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    learning the hard way
kevin massey
With summer here and youth ministry in high gear, taking time off might seem impossible for many youth workers, but with a little planning, you should be able to comfortably hand the reins over while you take some much needed R&R. My wife is a teacher and for us, summer is our only time to take real vacations together. After failing miserably over the years, here are a few suggestions that may help when leaving someone in charge of the program while you’re gone:
Tip #1: Make sure the Senior Pastor knows your plans
When I take time off, I don’t want to receive a call from the Pastor because there is a problem, and he/she didn’t know whom to call. Make sure that whoever is running your program, he/she knows where to go for information or questions.
Tip #2: Find a volunteer that you trust
This may sound like an obvious one, but remember that the student ministry is like a child; I wouldn’t leave my child with just anyone, even if they were close friends. This individual needs to be someone you can trust to make good decisions and handle situations in ways that you can live with. This will sound drastic, but if you don’t have a volunteer that you can trust, consider just not having the program that week. The health of your spiritual life and family is much more important than the program itself.
Tip #3: Make sure you meet with your lead volunteer ahead of time
Again seems like a no-brainer, but often we think everyone else knows as much about the ministry as we do. Key leaders play an important part in our ministries but we can’t assume they know all the details of the events going on when we aren’t there (i.e. calling drivers to remind them to be there, picking up checks or church credit cards, ordering food, etc).
Tip #4: Scale down when you’re gone
Often when I’m gone, I will scale down the events and activities. I try not to plan major events. I try to keep to the routine and normal things. This way my students and volunteers really have a sense of what is going on, and the ministry is less likely to encounter any unusual problems.
Tip #5: Let go and learn
The final thing that I do is let go of the ministry, see what happens and learn from it. I realized a long time ago that this is God’s ministry, He is only allowing me to be a part of His gig, and that He is much bigger than me. He is able to make sure that everything runs smoothly, and if it doesn’t, that’s what we call a “learning experience.” Sometimes no matter how much planning or effort we put into things, they just don’t run smoothly. Remember that God can use our successes and failures.
I hope that if you are the point person for your youth ministry, you will learn to take time off for yourself. Taking this time off will help you to return to your ministry refreshed and recharged for the next season in ministry.
Blessings,
Kevin Massey
Student Pastor
First Calvary Baptist Church
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http://www.simplyyouthministry.com/community-articles-from-the-field.html
kevin massey
With summer here and youth ministry in high gear, taking time off might seem impossible for many youth workers, but with a little planning, you should be able to comfortably hand the reins over while you take some much needed R&R. My wife is a teacher and for us, summer is our only time to take real vacations together. After failing miserably over the years, here are a few suggestions that may help when leaving someone in charge of the program while you’re gone:
Tip #1: Make sure the Senior Pastor knows your plans
When I take time off, I don’t want to receive a call from the Pastor because there is a problem, and he/she didn’t know whom to call. Make sure that whoever is running your program, he/she knows where to go for information or questions.
Tip #2: Find a volunteer that you trust
This may sound like an obvious one, but remember that the student ministry is like a child; I wouldn’t leave my child with just anyone, even if they were close friends. This individual needs to be someone you can trust to make good decisions and handle situations in ways that you can live with. This will sound drastic, but if you don’t have a volunteer that you can trust, consider just not having the program that week. The health of your spiritual life and family is much more important than the program itself.
Tip #3: Make sure you meet with your lead volunteer ahead of time
Again seems like a no-brainer, but often we think everyone else knows as much about the ministry as we do. Key leaders play an important part in our ministries but we can’t assume they know all the details of the events going on when we aren’t there (i.e. calling drivers to remind them to be there, picking up checks or church credit cards, ordering food, etc).
Tip #4: Scale down when you’re gone
Often when I’m gone, I will scale down the events and activities. I try not to plan major events. I try to keep to the routine and normal things. This way my students and volunteers really have a sense of what is going on, and the ministry is less likely to encounter any unusual problems.
Tip #5: Let go and learn
The final thing that I do is let go of the ministry, see what happens and learn from it. I realized a long time ago that this is God’s ministry, He is only allowing me to be a part of His gig, and that He is much bigger than me. He is able to make sure that everything runs smoothly, and if it doesn’t, that’s what we call a “learning experience.” Sometimes no matter how much planning or effort we put into things, they just don’t run smoothly. Remember that God can use our successes and failures.
I hope that if you are the point person for your youth ministry, you will learn to take time off for yourself. Taking this time off will help you to return to your ministry refreshed and recharged for the next season in ministry.
Blessings,
Kevin Massey
Student Pastor
First Calvary Baptist Church
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