You’ve probably heard all the old “planning” clichés before:
“Measure twice and cut once.”
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”
“Plan your work and then work your plan”
“If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there, and you won't know when you're lost.”
But what if you just don’t have time to plan or hold planning meetings? What are you supposed to do? May I suggest that not planning is planning? The above statements are true…not just some old clichés. If you fail to plan, you are planning. The question is, are you planning what you want to plan? Some people plan by trying to skirt around deadlines. For instance, “Easter is April… how about we plan an Easter Christian Service?” Great idea; let’s talk about that later.” Then, later never seems to arrive and before you know it, Easter came and went and so did the opportunity. You did plan, just not the way you should have.
So, what are you supposed to do if you’re too busy to plan? I submit that if you’re too busy to plan, you’re too busy. STOP! Look at your schedule and what you’re doing.
- Prioritize
- Set aside time to plan your day (you may have to get up earlier)
- Look at your “big rocks” (You know that illustration, right?)
- Plan out the next week, every week
- Plan out the next month, every month
- At least once a year, plan out the next year
- Leave “fudge” room. Cars break down, people get sick, non-planning people have “emergencies” that they think belong to you.
- Plan down time
Children are only in grade school 6 short years; students are in your youth ministry only 6 short years. Your personal children grow up very quickly. You may want to just “go with the flow” but if you’re not careful, you may find that life and ministry has just flowed past you, before you had time to plan.
For some additional thoughts on this subject, check out this Transfer Live video. Rob Phillips speaks about Ministry Calendar Management."
Just this past weekend, most people with at least a little bit of Bible knowledge watched without bated breath as, once again, someone tried to set a date certain for the end of the world. Then, I heard the following illustration in a pastor’s message Sunday morning:
Two preachers were standing next to a road with sandwich signs that read, “The end is near.” A man traveling by car down the road slowed slightly to read the signs, and then, as he shook his head, he resumed highway speed. A few hundred yards further down the road, his car plummeted off the end of the road and into a ravine. One of the preachers looked at the other and said, “Do you think we should have been more specific, like ‘Bridge Out’ or something like that?
These two events got me to thinking that as parents and/or youth leaders we need to be sure that we are proclaiming “The end is near.” No, I’m not talking about the end of the world. Yes, I believe in an imminent rapture. And yes, I believe that we should be sure our children and youth are prepared for that very real event.
What I am talking about is another “end” that is near.
- Have you prepared your children for the “end” of childhood as they enter their teen years?
- Have you prepared your middle-schoolers for the “end” of middle-school as they transition to high school?
- Have you prepared your high-schoolers for college or entrance into the work world?
- Have you prepared your college kids for transition into their careers?
Each of these transitions means a transition spiritually as well. Hopefully, your young people are growing in their spiritual lives, but may need some “warning” about what life (spiritually and otherwise) is like at the next level. Many times we get so caught up in the day-to-day ministry that we forget to look “down the road” and see what’s ahead. Spend some time with those to whom you minister and warn them that the END IS NEAR!
 Recently there has been a rash of news stories concerning adultery, failed marriages, and Facebook. There was even one story recently where a Pastor was preaching against Facebook (I’m glad I don’t attend that church) and then had to admit that he had been involved in an adulterous relationship. By the way, I refuse to call such relationships “affairs.” I think that’s a little too clean and nice for sin. If you Google this issue you can get plenty of “evidence” that Facebook and other social network sites are “bad for marriages.” Is that true? Let’s look at it this way:
One Sunday afternoon, you sit in your living room in your recliner, minding your own business while it is pouring rain outside. Suddenly, you are rudely startled by a very cold DRIP on your nose. You look up just in time to see the next drop of water release from the ceiling and head straight for your face. Oh no! You have a leak in your roof! You run outside and look up at the roof in the general area over your La-Z-Boy in the living room and you see…nothing. No obvious holes, no missing shingles, no visible avenue for water to ruin your Sunday afternoon, let alone your house. You have a small hole in your roof that water inevitably finds. That’s the way it is, water will find the hole in your roof.
So what do you do? Well, you could stand there and curse the rain…like that would help. Stop and think for a minute. Would you really want to live someplace where it never rained? No, you need to catch the water that is already working its way into your house and try some way to prevent more rain from finding that hole. Put a tarp or something over that area. Then, when it stops raining find someone that knows what they are doing to repair that roof because it will rain again.
Facebook and other social networks are a little bit like the rain in this example. They don’t cause the hole in the marriage, they just find it. If a marriage is struggling, should the couple stay off Facebook while they fix things? Absolutely, if that is part of the problem, but they should also be aware of other areas, such as TV, telephone, running around in the car, and going places where they can connect with someone other than their spouse. I would say that includes their job. Yes, I think a marriage is more important than a job. Do whatever it takes to protect your marriage from additional damage until you can find someone who knows what they are doing to help you repair your marriage.
Facebook and other social networks are nothing more than a really cool tool and they are definitely a part of our world today. We can curse them (like that will help) or we can learn how to deal with them. By the way, if Facebook has been the cause of ruined marriages, I would humbly submit that cars and telephones and hotels have ruined many, many more. I don’t hear too many Pastors banning those items in their churches.
If you would like to read an article written specifically to Pastors concerning social networking, click HERE. (FYI: The link to this article was sent to me by my wife via….Facebook message!)
How Do You Spell Discipleship?
I.N.T.E.R.G.E.N.E.R.A.T.I.O.N.A.L R.E.L.A.T.I.O.N.S.H.I.P.S
As Graduation Week here on wol.org draws to a close, I wanted to spend a few minutes discussing a very important topic: Intergenerational relationships. I understand this topic may not be a help to you right now as your students are in the midst of transitioning into the next stage of their lives, but it is something that you can be sure to implement now and perhaps reduce the problems encountered in the future with similar transitions. Young people need all age ranges to be involved in discipleship so they can see that discipleship is a life-long process, not just a program to participate in on “youth night.”
Take a moment and look at your leadership team. Are they all 20-somethings? Or, are they all 40-somethings? If you answered yes to either of those questions, or if your leadership team is mono-generational, you have a problem. I realize I may be speaking to some 20-something youth Pastors and let me assure you, I don’t think that’s a bad thing. The Psalmist, speaking of the faithfulness of the Lord, said in Psalm 37:25; “I have been young and now I am old…” and I must confess that I feel that way most days. I was a 20-something Youth Pastor, and then a 30-something Youth Pastor before I became a  40-something and then a 50-something missionary. The mindset that a team of youth leaders must be “young” to relate to the youth is just as wrong as the mindset that all youth leaders must be parents of teens. A strong leadership team needs leaders from a range of ages for two reasons.
A strong leadership team needs older leaders that have a fair amount of “Christian life” experience under their belt. Back to the psalmist again, he was talking about following the Lord for years and realizing that the Lord is always faithful. Understanding that you can depend on God, no matter what comes your way, is something that can’t be grasped completely until you live through it. Trials bring patience (James 1:3) and are more precious than gold. (1 Peter 1:7) The fact is that most young adults haven’t been through some of those trials and life experiences that older adults have been through. There is also the matter of self-control that hopefully comes with years. Many younger adults haven’t developed that self-control yet. (Titus 2:4-6)
A strong leadership team also needs young leaders. Let’s be honest, as we get older, we do tend to become set in our ways. We can lose our zeal, our vision, and our sense of adventure. We may want to do things a certain way because that’s how we remember someone else doing it or because we have “always done it” that way. Yes, we need to be careful not to move “ancient landmarks” as long as they are landmarks; in other words “markers” that show boundaries established for a reason. Ancient landmarks are not traditions that have been established on preference. Sometimes it takes a younger set of eyes to see the difference. Those of us with a few years on us need to remember that younger adults can be strong, and have God’s Word in their hearts, too, and can also “overcome the evil one” (1 John 2:13,14) just as well as older adults can because both (young and old Christians) have the same Holy Spirit.
So how does this help you with those transition times of life like graduation? The bottom line is this: young people need all age ranges to be involved in discipleship. In fact, I would go so far as to say that intergenerational relationships ARE discipleship. Both the Old and New Testaments speak of older teaching younger. But then we have to ask the question, what does “older” mean? Is it just older in years, or can it be older in the Christian life? I think the answer is obvious: Moses was 40 and had the best education available and his solution to the problem of rescuing the Israelites was to kill an Egyptian. He had to spend another 40 years in God’s school before he was ready to do the ministry to which he was called.
Think of it this way: just because someone is 40 doesn’t mean they have it all together for ministry. On the other hand, just because someone is 80 doesn’t mean they are too old to minister.
Check out these other blogs relating to Graduation Week:
As part of Graduation Week on wol.org, my wife, Beverly Deck, is the guest blogger with the following article:
This time of year brings lots of transitions. Not just high school and college graduations, but transitions from one stage of life to another. For example, you have young people in your church family who are graduating from grade school to….what?
Middle School students. No longer children, but not nearly adults yet, and not even ready for high school. They are at “that awkward stage”. No one quite knows what to do with this age group…in church ministry…or in homes! Paul David Tripp in his book Age of Opportunity , goes so far as to say that many parents are afraid of their teenagers. They go through their offspring’s entire childhood dreading what is going to happen when that sweet child approaches the age of 12. He then proceeds to give the Biblical viewpoint of the teenage years, and points out with clarity that this is the doorway of opportunity to maturity; physically, emotionally, intellectually, and most importantly, spiritually. So how should your youth ministry adapt in such a way as to best minister to these young people in this important stage of transition? Here are a few general principles, based on what we know to be characteristics of this exciting period of life that we call Middle School.
--Middle School students have short attention spans, due to the fact that they view life in high definition (commercials, text messages, video games, and YouTube) THEREFORE the lecture segments of your teaching time should be not more than TEN minutes. Spice the lecture segments up with visuals, group dynamics, and projects.
--Middle School students are emotionally volatile, and have trouble looking very far into the future; THEREFORE discipleship plans for them should have clear, well-defined, short-range goals with frequent contact for accountability. Checking up on their Quiet Time once a week just won’t cut it. Looking at a goal for the end of the year may be overwhelming to them. Divide their goals up into monthly segments to make them seem achievable.
--Middle School students are just venturing into the world of abstract thinking; THEREFORE they would benefit from “yes”, “no” and “why” questions more than just a generalized small group discussion of a topic starting with “What do you think about…?”
--Middle School students are working toward independence, and because of that, may lean toward being disrespectful in their attitudes, THEREFORE every boundary needs to be backed up with scripture, NOT just the opinion of an adult. They need to be taught that they will always be accountable to God.
--Middle School students are testing their boundaries and their freedom; THEREFORE their boundaries need to be clearly defined, with clearly defined consequences for crossing them, and consistent follow-through when those boundaries are violated. As James Dobson teaches in his bestseller Parenting isn’t for Cowards, choose your battles. Stand your ground only on those issues that have eternal consequences, not those issues that truly don’t matter.
--Middle School students are easily embarrassed and self-conscious; THERFORE discipline should be handled with private, individual, personal confrontation, clear communication about unacceptable behavior, and clear boundaries to follow in the future.
--Middle School students feel awkward in their interactions with adults. Their friends are their world. THEREFORE give them opportunities to connect with their peer groups, and focus on creating credibility by what you, as an adult, model in front of them.
--Middle School students are physically awkward, going through rapid growth spurts, and tend to be uncoordinated, THEREFORE traditional competitive sports and games will tend to embarrass them and they will be hesitant to participate…HOWEVER they have large amounts of energy to expend, so they need highly active games that don’t last long enough for them to get bored (remember also their short attention span!) For some specific game ideas try http://www.youthpastor.com/Games/
For more specific information on how your ministry to middle school students will differ from your ministry to high school students check out The Greenhouse Project, specifically chapter 8, written by Tom Phillips.
Graduation season is an important time in the lives of your students, but it can also be a difficult season for you as a youth leader. It is vital for you to help students finish well and make smooth transitions. In order to help, Word of Life has several of our staff focusing their blogs on the subjects of graduation and life transitions. This week is Graduation Week on wol.org. You can look for posts on that subject at any of the following links:
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Have you ever tried to push a rope? Come to think of it, that might make for a funny ice breaker sometime. It just doesn’t work very well does it? Why? Because it’s contrary to the nature of rope to be pushed. It has to be pulled or manipulated in some manner, not just pushed. If ... > Read More
I had my annual physical today. I know, I know…YUCK! My doctor said something very interesting during our discussion. He noted the correlation between my 40-pound weight loss and the improved results from this year’s blood work. He asked how I managed to lose the weight, and we ... > Read More
Recently, during my Quiet Time I read Luke 1:57-66. This is the passage of Scripture that tells us of the birth of John the Baptist and the time of his circumcision and naming. It was assumed that John’s parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth, would name him according to cultural traditions. In ... > Read More
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