Parents of teenagers and tween need to be involved in their youth ministry. Why? Well, for many reasons.

1) Parental involvement in youth ministry can reflect how parental involvement in a family can and should be. It allows parents to model healthy parenting, using their strengths for all to see and from which to learn.

2) Parental involvement in youth ministry provides an in-house accountability factor for youth ministry leaders.

3) Parental involvement in youth ministry provides extra eyes, ears, hands, feet and knees (for praying) and leaders who are wise to the wily ways of teenagers.

4) Parental involvement in youth ministry opens opportunities for kids without good home situations to adopt proactive parents as positive role models. Youth who come to church without their own parents often connect with parent volunteers.

5) Parental involvement in youth ministry provides extra voices in church business affairs when the youth ministry needs extra physical, spiritual and/or financial support.

6) Parental involvement in youth ministry provides a faster path toward multiplied ministry. The more parents involved, the more opportunities present to develop new youth ministers (paid and volunteer) from within your ranks, who share your God-given vision.

7) Parental involvement in youth ministry opens many avenues of off-campus ministry in the neighborhoods where your teenagers live, play and have relationships.

8) Parental involvement in youth ministry helps visitors feel welcomed. Visiting kids often already know others’ parents, making the youth group feel safer for them. They can be absorbed into other family units, preventing them from becoming lone outsiders. 
 
9) Parental involvement in youth ministry helps blend in and better serve problem youth. Individuals who are LD, ED, ADD or ADHD (or any other acronym-diagnosis) can use extra help. Parents of special-needs students can help their own kids, while others’ parents help those parents and provide an appreciated break—and free you up to minister to the entire group.

10) Parental involvement in youth ministry means the spiritual growth of every single individual is no longer wholly your responsibility. It is given back to the parents, where it was intended to be. Your role then becomes one that influences the parents, as well as their children.

Check out many other ideas of how to involve parents at Churchfamilybasedyouthministry.org or Cfbym.org.