- recruiting, developing, empowering, and leading other adult leaders
- preparing messages and speaking to students
- crossing administrative tasks off a list
- planning events and services
there's even more that i love about my job:
- watching authentic community developed in a small group
- nerf dart wars and water balloon fights
- seeing students lead other students
- dreaming where the ministry could be in the future
- creating series & retreat themes to target a need
there's a few things i could do without:
- all-nighters (i like sleep)
- the predictable pressure...every week - same time, same channel
- emails that have nothing to do with me but still need to be in my files
but the thing that drives me month after month:
pacing with students through the mundane, normal, and sometimes chaotic moments of life
in youth ministry there's so much pressure to have big numbers and continual growth and more impact. and i'm all for that...more people is more impact (if you're doing the right things the right way). but sometimes i feel like the perfect youth group size is 3. a friend would always say that...and it's so true.
just the other night i was at an all nighter sitting at a table with some pizza and 3 guys that happened to also be in my small group. we were just hanging out, joking around, goofing off, and connecting about normal everyday stuff. we just came off this amazing inflatable and were showing off our flesh wounds from it. we talked about video games. that's pacing. late night conversations about stuff that's important to a student...that's pacing. normal, everyday stuff that everybody goes through all the time...but going through it together with them...that's pacing. on paper it doesn't seem to be anything monumental or earth-shattering. in fact you can do it and nobody will ever know. but i think i'm passionate about it because someone paced with me through the mundane, normal, and sometimes chaotic moments of my life...and it changed everything for me.
3 is all you need.
just the other night i was at an all nighter sitting at a table with some pizza and 3 guys that happened to also be in my small group. we were just hanging out, joking around, goofing off, and connecting about normal everyday stuff. we just came off this amazing inflatable and were showing off our flesh wounds from it. we talked about video games. that's pacing. late night conversations about stuff that's important to a student...that's pacing. normal, everyday stuff that everybody goes through all the time...but going through it together with them...that's pacing. on paper it doesn't seem to be anything monumental or earth-shattering. in fact you can do it and nobody will ever know. but i think i'm passionate about it because someone paced with me through the mundane, normal, and sometimes chaotic moments of my life...and it changed everything for me.
3 is all you need.
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