Purpose of Ministry
Why do we do this?
The word "ministry," in its most elementary form, simply means "service," or "aid." Although I use the term "youth pastor" on occasion, I prefer the term "youth minister." We do have a responsibility to lead and guide our young people, but mostly, we are just service providers. Most importantly, we serve our God. Then we serve our church body. And we serve every young person who comes in on our bus or walks through the door of our building.
The question is, "What do we serve them?" You will find in a vast majority of evangelical churches today a plethora of "services" for young people. We give you music, we give you drama, we give you activities, outings, all-nighters... All with a certain purpose in mind (hopefully): To give you the Word of God. But somewhere in the midst of all the "appetizers" and "desserts," I'm afraid many of our young people are missing the main course.
I have had parents say, "Our young people today are bored. They need more to do." I think I would disagree. Young people can always find things to do, but what they need are better things to do. I believe our job as youth ministers is to serve young people the Word of God. Now, how we serve it is another matter that we will deal with...
The question is, "What do we serve them?" You will find in a vast majority of evangelical churches today a plethora of "services" for young people. We give you music, we give you drama, we give you activities, outings, all-nighters... All with a certain purpose in mind (hopefully): To give you the Word of God. But somewhere in the midst of all the "appetizers" and "desserts," I'm afraid many of our young people are missing the main course.
I have had parents say, "Our young people today are bored. They need more to do." I think I would disagree. Young people can always find things to do, but what they need are better things to do. I believe our job as youth ministers is to serve young people the Word of God. Now, how we serve it is another matter that we will deal with...
Philosophy of Ministry
How should we do this?
You want to know how many philosophies of ministry there are out there? I suppose there are nearly as many philosophies of ministry as there are pastors. This is where many churches divide from each other. Whereas two churches may share basic doctrinal beliefs, the methods they believe to be most God-honoring, or most "effective (in the long run)" or most "relevant to the times" may cause the pastors to lead "their" flock in different directions.
As youth ministers, we must learn our pastor's philosophy of ministry. Honestly, I can't imagine anyone failing to research that before joining a church, let alone coming on staff as a youth minister. Similarly, I can't imagine a pastor bringing anyone on staff to work with their teens without thoroughly addressing this matter. Perhaps yours will never completely line up with your pastor's, but you should at least be able to understand their view and be willing to take on that philosophy while you are on staff. Any open disagreements or undermining will tear up a ministry in a heartbeat.
As youth ministers, we must learn our pastor's philosophy of ministry. Honestly, I can't imagine anyone failing to research that before joining a church, let alone coming on staff as a youth minister. Similarly, I can't imagine a pastor bringing anyone on staff to work with their teens without thoroughly addressing this matter. Perhaps yours will never completely line up with your pastor's, but you should at least be able to understand their view and be willing to take on that philosophy while you are on staff. Any open disagreements or undermining will tear up a ministry in a heartbeat.
IBTeen Resources
(Click on the links below)
(Click on the links below)
Youth Activity Ideas
A work in progress for 2015. We are featuring a different youth activity idea each week this year to share with others for inspiring future youth activities.
A work in progress for 2015. We are featuring a different youth activity idea each week this year to share with others for inspiring future youth activities.
Feel free to browse through some basic outlines and agendas from some of our activities. Perhaps this would help you with some ideas for your upcoming activities. We'd love for you to share your ideas as well. Contact us here
We will also be periodically updating our sermons and music page which may be a blessing to you. Check it out.
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