transitions: starting in a new ministry
IT’S A NEW DAY and you’re starting fresh in a new ministry. Now what?
Walking into a new ministry is exciting, but also requires a lot of work. Finding a new groove means change, and change comes with a cost. It’s usually not easy meeting new people, learning new values, and taking on a new role.
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SYM_CON: created by youth workers for youth workers.
Learn from more than 80 of today’s most respected voices.
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There are also new mistakes to avoid. If you’re not careful, you can make transition even more difficult than it should be. Here’s our advice for starting in a new ministry so you can have a more positive transition:
COMMIT TO SLOW, INCREMENTAL CHANGE
Youth Ministry isn’t like the wild west and you don’t have to be the “new sheriff in town.” Ministry isn’t about power, control and rigid authority. When you are new, your “finger print” doesn’t have to be on everything. Making a lot of quick, radical changes can bankrupt your credibility. Without a foundation of trust, change will be even more difficult. Slow change is usually the right posture for a transitioning leader. Besides, if you’re in it for the long haul, you will have plenty of time for future change.
DEVELOP RELATIONSHIPS
Yea, we know this is a no-brainer point... but if we didn’t mention it, we’d be questioned. Ministry is about life-change, and if you don’t take the time to LOVE PEOPLE toward change, you will have weak influence.
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SYM_CON: created by youth workers for youth workers.
Learn from more than 80 of today’s most respected voices.
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CAPTURE EVERY OBSERVATION
As a newbie, you have fresh eyes. As an outsider, you’ll experience the ministry in ways that the insiders have forgotten. Since you don’t share a common history with the ministry, you won’t have the same assumptions about “the way” things ought to be. Take note of everything you feel and think, because you’ll quickly become an “insider” and see things the way others do (even though you swear you won’t).
Conversation
I started my first youth
I started my first youth ministry yesterday, and I am extremely nervous. I guess the gist of the advice above is patience and love. I'll implement them both! Thanks for this information.
I am new to this site and I
I am new to this site and I am glad i found it, Thank you for this advice on newbies!...I have never ran a youth ministry before but it is my desire and passion!...I am also a new member of this church and they dont have one so i needed to hear these points
@MattS .. I really appreciate
@MattS .. I really appreciate your comment. This is the first day of my new ministry and I have come from a similar experience. It is my prayer that I will have the wisdom to not have a bunker mentality in my current ministry. I covet your prayers!
Matt and Kristin: thanks for
Matt and Kristin: thanks for sharing!
Anonymous: I just wrote a blog post on this last night, in response to a question from another youth worker. I don't know it this fits your situation specifically, but it may come close: http://lovegodlovestudents.com/2010/lead/ymqa-is-god-calling-me-to-leave...
My wife and I feel a nudge
My wife and I feel a nudge from God to look at the senior ministry or plant a church. We love the people where we are at and have extremely healthy relationships plus I've been here for 8 1/2 years so I have earned the respect and ear of church leadership. Any thoughts on discerning a potential move when it would leave away from youth ministry?
I just started at a new
I just started at a new church that has never really had a youth ministry program before. This article is right where I'm at and the best advice I received before coming here was to ask questions and then to listen... a lot. So I've been doing that... a lot. I've been trying to ask the right questions to the right people and just listen to their thoughts about youth ministry at our church. I've realized that it's important to simply listen even though I may have strong opinions about the topic. Right now it's more important that I hear their opinions than for them to hear mine. For the most part, they don't need to know my opinions right now, they just need to be heard and they need to know that I care about what they think.
I've learned a lot and I'm constantly learning more about this transition time right now.
These are some great thoughts
These are some great thoughts in transitioning ministries. A couple of years ago I transitioned into a new youth ministry close to home. I came out of a bad experience that left a bad taste in my mouth. I experienced a new "obstacle" in transitioning. I let my baggage from my last ministry carry with me. I let a lack of trust and paranoia tint my view of my new leadership even though they didn't give me any reasons to percieve them that way. It took some good conversations with some friends and the encouragement from the preaching minister on staff to work though that particular issue. If that's something you're struggling with my encouragement to everyone would be to make a point of looking with fresh eyes at a new situation and trust that God is in control and that he brings you where you're needed.
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