Reflections: July 2010

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Journey of Starting a New Ministry: week 3

week 3

This week was more about little things than anything else.

I intentionally tried to make a few small changes in my my week. Over the past few weeks I have spent a lot of my time in the office rearranging and organizing. While I was unpacking and organizing, I was fitting in the necessary ministry work whenever I had a chance. It meant working on the lesson after a box was unpacked or whenever there was room on my desk. But starting this week, I tried to move from this less scheduled (possibly unscheduled) work week to a more structured one.

While I was trying to maintain a semblance of office hours and such, the framework during my work week was pretty loose. I wanted to take this week and start moving toward the more structured layout of planned and allotted time for ministry work. In my last ministry I found a good breakdown of when to accomplish certain tasks, and now I need to start doing that here. Because I know I have changed and the environment is different, I am intentionally going to try a few different “schedules” within my work day.

I know ministry does not solely happen inside the walls of my office, I added a few chances to hang out with some students to my week. I was not sure how they would respond or if they would make it - since it is prime vacation time and fall sports are starting practices. I offered two different times to get together for lunch during the week. During each lunch we had a great chance to talk and get to know the students and let them get to know my family a little bit. I want to continue lunches or dinners throughout the year as an informal way to build relationships with the students and their friends.

Being in my first month of ministry, I know there are certain changes that need to wait. One of the changes I want to implement is going to have to wait at least a few months, if not a year. But I started working on developing and putting onto paper an explanation and game-plan for this change. I know it will take a little time to process and implement, but I want to be ready when the right time arises.

Sunday was a crazy day for me. I had a lot of little conversations with people - all good. I think out of the two services and Sunday School, I was only on-time for 1st service. But I am not complaining, I loved the chance to talk and listen to people.

Week 3 Bulletpoints:
- continue talking with students & parents
- spend more time getting to know the youth coaches
- start figuring out how to structure your work day

Goals of the near future:
- improve the ministry with a small/simple change
- learn the passion/heart of the youth coaches
- encourage youth coaches
- learn more names

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Previous weekly perspectives: week 1, week 2,

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Journey of starting a new ministry - week 2

(Over the next few months, maybe longer, I will be writing weekly posts on my journey of starting a new youth ministry position. The focus will be on general tips and suggestions for any youth minister starting a new position, but I will add-in moments specific to my situation. My goal is to offer advice to help other youth ministers and not write an online journal of my own personal experiences. In order to make this series of articles as beneficial as I can, I would appreciate your feedback and thoughts. And remember as you read about my journey in a new youth ministry that every situation is different; therefore, these ideas are just ideas and suggestions. You need to know your church culture and adjust your week-by-week to fit those needs.)

Week 2
I’m not exactly sure how long it takes to get settled into a new ministry, but I don’t think it’s two weeks. While I believe you get used to each part of the ministry on different levels and at different speeds, I wish it all came faster. Over the past week, I have had at least a dozen people ask me, “So, you getting settled in yet?” I know this is simply part of the normal process of moving and starting a new job (and I bet the questions will stop within a week or two) but I am left to wonder what specifically they mean by their question. Do they want to know if I’m getting settled into my office or into the overall culture of the congregation?

This week my goal has been to finish getting settled into the office. I believe this is an important step early in your ministry for a couple reasons. 1) It is easier to work in an organized and clean office. (Hopefully, you will keep it that way, too) 2) When people stop by to talk, they will see a clean office. And seeing a clean youth minister’s office helps people understand that you, the youth minister, take your job seriously. 3) Once you really get into the rhythm of ministry, you will not regularly take the time to clean your office - you’ll be too busy doing what you love to do. 4) There are people who will be more willing to support you and your ministry when your office does not look like a junior high locker room.

This does not mean that you lock yourself in your office and refuse to come out. There are still people to see and probably meetings to attend. And depending on how busy your office is, or how long you’ve been in ministry, it might take you a few weeks to get settled in. Most of my second week in the office was quiet, since the sr. minister is on the mission trip, so I have been able to get most of the boxes unpacked and put away. One of the last things I have yet to do is put up all of my “memories” - the trinkets and knick-knacks I’ve collected over the years and display proudly around the office.

For my second Sunday, I was able to spend more time meeting and talking with people. I did not teach, so I was able to sit in a few more classes. I stayed in the high school room for Sunday School (my goal is to spend a month in each Sunday School class before I move to another one). Seeing that I oversee all ages from 2 years old to high school, I sat in on the 2’s and 3’s class during Jr. Church. During the first few months, I really want to get a better sense of what the classes are like and how each teacher is different from the others. I know this is something that will take much longer to fully grasp, but it is important to get a good understanding early in ministry.

This week, I was able to get involved “up front” a little bit. A group of students and adults left on Sunday to go on a mission trip, so during the the beginning of our Sunday School we took time to pray for them as a congregation. I was asked to be one of the prayers. I was honored they asked me and more than happy to participate.

I wanted to start meeting with people this week. I was able to meet with two local ministers (a sr. minister and a youth minister) over lunch. I am looking forward to being able to work together and minister alongside each other over the years. I was hoping to meet with one of the youth coaches this week, but it didn’t happen. I’ll try again next week - there are plenty of people to meet with.

Week 2 Bulletpoints:
- finish unpacking office
- look over upcoming calendar of events
- start talking with students & parents
- learn more about the youth coaches

Goals of the near future:
- one “big” event for each age group planned
- meet with others in charge
- spend more time with students (outside of Sunday events)

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Previous weekly perspectives: week 1

Thursday, July 15, 2010

to quote someone else: generosity (Gordon Macdonald)

"Never forget what someone has done for you; never remember what you have done for others."

taken from Secrets of the Generous Life by Gordon Macdonald

I think this is a great principle to live by, the only problem is that it is not always easy. It can be difficult to forget "how many" times you have helped someone when they need it again. But if you want to live generously, you will.

Secrets of the Generous Life is a great devotional, you need to get a copy and go through it.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Journey of starting a new ministry - week 1

Week 1
As with any new job, there is no time to slowly ease into a new ministry. We were supposed to pull our moving truck into our rented house about 5 pm. This was the time we told people we would be there, and the time they agreed to help us unload. To make it to our destination on time, we allowed ourselves 8 hours to get from point A (old home in southern IL) to point B (new home in NW OH). In a car this trip would take about 6 hours. On this day, with people waiting for us, the trip took nearly 10 hours. Yes, we were almost 2 hours late for our arrival.

When we finally arrived, most of the people were still there to help unload. One noticeable absence was the senior minister. He was planning on being there, but had to go to the hospital to be with one of the members and her family. It turned out that this very time we were arriving at a new ministry, the church family had lost a dear friend. And so, less than a week “on the job” and I attended my first visitation and funeral for a member of the congregation. A sad reminder that life does not ever “pause” for anything.

My first few days in the office were spent rearranging the furniture and trying to unpack all of my boxes - let’s just say I have a book collection. There are 14 shelves for my books and I still need more. With my first week over, I can say that my office is mostly unpacked (there are still 8 boxes with folders/binders/books in them that have nowhere to go) and I’m starting to get settled in. My first week in the office has been more than just unpacking boxes; I’ve been able to meet with the senior minister and start thinking about the fall kickoff and the next school year. I know I can’t wait too long to start dreaming and planning.

My first official Sunday as the youth minister was a full one. During the first service, I was able to teach one of the jr. church classes. I was filling in for the teacher who was on vacation (and I’m glad I was able to). The only thing that went wrong was that we ran out of time and didn’t get to finish one of our projects. Then during Sunday School, I sat in on the high school class. This was a good chance to get to learn more about the students. I am planning on floating around the various Sunday School classrooms for the first several months. This will give me a chance to see what is currently taking place and to see the students and teachers interact. The second service was a chance for me to be a part of the service without having any responsibilities. Following the second service, we had a carry-in meal and some games - for a July 4th celebration. These activities are always fun and I’m glad we were here to participate. On this day, I played ladderball - won, played corn hole - lost, participated in a water balloon toss - got wet.

Overall, this week I have been trying to learn names. I would like to say that I have a good grasp on all of them, but at this point I’m not quite there. I am working my way through the list of teachers, sending each one a “thank you” note. I started sending this out before we moved with the hopes of getting them all out before the move, but it did not work out that way. I am also starting to organize information about the students and get all of the info into one place. This will take time, but I know if I can get it going early in my ministry that it will save me time and energy later. Outside of ministry stuff, my wife and I are working on making all of the necessary changes that go with moving: insurance, retirement, licenses, mailing address changes, finding a house, utilities and phones.

There is one more thing I have worked on during my first week in a new youth ministry: my family time. I have intentionally made time to be with my family at night (ie. no work stuff at home). I know this is important and I know it needs to be a habit, one I start early. This new schedule has been a tough adjustment for my kids - over the past two years they have gotten used to me being home a little bit more. I am very thankful for all of the time I get to spend with my wife and kids and I want to make sure I continue to have time with them every day.