• “So, you just prepare a little lesson for the kids once a week?”
• “Do you get paid for that?”
• “How was your vacation to summer camp?”
I will give people the benefit of the doubt and assume they are not trying to offend us, but, gee, do they.
Nothing can be more defeating than youth workers pouring their hearts and souls into their ministry without being respected. I stepped into a position of leadership of a youth ministry of more than 100 students when I was 18 years old. It is hard enough to earn respect when you are a youth worker. Throw in being a teenager, and it seems impossible. I was brought onto the pastoral staff this past year, and can say that I’ve earned the respect of my church. I’m going to offer six tips to help you wreck the rep of youth ministry.
1) Do Your Main Thing Great
What is your main thing? Maybe it’s a midweek service, Sunday School, small groups? Make it awesome! You do not have the luxury of flying on autopilot. Pursue excellence and be creative; never do anything halfway. People view your main thing as your product. Make a good product.
2) Get in Front of People
Take any opportunity you can get to stand before the whole congregation. Then don’t waste it. If you do the announcements on a Sunday morning, present yourself as a professional. If you preach, show that you have mastery of biblical scholarship and that you are worth listening to because you have something to say.
3) Don’t Be a Silo
Get other people on staff involved in what you are doing. Do you have an outreach person on staff? Get him or her to plan your mission trips. Does your church have an oversight team? Recruit some of its members to mentor your students. Does your senior pastor preach? Get him to speak to your students. Don’t be afraid to tell other people on staff to do stuff for your students. Teens are part of the church, too.
4) Build Trust
It takes more than just time to develop trust; it takes consistency. Be organized enough to keep your word. If you frequently forget lunches, meetings or deadlines, then step your game up. Demonstrate that you keep your word and are responsible with students, and people will start to trust you.
5) Own Mistakes
You are going to make mistakes, students are going to break stuff, some parents will always be unhappy—it’s a fallen world. When you mess up, own it. Take responsibility, make it right, and take a note not to do it again. Don’t make the same mistake more than twice. That will kill your reputation.
6) Celebrate Success
The best way for you to be a team player on a church staff is to make sure everyone knows how awesome your ministry is. There is nothing conceited about a youth worker sitting in a staff meeting celebrating a student’s progress. When your students hit home runs, make sure people know! People will begin to look forward to hearing about what the youth are doing. Keep track of the good, and make sure people hear about it.
Youth ministry is one of the most vital parts of the church, and it ought to be respected. Being a youth worker never was intended to be easy, but was intended to be effective. Therefore, demonstrate to your church that your ministry is valuable and takes a back seat to no one.
