Bring yer A-game

There is not time in your ministry where you can let off. Yes, you do need to use your time wisely and get the proper amount of rest and down time. However, you cannot treat your job any differently than those who work for companies and other non-church organizations; your volunteers work hard too. In fact, they put 40+ hours in a week at their jobs and then give the church ministries a bunch of time on top of that. I remember my senior pastor would have us turn in time sheets to make sure we put in our hours each week. And then he expected us to put in an additional twenty or so hours on top of that because that is exactly what our volunteers did. I loved it.

Stellar athletes train overtime much of the time. They know that if they want to be the best and compete at a level with the best then they have to put in that time. Artists spend tons of time on the little details, often throwing away a piece of art and starting from scratch. Architects know that they must work hard and be precise so not to fail at keeping others safe. We have to do the same. If we are the ones who are working to save and nurture the souls of others, for eternity in the strength and will of the Lord, we too cannot take our jobs lightly.

Don't expect kids to come to your group if you are sloppy; don't expect others to give their time to the same kind of ministry. They know wussup. And I know that we all have hang-ups. I know that your church has insane rules that don't let you do stuff that you know could help your ministry. You know, like not letting the youth use the big sanctuary or fields, for fear that you ill mess them up. But we have to deal with it. I know that there are rules imposed upon your ministry that you think are dumb. So do I. But you need to work through that madness and do ministry anyway.

I remember when we had so many kids coming to our group that we either needed to move to a bigger place, which we did not have available, or we needed another nite to split the kids up, which also was not available. So I had to watch as we could not capacitate the amount of kids that were coming. The result is that we would lose kids because they were as frustrated as we were that we did not get the space needed. What did I do? I did my best to make the space that we needed. It did not always work the way that we wanted it to. But it is all we could do. But one thing we did not do was give up. You need to work through it. A bad attitude won't get you anything at all.

Cobb always made sure we were on our A-game. At the beginning of my time at the church in my early years we did stuff to move through the hard situations – before they happened. He knew what we were up against most of the time before it happened. And that was the key. If you can be ready for stuff then you can head it off. You have to be intuitive or have someone who is. Luckily, I had Cobb.

If you have a superior who you report to then I hope that person is keeping you accountable. If not, do it yourself. Get some discipline. Much of what I do with pastors now is help them be accountable, to themselves, their superiors and their volunteers. If you are on top of stuff then it will be seen by others in your ministry and transfer down to them. If not, well, you know what will happen.

Developing your network

You and I need to spend time with other youth pastors. Actually, that is what I get to do and love it. You are some of the coolest peeps I know. The ones who want to put time into students and give up you life, or what is left of it now, to the future of tomorrow. We need to support each other more than ever. With all the madness going on and everything that kids have to deal with today, they need us and the leaders that we build. And the more they need guidance, the more we are going to have to rely on one another to keep our sanity. You have a testimony and reason for doing ministry just like the guy or girl at the church down the road. And others need to hear that story. I don't think that I have ever heard a story from a youth pastor that did not inspire me.

There are blind spots in your ministry. There are blind spots in mine. The problem is that we all are so busy that we say we do not have time for a lunch with other pastors on a regular basis, yet we wonder why we do not grow at a rate that is pleasing to us or in many cases our senior pastors. Well, you need to be spending time with other youth workers on a regular basis. Others need to hear what you are doing to make sure you are not off your rocker. They are the ones who will keep you from the many pitfalls of ministry. You will learn stuff from them that you will think, “wow, I should have known that.” and these are the blind spots. You can overcome and beat them, but not until you take action to do so. I know you are busy, but that is not an excuse.

We all have tons to give and tons to learn from others. I remember when Cobb would take me along to chill with him at a monthly youth pastors lunch with all the peeps doing youth ministry in our local area. They were pretty cool. But they soon stopped and it was always really hard to get peeps together. But those who stuck with one another continued to grow. Many fell out of ministry, however, I do not know if these meetings could have helped. But I know that there is no way that they could have hurt them. Look at your schedule. Do you have other youth peeps in it regularly? Develop your network. It will add value to your ministry... sooner than later.

The daily journey...

You are a on a personal journey each and every day of your life. You know this. It is one of those things that we here from peeps as we grow up. It is our time to grow into someone who thinks clearly and for themselves, one to change and become one who changes the world in our own way. Within those changes there a few items that I would like to touch on that you will need to keep in mind. The first is that of connections. Write down all the peeps you meet. Get a business card of each of these persons and when you are done speaking with them following the first time you meet, turn it over and write down all the info that you learned about them. You may never see them again, but if you do then yo will remember the conversation you had and have something to go off of. Think about it. What are you most concerned with when you meet someone for the first time? You are just hoping that you don't mess stuff up on your end and become very self-aware, which causes you to forget most of what the other person is saying. Many of these peeps will become your allies further down the road.

Just a couple of months ago I was going to be traveling a bunch around the states, so I figured out the places I was going to be and checked to see if I had any connections in each of them. Surprisingly, most of the states or cities that you vist you will know some peeps, you just have to do your due diligence to remember that they are there. Make time to see them, even if it is for a short time or a pop-by kind of time. It will make peeps feel that you care – but the catch is that you should not do it if you do not care. You must always be sincere. Back to my homie. I found out that I was going to be in his state. Up to this point in our friendship I hadn't a chance to meet his wife or newborn son so this would be a good time. So I took time to go to his house and do so. I was only there for a couple of hours. But it was important to me to make this connection with him and his family, as we are in the same line of work and he will be a forever friend – if I continue to take initiative.

"The right man is the one who seizes the moment."

~J.W. von Goethe

When the opportunity presents itself to you, take it. There is a lot to say about going out and getting something done. I knew that on my trip I was going to be tired. I knew that there were tons of cities and destinations within them in a very short period of time. But I knew that the importance of the stuff I needed to get done outweighed the energy I would expend to do that stuff. The journey is a long one and when you reach the ultimate destination of one or more of your goals it will be only because of the intentionality of the activity up to that point.

It is easy to stay home or in the back, but the fruit comes from doing your best and getting things done. So the next time you are wondering if you should do something, get on it! I am not saying don't pray. What I am saying is that if you start praying now for discernment then when you come to those decisions you will know what to do more often than not. You will begin to trust yourself and your judgment and feel the hand of God in your decisions. And that is why I pray for wisdom and discernment each day – and I am not kidding about that. Those are two parts of the end of every prayer I say in the morning when I rise and at nite when I hit the sack... and in between usually too. What are you praying for? Are you taking initiative? Are you an active part of your life's journey or are you just hanging back waiting for stuff to happen? Because I will tell you this. If you are always on the lookout and aware, you will be ready for the decisions on the journey, big and small.

Windshield time...

Some of the best ministry you will ever do will be on the way to do ministry. i remember spending countless hours in Cobb’s vehicles over the many years we did ministry together. it all started in high school when i was one of the students in his ministry. he would pick me up in his grey astro minivan to hang out, go to eat, conferences and stuff like that. the day i accepted JC as my Lord and Savior was sitting in the passenger seat of that van, praying for God to take over my life in a deliberate way.

those years continued into the time i was on paid staff as a youth intern and a pastor under his care. we would go everywhere together. the adventures were endless. and on all of those drives we would have some serious talks, light-hearted ones and those that brought tears to my eyes. we went on missions trips together, more conferences, other churches for meetings and around town to see random peeps in our youth group and those on staff.

and no matter how short or far the drive, he always offered to drive and insisted that we roll together. it was that important to him to get some time with me and whoever he was ministering with at the time. and i never really understood that for the longest time. but he consistently fueled up his tank in hopes that he could do the same for my spiritual life. it was intentional ministry. i did not see it but he did. i look back on those conversations and times in the automobiles with him and thank God for the time he spent with me.

and because of that i do the same intentional ministry now. when i am spending time with pastors or other persons with whom i do leadership stuff, if there is a way for us to roll together then i do it. looking through the many windshields we shared i have learned some of the most important lessons of my life. are you doing the same? do you take even the smallest of opportunities to spend with your staff to build into them? until you see every opportunity as one to add value to others i suggest that you continue to learn more about leadership. we all have blind spots. and it is not bad. we are just lucky to have guys like Cobb in our lives to put that time in when we have no idea whats going on.

it took me years to learn, but i did. and i still do. get some windshield time with your mentors. whether they are going a short or far distance, get in the vehicle and drive. many times its the trips where very few to no words are spoken that you will learn the most. take what you can because those who believe in you are willing to give it and you should eagerly accept the guidance. look at the places in your life where God is trying to speak to you through others and begin to recognize meaningful and intentional relationships. ask your mentor, i’ll be s/he already knows, and will be impressed for you to see it too.

Training vs. Expectations

Your expectation of your volunteers and the training you give them should be equal. with no training there should be no expectation, etc. and that is the harsh reality of ministry. your staff is only going to be as good as you allow them to be. i remember early in my career as a pastor i would get frustrated with the peeps on my staff often. what i failed to realize was that most of them were young and inexperienced college kids, and forget having parents on staff because i had no credibility as a leader. but that was the problem... me.

the hard fact of my ministry was that i did not know what i was doing. and since i was straight out of high school i fell into the category that i make fun of all the time, and that is that of high school students who think they know it all - but don’t. yes, this was MO in the early years. and i was not just young in age but also young in ministry experience. i was good at the leadership stuff that i learned but anything above that was out of my league. and i was not good enuff to know it. i was living in my own world thinking that i was the best leader on the face of the planet.

John C. Maxwell speaks a lot of the “leadership lid.” and that leader cannot lead anyone effectively, for any long period of time anyway, who has a higher or equal lid to them. it is just impossible. peeps gravitate towards leaders that can stretch them and take them where they cannot go themselves. are you this kind of leader? when you get upset with the peeps in your ministry on the team it is really a reflection of your abilities to lead. you have to put more time in training your staff if you want them to be better. but here is the catch.

you have to put time into your own training before you ever do stuff with your staff. don’t be a buster and lie to them, letting them think you are trying to grow as a leader if you are not. you need to continue to educate, first yourself and then your staff. it’s like when a plane is having cabin pressure problems and the masks drop from the ceiling. what does the flight attendant say... for you to put on your own first and then help. same principle here. if you are trying to help others before yourself, you will ultimately run out of air and you will not only get yourself in trouble, but the very peeps you are trying to help. be a good leader. raise your leadership lid and never stop learning. the training will come and then you will not have expectations, your staff will set them for you.

Your personal agenda...

Let’s be real clear about this. do not push your spiritual agenda on any other person that you know. i remember going to the Rose Parade with my junior high group and had a blast every year. at the end there would always be the peeps directly behind it with signs like “God will send you to hell... unless you repent.” and every year our students would inevitably ask questions about whether or not that was an effective way to minister. well, i am a firm believer in that God can use whatever God wants to change the hearts of people... and that is all i have to say about that.

but that brings me to a more important question. how do you minister to others? are you the person who gets all offended and upset when others do not see God the way that you do? i hope not. i remember when i first started ministry and would do my absolute best to get peeps to love God, and if they did not then i would get all discouraged and be angry with both them and God. that caused me a bunch of strife and wasted energy because there was really only so much that i had control of and the rest was out of my control.

don’t push your spiritual agenda on others, it will just stifle your ministry. i am amazed at when peeps say that they are going to a new church because the one that they are leaving is not “feeding” them anymore. what does that mean anyway??? if you accept JC in your life then you are on the working side of ministry - no excuse. remember the ministry that you are leaving is prolly the same one that met you where you were at when you were one who did not believe in JC as your Savior. so, get over it. if you are not growing in your spiritual walk with God then blame one person - you.

stop complaining and start doing ministry. and remember that the peeps that are not “getting it” are the same group you were in at one time in your life. if your church or group is not doing well, don’t leave it. that is when it needs you the most. and don’t give me that bunk that there Lord is “moving you in a new direction.” most of the time it is just you running from a bad ministry with problems that you prolly helped create. so, get in your ministry, roll up your sleeves, stop blaming the Senior Pastor’s “lack of understanding” or anyone else’s shortcoming and help peeps see the vision. if you cannot communicate vision then you are not going to make it in this business for the long haul. I believe in you. I pray for you - the youth pastors of the world. you will shape the minds and hearts of today’s youth so that they will change the world for God tomorrow.

A badge you don't want...

Badges are usually a pretty cool thing to have. they signify that we were involved with something special or that we were on a team that achieved something great. let’s talk about a badge that you and i do not want to wear - the badge of Workaholism. this is not something that will enhance your ministry or help you in your relationship with your family, staff and those closest to you. when you put in mad hours at church, only to miss your nite out with the peeps or to be away from your family when they have been waiting at home for you, you best not do this for a very long time. and this whole mentality of working for God so it is ok that i neglect those closest to me and my health is not a good answer.

We’ve all done it. we stay late when everyone else is off campus because that is the best time to get stuff done, or going in extra early in the morning. this is ok once in a while but if it is a habit for you then you need to consider some changes. if you are the person speaking up in an interview about your workaholism, wearing as a badge of hard work and honor, then stop. i hope that churches and pastors see this as a lack of stewardship on your part. you need to be able to work within parameters that are healthy for you. and this is not a blog abut your sleep habits. some of you will need less sleep than others. whatever your number is, you know it. if you do not, just ask your family and they will let you know how much sleep you need to not be a straight up buster in the morning.

you know what you can handle in a healthy way. you know when your eyes are burning and it feels like no matter what you eat you feel like crap. But effectiveness is the key. it is the essential goal in all your madness of life. you only have so much to give. i did not do this well in the early years of my ministry and Cobb saw this in me. in fact, since he had known me through most of my high school years, he was able to see that potential when he brought me on. we had tons of talks about it. we both failed many times in our ministries to be true to our personal time. however, i feel much better now. and i still speak to Cobb about it often.

Avoid the workaholism badge, no one thinks its a good one to have. your peeps will eventually wonder why you can’t keep your composure. so if you are running from place to place to give peeps the water from your buckets of effectiveness, just remember that the harder you run for a long period of time, the more water will spill out. then you will have less to give to others. take your time, stop every once in a while and remember that ministry will always go on even if you are not there. you just have to do your best when you are in the game. you can only run at those RPMs for so long. slow down, get your pace, and run well.