh GriffinMore Posts How to Do the Volunteer Thing Well

This week we’re talking volunteers! A key part of any youth ministry is the leadership team. If you’re doing ministry all alone, you’re going to bottleneck growth or burn out—take time to build a great team and you’ll never regret it.

But building a great team can be a big challenge! Today we’re going to blast out a few bullet points that we think will help you surround yourself with a great group of like-minded youth workers:

Recruit Well
• Ask God to lead you to the right people within your church.
• Look for key places to find people—men’s/women’s Bible study groups, the college ministry, leaders moving up with their younger students, etc.
• Resist the urge to just make a blanket announcement; you’ll get “zeros” who will hurt you in the long haul or “heroes” who are already volunteering for everything and are overcommitted.
• If you have a red flag at any point in the process, pass on that person. Better to have a difficult conversation before than have to clean up a mess after.

Place Well
• In part of your interview, talk through their passions and gifting.
• Personality plays a big role in success of using volunteers well. Factor in personality.
• Place people based on their available time; if someone is stretching to be a small group leader, it might be too much commitment and you might want to suggest another role.
• Finally, place them according to their gifts and availability…not according to your needs!

Train Well
• Prepare your people for common challenges they will encounter in their role serving students.
• Promise (and deliver on that promise when necessary) that you’ll be there when they face something they don’t feel super prepared for.
• Resource them with articles, books, and back-pocket guides to help them group as a leader.

Encourage Well
• Remember their birthdays, send encouraging notes, etc.
• Be present when you speak to them; pouring into them is, by extension, pouring into your students.
• Gather regularly for celebration, training, and story-telling.

What else needs to be done well in order to build a great team? Add your thoughts!

This post was written by Josh Griffin and originally appeared as part of Simply Youth Ministry Today free newsletter. Subscribe to SYM Today right here.

Add Comment August 9, 2012

Josh GriffinMore Posts GUEST POST: Does Your Small Group Have THE TALKER?

The beauty of leading a small group is getting to see it grow throughout the years. But, getting started can be rough especially if you have that one kid who talks and talks and talks. At first you like him or her because they take care of the awkward silence. You think, “Awesome, I have someone participating and I don’t have to do all the talking.”

Then, you begin to notice that they are the ONLY student talking, which prevents the other ones from chiming in. You also begin to notice your patience wear thin because not only do they answer every question but they begin to talk for what seems like hours. You are tempted to yell, “SHUT UP!” but common sense tells you that wouldn’t go over well. You don’t want to lose the group; yet, avoid embarrassing the teen. What do you do?

Meet Beforehand – Grab them before small group and be honest with them. Let them know you appreciate their sharing; however, you want to make sure that everyone has a chance to speak. Be prepared because they might feel a little insulted by your confrontation. Telling them to listen more and speak less might sound like they don’t have anything wise to contribute; therefore, make a plan to follow up after group.

Sit Next To Them – By sitting next to the talkers you are able to give them physical cues if they are talking too much. Placing a hand on their shoulder is a subtle way of interrupting them. You can also whisper to them encouragement if they are getting anxious by letting others speak.

Assign Questions – Talkers talk because they either feel like they always have something to contribute or they are afraid of silence. To give them an out to their urges and fears assign questions to the rest of the group. Instead of having anyone chime in, give the first response to someone specific.

Follow Up – Either right after the group or the next day meet up with the talker to reflect on their behavior. Affirm them with what they did well; ask them their opinion and then address where improvement is necessary. Because the group is fresh on everyone’s mind, you can point to specific examples of when they listened and when they dominated the conversation.

Some people will be talkers for life; however, the more the group gets to know them the pressure won’t fall on you to give others a chance to speak. The more you check-in and communicate with the talker the less you’ll have to take the steps mentioned above. Just be persistent with reaching out and leading the group. Again, small group dynamics is a growing process.

How do you deal with talkers?

Chris Wesley is the Director of Student Ministry at Church of the Nativity in Timonium, MD. You can read more great youth ministry articles and thoughts on his exceptional blog Marathon Youth Ministry.

Add Comment July 22, 2012

Josh GriffinMore Posts HSM Summer Camp Eve Letter

Thought this note I wrote to our high school team might be a good read and/or something you would want to copy/edit/make better for your own summer camp adventures, too!

Just wanted to shared a few words with you tonight on HSM Summer Camp Eve! Tomorrow we’re going to take close to 750 people on a 5-day journey where along the way God will chang lives forever. We are going to witness this up close and personal. What a journey to this point: so much heart, so much hard work. So many God moments. So many students!

This week we get the priviledge to be a part of something where:

Students
… will trust Christ for the 1st time
… laugh, play and love
… will be baptized to show their faith
… will be insipred to serve the community and reach their friends
… will grow in their faith
… deal with the darkness of their heart/life/experiences
… freshman get their initiation of HSM
… graduates who get their last hurrah
… all who will be challenged in so many ways
… find a calling to full-time ministry

Volunteers
… will be stretched and challenged beyond themselves
… took time off from work to serve the church
… hearts will grow immensely
… maybe discover a life-long call to youth ministry

Our team
… will be challenged to capacity
… will make memories that will last forever
… get to have a front row seat to God showing up big

You are incredible. This week is going to be life-changing. For you. For all of us.

Here we go! JG

2 View Comments July 21, 2012

Josh GriffinMore Posts Deal of the Day – Volunteer’s Back Pocket Guide to Sex by Craig Gross

Today’s Deal of the Day from Simply Youth Ministry is the Volunteer’s Back Pocket Guide to Sex by Craig Gross. Until midnight tonight it is just $2.99 – and a great resource to get in the hands of your team as they talk about God’s plan for their sex life.

Teenagers live in a sex-saturated world. And for many of them, sex has become a purely physical act, fully divorced from spirituality, love, and commitment. Sex, pornography, and “hooking up” are all met with the same response: “It’s no big deal.”

Too many of our students don’t know where to turn to learn about sex, leaving many feeling confused, fearful, and alone. Teenagers who struggle with sexual addiction or unhealthy patterns don’t know how to find freedom and healing from the choices they’ve made, and they’re afraid the church will label them as perverts if they’re open and honest about their deepest struggles.

But amidst these sobering realities, there is good news: Youth workers are on the front lines of the battle to shape, challenge, and encourage teenagers toward sexual wholeness and purity. The Volunteer’s Back Pocket Guide to Sex will help you as you aid students in navigating a path that honestly addresses all the challenges they might face, while honoring God along the way.

Authors Craig Gross—founder of XXXchurch.com—and Cris Clapp Logan—an Internet safety expert, artist, and writer—don’t sugarcoat the realities, and they don’t hold back in bluntly, honestly tackling the toughest topics, including pornography, sexuality, masturbation, and purity. Using God’s truth as the foundation for the conversation, they’ll equip you with practical information and powerful strategies to help you become a volunteer youth worker who helps teenagers live wisely and walk in freedom!

JG

Add Comment July 19, 2012

Josh GriffinMore Posts Square One: Free Volunteer Training from LeaderTreks

The gang over at LeaderTreks just released a new free volunteer training lesson today to help your volunteers understand the purpose of your youth ministry.

Square One gives you the opportunity to talk to your adult volunteer about youth ministry basics that we often forget. Purpose, structure, strong teaching and building intentional relationships can make your youth ministry great. LeaderTreks has developed these short 30-45 minute training downloads to help you in this process.

This free lesson, The Purpose of Youth Ministry, will help your adults have a correct view of youth ministry. Many adult volunteers think youth ministry is the ministry of the church to students when in reality youth ministry is the ministry of students to their world.

JG

Add Comment July 18, 2012

Geoff StewartMore Posts Guest Post: #SometimesMinistryIs

‪#SometimesMinistryIs a really big high five.

#SometimesMinistryIs receiving panicked calls from mommas who need your help with their teens.

‪‪‪#SometimesMinistryIs laughing so hard that you are crying.

#SometimesMinistryIs calling a student out and helping them to see their own sin.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs just dropping by to see how someone is doing.

‪‪#SometimesMinistryIs filling up water balloons… and throwing them.

#SometimesMinistryIs knowing a student has made some really bad choices but always making sure they know that you and Christ love them.

#SometimesMinistryIs buying a teenager a milkshake.

‪‪‪#SometimesMinistryIs sitting by the bed of someone at a nursing home.

#SometimesMinistryIs dancing and singing kids’ songs really really loudly!

#SometimesMinistryIs taking a student out to lunch so they can talk with you about something serious.

#SometimesMinistryIs playing a game of ultimate frisbee so intense that you rip off a toenail.

Ministry is Professional.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs scrambling to find one more chaperone for summer camp.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs intense (and slightly boring) budget planning.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs encouraging someone to volunteer to do something you know they would be GREAT at.

#Sometimes MinistryIs staff meetings.

#SometimesMinistryIs stopping in your busy schedule to do the hard work of praying for students.

#SometimesMinistryIs insisting on a medical release form, even though it is inconvenient.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs a non-church civic club meeting, because you’re investing in the community.

#SometimesMinistryIs playing phone tag FOREVER with someone to solve an important question.

‪‪#SometimesMinistryIs the best job in the world.

#SometimesMinistryIs not a job at all; it is instead the calling that your other job pays the bills to allow you to do.

Ministry includes Your Own Family.‪‪

#SometimesMinistryIs praying with your spouse.

#SometimesMinistryIs date night with your daughter, even if you have to miss a church thing.

#SometimesMinistryIs empowering your spouse to do their own ministry

#SometimesMinistryIs playing with your own children at home at night, and ignoring a phone call.

Ministry is Always God.

‪‪#SometimesMinistryIs sitting at a table with a brother pouring over the Word planning to present it in a new and exciting way.

#SometimesMinistryIs watching a student make bad decisions and knowing the best thing you can do about it is to pray.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs listening to a student explain the gospel back to you and praising God for his Christian parents’ training.

‪#SometimesMinistryIs listening to a student explain the gospel back to you, and realizing they do not yet understand what it is they are thinking about doing

‪#SometimesMinistryIs having to take a step back so that you don’t get in the way of what God is trying to do.

#SometimesMinistryIs just the purest ecstasy of full-on, eyes-closed, on-your-face worship of the One who saved you from yourself.

Ministry.

#ManyTimesMinistryIs just plain hard.

#AlwaysMinistryIs worth it.

#Always.

(Special thanks to @ColvinEarl @savedman97 for their contributions.)

Aaron Tucker has served teenagers since he was one, and currently serves youth of all ages at First Baptist Church of Philadelphia, Mississippi. He is Oklahoma-born (Go Sooners!) and Mississippi-raised (Go Bulldogs!), and loves Christ and family and coffee and youth ministry in Small Town USA. He tweets @Rev_Tucker

Add Comment July 7, 2012

Geoff StewartMore Posts Guest Post: Staying in Your Sweet Spot

Over the last little while, I’ve been watching a certain search engine company trying to become all things to all people. They seem to have their hands into everything these days. I think they’ve even announced their own tablet, not to be confused with the other 100 or so coming onto the market.

I observe that that they have shown themselves to be really good at a few things. A dynamic search engine that rose to the top of the heap (sorry, Yahoo! and Bing), a web browser that got to the core of the browsing experience (get me there fast and don’t crash), and a svelte email service that became synonymous with getting the job done (no, Hotmail, I don’t want more spam) … but then it starts to become a slippery slope. We could around and around on what would be deemed successful for this company, as we each have our likes and dislikes when it comes to all things computing, but I think we could agree that there have been some things they’ve done that have been mediocre at best (Google+), and some that have thankfully slipped into the dark abyss of computing history (*cough* Google Wave *cough*). Not that these didn’t have the potential to be great, they just were problematic from the start due to any number of reasons, from lack of interest beyond early adopters to an idea that’s being done better by someone else.

Now, if you’ve been in ministry for any length of time, you’ve probably worked hard at the things you’re good at, and figured out how to hand off the things you are weak at, or at least suffer through doing them anyway. You want to be known for your roaring successes and have your train wreck mistakes become lost to the ages. That’s totally normal. We want people to see that we’re capable and willing and eager and full of energy and ingenuity. Basically, we want our congregation to know that we have the “right stuff.” In that space, we are sometimes willing to take on much more than we can chew. We become a jack of all trades, but master of none. And that’s where the trouble can come in.

When you were hired on, or signed up as a volunteer, you were probably eager to show your skill set. You had a number of responsibilities and you sought to do those well. But then, things started to get added to the miscellaneous category of your job description. Perhaps you were saddled with more responsibility than you started with because no one else wanted the task, maybe staffing changes required you to take more into your portfolio, or perhaps you thought you could handle more, or you felt you needed to be challenged more, or any other number of reasons. You know your own story.

Just like G**gle should know, it’s about being selective and running hard with what you’re best at. The challenge is all about knowing yourself. Knowing your capabilities and your capacities. Knowing what you rock at, and knowing what will fall apart if you come near it. There are times and places to test the waters and see if there’s something new within your capacity, but know going in that you don’t need to be all things to all people. It can be a very freeing statement, and will allow you to press into who God has created you to be. I know this first hand; I know that I was made for student ministry. And that has made all the difference.

Kevin Downey currently carries the baton for youth ministry at Chilliwack Alliance Church in Chilliwack, BC, Canada. he loves what he does, and thanks God every day for giving him his second wind. He tweets at @revkev73.

-geoff

1 View Comments July 2, 2012

Geoff StewartMore Posts Guest Post: My Youth Leaders Just Don’t Get It!

Does this complaint sound familiar to you? It can be frustrating to try and lead a youth ministry, only to get thwarted by your youth leaders who just don’t seem to get it.

They don’t get that they’re expected to focus on building relationships with the students

They don’t get that they need to make an effort to stay up to date on teen culture

They don’t get that as a youth pastor, you don’t have the time to connect with every single student

They don’t get that they’re the best method to recruit new volunteers

They don’t get that they’re expected to show up at all events

They don’t get that even though you’re on staff, you can’t do it all and thus had to cancel the retreat

Your youth leaders just don’t get it. But do you?

Sometimes we forget what it’s like to be a volunteer, to do what we do besides a full time job. We forget that our youth leaders don’t have the same access we have to resources, that they don’t have the time to read up on youth ministry blogs, or to watch the latest video gone viral. We forget that we have been in youth ministry for a long time, that we have learned and know exactly what to do and where our priorities should be…but they may be new and don’t know what’s expected of them.

So if your youth leaders just don’t get it, look at yourself first and ask yourself some honest questions:

How well have you communicated your vision for the youth ministry? Do your youth leaders know it and support it?
Have you made your expectations clear, do they know what their task as youth leader entails?
Do you have any expectations that you have not communicated, that you consider ‘normal’ or ‘self-evident’?
Are your expectations realistic, given the amount of time they can dedicate to the youth ministry?
Have you given your leaders the training they need to do their task well?
Are you supplying them with the information and resources they need to excel in what they do?
Are you investing time and energy in team building and motivating your leaders?
Are you available to them when they need you, or is there someone else who they can go to with questions?
Are you communicating your decisions well enough, so they understand why you do things?

Let’s face it: when our youth leaders don’t get it, more often than not it’s our fault because we’re just not communicating well enough. If you want your youth leaders to ‘get it’, to excel in what they do in your youth ministry, you have to invest more time in them. Make training, coaching and motivating your leaders a priority and you’ll see that they will get it.

Rachel Blom is American at heart, Dutch in origin, but living in the south of Germany. She’s a youth ministry veteran who has the passion to help youth leaders worldwide serve better through her blog www.youthleaddersacademy.com. She’s a big fan of Twitter, where you can find her as @youthleadersac.

-Geoff