HOW TO START YOUTH MINISTRY OFF RIGHT

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HOW TO START YOUTH MINISTRY OFF RIGHT

• Conference for Virginia Baptist Youth Ministers
  by Lynn Turner

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Communicating Your Philosophy of Ministry

• Relational is the key word
• Theological
• Developmental
• Sociocultural
• What are your top five priorities for youth
  ministry?

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Theological

• What is your Biblical Basis for doing Youth
  Ministry?
• Some buildings blocks that need to be nailed
  down What are your views on
• God?
• Scripture?
• Humanity?
• Sin?
• Salvation?
• The church?

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Developmental

• Knowing the basic characteristics of teens at
  different stages of development in the areas of
• Cognitive
• Social
• Emotional
• Physical
• Spiritual

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Sociocultural

• Keeping up with the trends of teens and what is
  happening in their world as well as society as a
  whole
• Family
• School
• Social
• Media

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Understanding key relationships

• Youth
• Youth Parents
• Youth Leaders
• Staff

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Building relationships with youth

• Listening, Listening, Listening!
• What do teens really need from you?
• 1.    To befriend them and encourage them
• 2.    To love them unconditionally
• 3.    To introduce them to serious Christianity
  and help them to grow
• 4.    To help them with real-life problems
• 5.    To provide them with lifestyle alternatives
• 6. To pray for them
•  

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Building relationships with parents

• Listening
• Be available
• Make parents a vital part of your ministry
• Program to include parents and families
• Be a connector of teens and parents
• Always remember that PARENTS are the most
  important influence in the life and faith
  development of their teens!

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Building an effective Youth Ministry Team

• A successful youth ministry team of adults
  consists of ALL ages, personalities, and
  giftsthere is not ONE MOLD that fits youth
  leaders
• Personally recruit your leaders
• Provide encouragement and training on a regular
  basis
• Spend one on one time with leaders
• Create a family among your leaders
• Pray for them!

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Building Staff Relationships

• Have a team spirit
• Have a servant heart
• Play and pray together
• Connect with your Senior pastor

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Personal Spiritual growth

• Learn to say no
• Make a schedule for your own time and STICK to it
• Find a group of adults that encourage you in your
  faith and regularly spend time with them
• If youre not growing spirituallyyoure not
  effective in leading others to grow.

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Assessing Needs

• Key questions for assessing ministry needs
• (Mark Cannister)
• How long has this youth ministry been in place?
• What are the perceptions of youth and parents
  about youth ministry?
• Who are the youth on the mailing list?
• How many students have dropped out in the past
  year?
• Who has joined the youth ministry in the past
  year?
• What have been the primary programs over the past
  year?

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Assessing needs cont.

• What is the history of the volunteer involvement
  in the past ?
• What gifts and abilities to the volunteers bring
  to the ministry?
• What were/are the goals for youth ministry?
• How does the Sunday School fit into the overall
  ministry?
• How are teenagers integrated into the total
  church life?

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Assessing Needs cont.

• What is the pastor and churchs philosophy of
  youth ministry?
• What do the pastor and church believe is the
  responsibility of the youth minister?
• What types of activities for young people are
  encouraged/discouraged?

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Signs of Readiness for Youth Ministry

• Rate yourself on the following from a scale of
  1-10 on the basic requirements to enter youth
  ministry.(Mark Lamport, Link Institute 1996)
• Senses a personal calling
• Is able to articulate a biblical philosophy of
  youth ministry
• Demonstrates an on-going relationship with God
• Shows competence in handling scripture
• Knows basic counseling and referral skills

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Readiness cont.

• Effectively communicates the faith to teenagers
• Can administer people and program resources
• Understands adolescents and youth culture
• Deals capably with adult leaders and youth
  parents
• Exhibits both creativity and critical thinking
  skills
• Understands the history and mission of the church
• Can evaluate curriculum

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Readiness cont.

• Is able to work within (and around)
  organizational structures
• Has and instills vision
• Is a person of integrity
• Loves kids and can work effectively with them
• Is able to take direction and receive feedback
  from supervisor, peers, youth, and parents.
• If your score is less than 115, you may not be
  ready for full time youth ministry. If your
  score is less than 65, you may not be ready for
  volunteer youth ministry.