Finding The Right Team
A major struggle with ministries is when passions collide. One leader may have a passion for outreach while another is passionate about spiritual growth. As Doug Fields points out in his youth ministry training, neither are bad and both are necessary. In fact, if everybody on the team is passionate about outreach the ministry would be very shallow. If every leader was passionate about spiritual growth, the ministry would miss out on other needs. To be balanced, the ministry must have leaders with a passions that meet a variety of needs.
We use the Purpose Driven Youth Ministry model. Our ministry is built around 5 biblical purposes. It exists to REACH non-believing students, to CONNECT them with other believers, to help them GROW in their faith, SERVE in ministry, and HONOR God with their lives. To be balanced, our ministry team has a variety of leaders who can champion purposes they are already passionate about.
I serve as a small group leader for the high school ministry at my church. In the home where we meet, there are two other small groups. Because each leader is passionate about different biblical purposes, our small groups are well balanced and our ministry is growing.
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Here’s how our team is balanced around the 5 biblical purposes:
Bill – (Reach, Connect) - an older guy who has grandkids, Bill isn’t the stereotypical youth leader, but he is an indispensable part of our team. His passion is reaching out and bringing in non-believing students. Bill reaches out by taking students once a month to a homeless shelter in Santa Ana. Our upper-middle class students get their eyes opened to how less fortunate people live while also getting some great ministry experience. Bill also regularly challenges students to bring their non-believing friends to Bible study. This effort on his part has increased the impact of our ministry to students who may not otherwise know Christ.
Sarah – (Grow, Discover) - a mid-20′s soft-hearted leader who is gentle and loving with her girls. She’s a nurse who has a degree from a private Christian college. She uses her education to provide top-notch leadership and teaching for her girls. By the nature of being a nurse for terminally-ill cancer patients, Sarah is a great nurturer for her girls as they struggle with life and grow spiritually. When Sarah was in high school she served in the high school worship band. She brings that passion for service to her girls who are now serving in ministries at the church.
Dennis – (Grow, Honor) – that’s me – I’m the long-term volunteer who brings excitement and a load of fun to the group. Those who know me, but don’t see me in a leadership role, will laugh at this. Outside of leading small groups, I tend to be more quiet and reserved. I’ve been doing youth ministry since 1994. My degree is in religion from Point Loma Nazarene College. In addition to keeping the Bible study fun, my passion is to see students develop an intimate relationship with their Creator. I continually challenge them to connect with God, journal, read their Bibles and pray daily. In addition to growing spiritually, I am passionate about students learning to worship (HONOR) God on their own. I believe there is an element of honoring God in each of the purposes. However, I specifically teach my students tips for honoring God through their quiet times.
I’ve worked with several youth ministry teams over the years. This is the second year Bill and Sarah have been on my team. This is the first time I can say my team has been well balanced. From now on, anytime I add a new team member, I will find one that specifically complements the gifts that are already present instead of duplicating what we already have.
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Filed under: Ministry Lessons
[...] mentioned that we will all naturally be passionate about one of the purposes. Click this link to read my post about how the three leaders on my small group team each work together to fulfill [...]