So... what DO you expect?

In the family welcome and check in area for our kid’s ministry we have a Giant Gumball machine. Children often come with their coins in hand, looking with great anticipation as they place their money in the slot, turn the handle and crouch down waiting for the Gumball to come down the chute and out the bottom. They know that every time their money goes in the gumball comes out; it’s consistent and reliable. On a rare occasion, for no particular reason, they get two, and that’s just a bonus!

These same children have expectations as they walk through the doors of our ministry. They expect to see people they know, friends and leaders; familiar faces.

They love to be known, recognised as they are greeted by name or have their birthday or some other significant event remembered. Children expect to have fun!

As leaders we expect to teach the Bible in a creative way, in a way that is relevant, memorable and applicable to our kids in their everyday lives. Our volunteers expect to be able to use their skill, passion and gifts in a meaningful way.

However, frustration and disappointment set in when expectations are continually unmet.

In ministry this is a constant tension: managing the expectations of children, parents, team, church and, of course, ourselves. Expectations need to be realistic, achievable and sustainable. We manage expectations by creating language around them; painting a picture of “what could be”. Disclosing the purpose behind these expectations helps our teams see that these are not rules; they are values.

As a ministry leader we want to promise only what we can deliver. We have a picture in our minds of what things could look like and what it will take to get there, yet naming current reality helps everyone pace themselves on the journey.

I have an expectation that each child will come to the same service every week and be in the same small group with the same leader. Currently this is not true for every child so we manage the expectations of our parents by describing some of our groups as “intentional small groups”, our preferred picture, and some as simply “small groups”; not yet where we want them to be but nevertheless meeting a need.

Being aware of expectations helps us as a leader to think more critically, and evaluate more rigorously, what we do and why we do it. Are we consistent in what we provide for our kids and families both programmatically and relationally? Do we try to have leaders in the room with whom they can really connect or do we simply roster people because that is easiest?

Our expectations will have a significant impact on the results we see. When we anticipate life change then we plan for it, vision cast it, teach for it and look for it; not resting until we see our expectations becoming a reality.

Imagine if all those within your ministry had expectations that were aligned under the one strategy?
Imagine if everyone spoke the same language and had the same end in mind. How would your reality change?

Your ministry does not stand alone. It’s not up to you to do it all by yourself. Getting others on the same page takes time, intention and strategy. Be willing to work together on a common picture with other ministry leaders. Paint the picture of what you want to see then communicate it with passion and enthusiasm.

Margaret Spicer

Children and Families Pastor

Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

Finding Your Rhythm

Have you ever felt the pressure of too many demands of ministry?

Equipping volunteers, sorting rosters, communicating to parents, pastors and of course, planning great messages for kids. Training events, camps, did I mention the weekly set up and pack down, the balancing of budgets etc.

Will you ever get some sort of order to what feels chaotic? “Its just a season,” you say, but how long will this season last?

The reality is there will always be peaks and valleys, the challenge is to create a rhythm and work within that. This is critical for the longevity of your leadership.

Step back and take a look at the whole year. Mark out the months of the year on a time line. Identify the peaks, those seasons/events that take additional effort: the start of the year, additional events (include training) or church wide initiatives, launching new teams and implementing curriculums.

ASK YOURSELF THESE 5 QUESTIONS:

1. What do you want to achieve by the end of the year?
2. What will it take? Estimate the hours involved.
3. How long can you keep up this pace?
4. How will I know when I have achieved what I set out to do?
5. Look at your hours available for ministry in a week—prioritize how much time each activity is worth in relation to the expected outcome.

Finding your rhythm will enable you to lead a team in the same way. Over scheduling fills up the calendar and decreases your effectiveness. The phrase “less is more” is applicable when we decide what we will do less of and identify how we will get more from what we do.

Spend time visioning and planning. Spend 1 hour a week, 1 day a month and 1 week a year planning and visioning for the future. Make decisions in a timely manner; indecision costs valuable time and energy.

What are you doing that only you can do?

Is there anything that you are currently doing that would be better done by someone else?

Once a marathon runner was asked: "What do you think about when you run such a long distance?" And he replied: "While I'm running, I'm thinking how to breathe correctly and properly put my foot." His breathing and the proper placement of his feet create a rhythm: this rhythm allows him focus on really important things and forget about the less important and the unimportant.

When you have your own rhythm you focus on your goal and the steps needed to reach it. Finding the rhythm of ministry allows you to pace yourself for the long haul. Your journey becomes more enjoyable. You have strength to navigate the demanding season and the wisdom to harness the momentum of the “down” times.

TAKING THE CONVERSATION FURTHER:

DISCUSS THIS WITH KEY LEADERS FROM YOUR TEAM:
· Ask if they can articulate the current rhythm of your ministry.
· How does this impact them?
· What changes do they feel need to be made?
 

Margaret Spicer
Children and Families Pastor
Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

So tell me… Why am I doing this?

How many unfinished projects do you have around your home or office? A book you began to read but haven’t yet finished or a DVD you purchased but still haven't watched? How easily our initial enthusiasm gives way to the pressures and demands of everyday life. It’s not that we don’t want to do it; it’s just the time and priority factor.

Volunteers often start well too! They sign up and are keen to serve. After a while it gets harder as the initial excitement of something new passes and other demands begin to press in. We all know that we could not do ministry without volunteers, yet we also know that each volunteer has their own reasons for serving and these reasons determine the level to which they get involved. Recruiting is one step, but retaining and developing volunteers is something totally different. Volunteers usually need continued inspiration; they need to know that what they bring to the min istry really matters.

I want my volunteers to be connected not only in body but in heart and mind too. You can easily tell the difference between a volunteer who is totally engaged compared with a volunteer who just turns up to serve. They both do the job but only one moves our ministry forward.

We are more likely to engage in activities where we feel like we are making a real difference however it may not be easy for a volunteer to identify the difference they have made, especially if their role is more administrative or repetitive. It is the role of a leader to paint the big picture, telling the story of where we have come from, reminding everyone how they have contributed to the journey and inspiring them that “we are going forward together.”

Volunteers can see that we are interested in their personal development, and their ideas, when we share with them the “next steps” they can take to grow in their leadership. Giving unqualified praise, eg “You are great!”, without saying what you’ve noticed that makes you think that way, is shallow praise and really does not impact the volunteer much at all. Also, take care not to communicate gratitude in such a way that volunteers are left with the impression that their serving is a one way street. Yes we are grateful for their service, however the opportunity to serve through our ministry to kids also does much to enrich them as Christ followers.

This time of the year people are often re-evaluating their volunteering, deciding if they will serve again next year. While the year -end is a good time to “take a break”, sadly some volunteers do not intend to return in the new year. As leaders we need to give our volunteers an extra dose of inspiration at this time, casting the vision and reminding them why we must keep giving our best to our kids. I find this one of the most critical times in the rhythm of our ministry.

So, don’t wait until the new year to honour volunteers; build on the momentum that is already there. Celebrate!! Throw a part y for your volunteers. (Find someone else to set up or clean up!!) Talk about the things you have done together, the tough times where you stood together. Celebrate by telling stories of the kids who have grown in their faith, developed new skills and discovered something fresh about themselves.

Give your volunteers opportunity to share their stories and experiences and explore their dreams. Identify all the different serving opportunities that exist in your ministry and let people indicate where they would most like to serve next year. When you have the right person serving in the right place their impact will be unstoppable!!

Make it a Win - Win - Win situation!

Our ministry wins when we have passionate, inspired volunteers.

Our volunteers win when they are growing and learning on the journey.

Our kids win when they have significant others coming alongside them, sharing with them, encouraging them and demonstrating a real life, genuine faith story.

Margaret Spicer

Children and Families Pastor

Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

Raising Great Leaders

Leadership development is not a destination; it’s a journey requiring intentionality and time. “Throwing someone in the deep end” is desperation, not strategy.

When we view volunteers as leaders who are influencers of our children we see more than what they do, we see who they are and who they are becoming. It’s not just about our team getting things done, it’s about us growing in love for God and the children and developing our skills so that we better communicate His life changing message.

I believe that every volunteer should be growing as they serve and it is our responsibility to help make that happen by offering opportunity, responsibility and support to those we lead. Some will grow as great followers while others will emerge as leaders of leaders. These are the very people who will take the ministry to new levels of creatively and impact as we morph and change to connect with children and families in a relevant way.

If you want to raise great leaders:

Build them: Be willing to invest in relationships. Who is on the team? You can’t be on the same page if you are never in the same room. I find out more about people through “playing together”. Time is precious so we don’t want to waste it. Invest in your team to spend some time together relationally. Discover who are the great followers and who are the emerging ministry leaders. The more you know one another the more you will appreciate and trust each other.

When did you last do something fun together?

Empower them: Different volunteers have different capacities for leadership. Your role as the leader is to discover how you can increase the capacity of each volunteer without “bursting” them. It’s like filling a balloon: not enough air and it’s no fun, too much and… well, you know what happens then.

Are your leaders feeling challenged or burdened, released or restricted? Ask them!

Include them: Everyone perceives things differently so when a group of people come together and share you get a more complete picture of any situation. You also get more ideas to relevantly connect with our kids and their families. Don’t be restricted by what you are teaching; listen to others and be willing to adapt. This does not mean changing direction totally, it means listening and moving with the rhythm of children and their families.

People grow through painful experiences so ask where are they hurting now? What is it that they need? How can we most effectively bring the truth of God to collide with the realities of life? Jesus took people from their current mindset and moved them to a new way of thinking. By adapting and responding, we can connect with our kids and their families where they are, then lead them into a new experience.

What aspects of your ministry have changed this year?

Lead them: As a leader we have to see far enough out from the present to know where we want to go. It is easy to assess our current situation... it is much harder to navigate into the unknown, to push through in a new direction. Even small changes that we make along the way have to be communicated with clarity and purpose in order to lead others. Frustration creeps in when volunteers do not know clearly where they are going and what is expected.

A great leader will not only want to lead well but they will want others to succeed too. It is not all about one central leader doing everything. Sustainable ministries are built with leaders who are willing to lift one other up; to support them and sustain them for the long haul.

As you lead in your ministry, who are you raising up?

Margaret Spicer

Children and Families Pastor

Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

Creating and Communicating a Ministry Culture

Children’s ministry teams by their nature draw together a wide range of volunteers. These volunteers come with a variety of experiences which shape their expectations and often direct their methods.

They have a mental picture of what Children’s Ministry is and what it ought to be. A teenager can tend to favour a fun environment being a “mate’ to the kids and may struggle with the leadership aspect. Someone who has worked with kids for a while, will want to draw on the methodology of the past and as a result may struggle to adapt to new methods.

Some volunteers value recall answers, others discussion and others craft. The more volunteers we have, the more diverse their expectations, therefore the clearer you must be in determining your culture.

A clearly defined culture

·         Gets everyone on the same page.

Visitors, Volunteers, parents and children all know what your ministry is about. Every week there is one consistent message going home and a clear plan on how parents can be involved in helping children take the next steps.

·         Gives consistency and continuity for our kids.

Most of us have teams that rotate, so the same team does not serve together every week. We need to present consistency in presentation, language, and expectation across our ministry.

·         Ignites passion.

Nothing is more inspiring to a team than working together to see goals achieved. Knowing and feeling like you are part of something bigger, and more significant than just you!

Vision and values can be recorded for people to read, but culture defines what actually happens. It’s what people see, feel and hear when they are in your ministry area as a visitor, volunteer, parent or child. It can be heard by the language that is used, the rituals (programming) that you engage in and in the dynamics of your team.

Communicate your culture

·         Speak it!

Remind your team of the things that matter most and why they are important, what would be lost if we did not pay attention to them? These characteristics not only form the vision piece, but link to the process (eg. “when you give kids time to share, they feel we value them”), and evaluation as well. Don’t say it once, but over and over again in different ways.

·         Show it!

Use non verbal ways of communicating your message through signage, decor, atmosphere, and procedure/ritual. Our words become even more powerful when they are backed up by consistent actions. eg If your ministry area is truly targeted for the kids, it will look age appropriate. This can be done on a week by week set up, it does not have to be permanent. If we say we are relevant and prepared and then to quickly write a bible verse on a white board or a scrappy piece of paper shows something different.

·         Feel it!

Atmosphere is one of the first things that registers for me when I walk into a ministry area. A collaboration of visual messages reinforced by the personal approach of the team and reflected in the kids response. Ownership is a value that can be felt. When every person on the team knows what their contribution is and how it helps the overall team, you can feel it. There is an atmosphere of encouragement and support—we play as team!!

·         Live it!

These characteristics become part of the fabric of being team, it’s like breathing, we just do it!

To change any aspect of your existing culture takes time and intentional effort.

What are the characteristics that define the culture of your ministry?

·        How do you demonstrate these on a weekly basis?

·         If you were to evaluate your ministry this week based on these characteristics,

how would you score?

·        Ask your parents, volunteers and children questions to determine if you are actually communicating clearly.

Margaret Spicer

Children and Families Pastor

Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

Are We There Yet?

Ever heard the sound of that song coming from the back seat of the car?

It’s kind of obvious that “we’re not”! If we were the car would have stopped and we would be out. Really what our kids want to know is how much further in comparison to how far we’ve come. Give me a reference point so that I can adjust my expectations.

We are no different with life, asking God, “are we there yet?” Can’t I just get to the destination and enjoy it. The reality is our whole life is a journey.

Every time we get to a “there” it becomes a “here” - a starting point for the next part of the journey.As I entered into the work force as a school teacher I knew that God had called me to touch the lives of kids. During that time my husband and I began a Sunday gathering for kids in a local community house; this later grew into a church. After four years of teaching in a school, God called us on another part of our journey as pastors in the Salvation Army. We spent the next 13 years pastoring two churches, one in Wainuiomata and the other in West Auckland. Over the past 9 years I served as a full-time teacher in a local school for 4 years and have been on the Willow Creek NZ staff for 5 years.Whilst my past does not define my future, it sure shapes it. Looking back over the past experiences, both those which I gladly embraced and those I would rather not have had to bear, have all contributed to who I am today. This includes my successes and failures, disappointments and celebrations; following my hopes and dreams. I have continued to learn more about myself, gained new knowledge and understanding of people and ministry. While my journey has lead me in different directions my underlying desire to love God and serve him with passion and enthusiasm has never changed.

Now I am entering into a new “there” for my ministry as I relocate from NZ to Melbourne to take up a position on the staff of Crossway Baptist Church as Children and Young Families’ Pastor. It was one of those moments that came quite unexpected when I was asked if I would consider leading this significant ministry. For me there were many ‘buts’... however God graciously walked with me through this questioning time, leading me to respond “Yes!” Crossway were willing to hold the position for me for over 6 months and now, in December, I take up this new part of my journey.

I will still continue to invest in Children’s ministry leaders in New Zealand though the ENGAGE children’s ministry training, mentoring (via Skype) and of course the JUMP children’s newsletter.

I am confident that God will use my gifts, strengths and passion to grow His Kingdom, impacting children and their families for Him.

I have enjoyed the privilege of sharing the past few years of my journey with you and look forward to where our paths may cross again in the future. Until then… enjoy your journey.

Margaret Spicer

Executive Director

WCANZ