The Heart Of The Matter
Instilling heart into your leaders for your kids is one of the most important things you can do. Each year around 100 Atlanta Leadership students come to us from all different parts of the country and different backgrounds. One of the first things I try to instill in them is heart. How?
First by taking the time to talk heart in front of them, I don't just assume that they're going to get it. I not only talk heart, but I identify what I'd love for them to try to give away to others. That means, smiling, even if you don't feel like smiling (and no, that's not being phony when you do that...that's being unselfish enough that you kind of crucify yourself and you try to give away to other people what you wish you had). I also teach them what heart is. That means we're going to serve, not just wait to be served and we're going to be aggressive on our own serving and care deeply for other people.
I also create some heart moments for all of them soon after they arrive. They don't walk around feeling like they have to pretend somebody has cared for them, they have been cared for.
Instilling heart into your leaders for your kids is one of the most important things you can do. Each year around 100 Atlanta Leadership students come to us from all different parts of the country and different backgrounds. One of the first things I try to instill in them is heart. How?
First by taking the time to talk heart in front of them, I don't just assume that they're going to get it. I not only talk heart, but I identify what I'd love for them to try to give away to others. That means, smiling, even if you don't feel like smiling (and no, that's not being phony when you do that...that's being unselfish enough that you kind of crucify yourself and you try to give away to other people what you wish you had). I also teach them what heart is. That means we're going to serve, not just wait to be served and we're going to be aggressive on our own serving and care deeply for other people.
I also create some heart moments for all of them soon after they arrive. They don't walk around feeling like they have to pretend somebody has cared for them, they have been cared for.
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If your calendar could speak, what would it say? If you look at a typical youth pastor's weekly schedule, often times you'll find a great deal of time being spent creating a "fast-paced, high-tech, entertaining youth service." However, according to Group Publishing's "Cool Church Survey" of 10,000 students, it ranked dead last in the importance of 10 factors that influence a student's commitment to church.
What was #1? "A welcoming atmosphere where you can be yourself." So, in this Youth Leader's Coach, listen in on seven strategic elements in building a Christ-honoring, welcoming environment. Refuse to fail at this youth ministry success test, choose instead to up the ante when it comes to the friendship/family tenor of your ministry.
All in,
This Source, "The Challenge: Fighting For Your Family," was one that I developed years ago while I was still a student in Bible College. It was during that time, while studying for the ministry, that I was desperately praying for my own parents' salvation.
Most of us, including your students, so passionately want to make a true difference in our families and friends to hopefully bring them to a relationship with Christ. In this message I give some pragmatic principles that you can share with your team so they can begin to positively affect their families through faith!
While listening to this message, you'll hear me become painfully transparent about my own struggle in bringing my parents to the Lord. I allow my team to get a glimpse of my honest vulnerability because I believe "You lead people through your strengths, but you connect to them through your weaknesses." May I challenge you to allow your gang to see you a little more transparent.
And once more, thank you for allowing me to share this time with you.
Your "long-distance" cheerleader,
Paul said it best in 1 Corinthians 4:14-15, "I am not writing this to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even though you have ten thousand instructors in Christ, you do not have many fathers." Don't those verses pierce your soul?
Not only that, but let's take it a step further. While there are a lot of great youth communicators and youth ministry CEO's out there, the years have taught me that it's not been my communication skills or the size of my ministry that people I've impacted reference, but "how the Jesus Christ inside of me made them feel" as I became an adopted "big sis" or "spiritual mom."
Bottom line, one of the most eternally significant things you can do is to stir up inside of you the heart of a spiritual parent. In addition to hearing some sobering stats, listen in and get insight on how to live this out.
Lovingly,
In our youth ministry, Oxygen, "family" is a big deal. In fact, we intentionally "do" things each week to make our environment feel less like a "church auditorium" and more like a "family room." And, every once in awhile, we'll even take an extended amount of time to "verbally" remind our students why "family" is such an integral part of our DNA. This Source, "The Family Room," was one of those nights designed to refresh our students' memories on what it looks like to take care of each other well.
Using the visual of a "friendship sandwich" to make the message stick, we look to John 15:12-17 where Jesus lays out what it means to "love one another, just as He has loved us." Drawing upon an opening skit that will make you laugh, a TV family montage that will bring back fond memories, a heart-wrenching story that will fill your eyes with tears, and a fun closing that will not too easily be forgotten, I pray this stirs up or rekindles a desire in your students to live and love in such a way that the world rises up and takes notice.
Lovingly,
This iVolunteer resource is a COACHING RESOURCE for volunteer youth leaders who want to be the BEST they can be!
Group Magazine did a survey of 10,000 youth and young adults, asking them what the #1 thing was they were looking for in a church. The top answer from an overwhelming majority was "a welcoming, warm environment." The honest truth is, if you "fail the friendliness test in ministry...you've failed." This isn't surprising as we live in a culture of shallow friendships and broken families.
Often our leaders have great intentions, but they don't have a clue where to start. Listen in to this iVolunteer, "Creating A Sense Of Family In Your Ministry," as I share one of my favorite stories that will help your leaders visualize the importance of creating a sense of family. I also give them seven pragmatics to start putting steps behind launching and developing a friendship culture in your youth ministry.
Building A Family,
