This is going to sound crazy, but in order to have great students, you must have great adults. The more students that are in your ministry, the more true this really is. So here are 5 ideas that you can take or leave in terms of dealing with adults:
1. Make sure that everyone feels like they are needed. No one wants to show up for 2 hours and do nothing. That is not fun or useful. Imagine going to an ice-cream shop and being told just to look at people who are eating giant chocolate covered cones of cookies and cream. Ministry is so much better than that and looking from the inside and not being able to partake is too much for most people to handle. So instead, divide and delagate as much as possible. If someone cannot do something, they will tell you. What people tend not to tell you is that they are not happy because they are not doing anything significant.
2. Be super careful about who you invite to help out with your students. It is 100 x's easier not to ask someone to never come than it is to ask someone to leave. So before you ask someone to help out, get to know them and their heart. Then invite them to have a "check us out" period to see if it will be a good match. If it is a good match, you will be gravy, if not, there is no pressure for them to stick and from your prospective, it is easier if you have to say, "its just not working out" if they have not been helping for too long. Once a leader becomes deeply plugged in, its like pulling teeth to get them out.
3. Everyone has different skills, find what people are best at and put them there. Not everyone will be great at leading small group or playing up front games, but God has a purpose for everyone he puts in your ministry. Find that purpose and use them there. Success makes people happy and excited.
4. Let your leaders be a part of planning. I have not had a good idea for 3 and a half years now, but I do have the ability to leach ideas of my leaders. If you let those leaders who know students and the new ones with fresh ideas contribute, you will get better, more diverse ideas. A great side benefit is that your leaders are more apt to be behind an idea they came up with!
5. Frog Kiss your leaders. Leaders need a lot of love and frog kissing (little remarks of kindness) is a good way to show it. They sacrifice a couple hours a week to be a part of a ministry that requires them to get dirty, hand out with people who only speak in sarcasm, and sleep with one eye open on retreats. So show them some love. Be sure that when good things happen, you first credit your leaders even if your leaders are not there to accept the credit. Also, point out what they do well. It will make them more aware of what their strengths are and will allow them to focus on those!
In him,
-Schutte
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tradition Versus New Events
Before I had left my old church, every big event was planned out. We went to the same retreats and did the same types of missions. Every winter, we even had a Waffle House night where we took over a Waffle House and had a giant party. Tradition is great in a lot of ways, but it can also lead to a rut. So let's look at the Good versus the Bad to sticking with a youth group tradition.
The Good:
If it is a good event, you will have more kids every year you participate in the event. Kids are the best evangelizers and if they think something is fun, they will make sure their friends will come.
You will know what you are doing. The first time I do anything, I allow an extra hour of time and double and triple check that I have done everything right. By the time I have done the event 4 or 5 times, I allow only an extra 50 minutes but go knowing how I screwed up in the past!
If it ain't broken, don't fix it. You run the risk of doing something far worse. The grass is not always greener on the other side.
To the younger kids, everything is new. A little naivete goes a long way.
The Bad:
If it did not work the first time, odds are it will not work the second-millionth time. Only a fool throws his bait were there are no fish.
It kills creativity. There are so many good ideas yet to be discovered that you are almost certainly missing out on doing something better.
Certain things become "old" as opposed to "Classic". There are only so many foot washings you can do before it becomes a thing you do over a life changing event.
Find the balance. We had one retreat we did the third weekend of March every year and it was a real highlight for all the kids. We had a service retreat that was not working and we rearranged it in our calendar so more kids could participate and it became huge. We had a mission trip that bombed and we never tried that particular mission project again. There is always a good and a bad. Just try to find the balance of old and new that will allow you to succeed and then allow at least 45 minutes of extra time!
-Schutte
The Good:
If it is a good event, you will have more kids every year you participate in the event. Kids are the best evangelizers and if they think something is fun, they will make sure their friends will come.
You will know what you are doing. The first time I do anything, I allow an extra hour of time and double and triple check that I have done everything right. By the time I have done the event 4 or 5 times, I allow only an extra 50 minutes but go knowing how I screwed up in the past!
If it ain't broken, don't fix it. You run the risk of doing something far worse. The grass is not always greener on the other side.
To the younger kids, everything is new. A little naivete goes a long way.
The Bad:
If it did not work the first time, odds are it will not work the second-millionth time. Only a fool throws his bait were there are no fish.
It kills creativity. There are so many good ideas yet to be discovered that you are almost certainly missing out on doing something better.
Certain things become "old" as opposed to "Classic". There are only so many foot washings you can do before it becomes a thing you do over a life changing event.
Find the balance. We had one retreat we did the third weekend of March every year and it was a real highlight for all the kids. We had a service retreat that was not working and we rearranged it in our calendar so more kids could participate and it became huge. We had a mission trip that bombed and we never tried that particular mission project again. There is always a good and a bad. Just try to find the balance of old and new that will allow you to succeed and then allow at least 45 minutes of extra time!
-Schutte
Saturday, June 25, 2011
The Idea of this blog/forum
So I am not an student ministry expert. I do not speak at major conferences or write books. In fact, I believe anyone who claims to be an expert in student ministry is someone that has had success doing things their way, but is in no way an expert in the general field. Good student ministry is an art. There is no right way to do it, just ways that you can have success. One good ministry will not look exactly like any other ministry.
That being said, I feel that I do have some good ideas on student ministry that I would love to share. That is why this is being created. Truth be told, I was looking at starting a student ministry forum, but I feel that forums often turn into a place of whining and showboating and neither of those things help anyone. So this is designed to be a controlled forum of sorts. If you have a good idea, e-mail me at DavidESchutte@gmail.com and I will read it and if it makes sense, I'll post it even if I disagree. I am not the my way or the highway kind of guy. I am someone who is in need of you to really make this blog idea work so please, please, PLEASE share this site and be active, write and bookmark this page so you can easily look for updates. I will do my best to give you something to learn in each and every post.
-Schutte
That being said, I feel that I do have some good ideas on student ministry that I would love to share. That is why this is being created. Truth be told, I was looking at starting a student ministry forum, but I feel that forums often turn into a place of whining and showboating and neither of those things help anyone. So this is designed to be a controlled forum of sorts. If you have a good idea, e-mail me at DavidESchutte@gmail.com and I will read it and if it makes sense, I'll post it even if I disagree. I am not the my way or the highway kind of guy. I am someone who is in need of you to really make this blog idea work so please, please, PLEASE share this site and be active, write and bookmark this page so you can easily look for updates. I will do my best to give you something to learn in each and every post.
-Schutte
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Doing things with excellance (get the joke?)
I have a motto, "Do things with excellence," which I had to make because as a student pastor, I used to use the expression, "Do things leisurely." Here is the thing about student ministry: you can get away doing things leisurely, especially when its only part of your ministry that you are slacking on. I've seen youth workers show up late, leave vans trashed, and open their Bibles only once a week when they lead senior high study. Heck, I think at some point of my career, I've done all those things and yet my career has worked out well for me.
So who is to stop this behavior? Most of the time its not the senior pastor. I've been blessed to have great senior pastors so far in my life, but none of them for better or worse have been hands on in my ministry (which for me tends to be better). The committees of the church never chew me out for what I have done wrong except that time I knocked a 3 foot hole in the drywall by accident (throwing a kid through the wall is an accident, right?). No there is only one person who can really police your work ethic and your sitting in them (think about that sentence for a second!).
I keep a note that says, "Don't be lazy" and every time there is a chance to take a shortcut, I see it and act on it. It is pathetic that I have to make a sign that says that, but it really helps. Besides, doing youth ministry, you will do more pathetic things (i.e. wonder if you can sit at the cool kids table, eat live animals, or wonder if you can patch a 3 ft hole in the wall with duct tape, a bucket of paint and poster board). What I really like is when I pick up trash in the church parking lot, I can to myself, "Do things with excellence" and I feel suddenly awesome at my job.
The other group to hold you accountable as a secondary source are your leaders in your ministry. They can only see the result, but keep them posted and share your struggles. If all student ministers got the memo on excellence, we would have thriving churches all over the world. Or at least churches without holes in the wall.
-Schutte
So who is to stop this behavior? Most of the time its not the senior pastor. I've been blessed to have great senior pastors so far in my life, but none of them for better or worse have been hands on in my ministry (which for me tends to be better). The committees of the church never chew me out for what I have done wrong except that time I knocked a 3 foot hole in the drywall by accident (throwing a kid through the wall is an accident, right?). No there is only one person who can really police your work ethic and your sitting in them (think about that sentence for a second!).
I keep a note that says, "Don't be lazy" and every time there is a chance to take a shortcut, I see it and act on it. It is pathetic that I have to make a sign that says that, but it really helps. Besides, doing youth ministry, you will do more pathetic things (i.e. wonder if you can sit at the cool kids table, eat live animals, or wonder if you can patch a 3 ft hole in the wall with duct tape, a bucket of paint and poster board). What I really like is when I pick up trash in the church parking lot, I can to myself, "Do things with excellence" and I feel suddenly awesome at my job.
The other group to hold you accountable as a secondary source are your leaders in your ministry. They can only see the result, but keep them posted and share your struggles. If all student ministers got the memo on excellence, we would have thriving churches all over the world. Or at least churches without holes in the wall.
-Schutte
Monday, June 20, 2011
10 Rules to Facebook
Facebook is one of the greatest tools out there for student ministry. It is easy, fast, and there is 0 liability in that everything you say in kept in record! That being said, there are a few things that you can do to really get a positive ministry out of facebook so here it is in list form:
10. Stay positive. I used to work at a camp where we did frog kissing. Frog kisses were just little one sentence pieces of joy that we would give to kids. A great example of this is, "You cracked me up today when you made the joke about gravy. I love seeing that side of you!" It's really enthusiastic and helpful.
9. Don't be their parent. You are not responsible for what a kid does and does not post. If they have a post that is not safe, blatantly dangerous, or hateful, go to the kid's parent. If it is something you just do not like, keep your mouth shut. It is not your responsibility to raise kids who are not your own.
8. Never poke a kid. Its kind of creepy. Also, its a good way to start a poke war that will only end when one you dies.
7. The exemption to rule 9 is when I see a student I know well trash another kid on facebook. For me, I always give the same response. I send a private message saying, "I do not want to criticize you but your post sounds more like a momentary passion than something you should broadcast out. What goes out on the net stays out forever and I know from my personal mistakes this is something you probably do not want to put out into the world." Never call a kid out in public and always share your mistakes when you try to guide them with theirs. Humility goes a long way with students.
6. Exclamation marks are your friend!!!! They make you seem happy and enthused. Around half my sentences on facebook in with exclamation marks, though in my defense, when I speak, 2/3 of my sentences have exclamation marks.
5. Keep your student group invite only and hide as much info as possible. No one needs to see your membership and/or your pictures. Nothing but bad will come out of lackluster cybersecurity. Also, parents will think you are really on the ball with the 21st century even if you still use AIM.
4. Post lots of pics! Kids love pictures and they only take about 20 minutes to upload 100 of them. Its totally worth the effort and it shows kids who skipped out that what you are doing is really fun and exciting (unless you do lame stuff in which case, why are we talking about facebook when there is friendster and myspace?).
3. Keep your facebook profile clean. I would think I wouldn't have to say this to student ministers, but half my friends in student ministry have something on their profile that makes me really mad. You do not need to flaunt to your students that you drink, or curse, or animal sacrifice, or practice nudism. Common sense guidelines are good on that one.
2. Be active. Kids expect instant response. Its ok if you are not instant, but do not check your facebook just once a week. Its the new e-mail.
1. Kick yourself everyday that you did not think of facebook first. I mean its just a phone book on the computer and Zuckerburg made billions. How unfair is that?
Now go and get online!
-Schutte
10. Stay positive. I used to work at a camp where we did frog kissing. Frog kisses were just little one sentence pieces of joy that we would give to kids. A great example of this is, "You cracked me up today when you made the joke about gravy. I love seeing that side of you!" It's really enthusiastic and helpful.
9. Don't be their parent. You are not responsible for what a kid does and does not post. If they have a post that is not safe, blatantly dangerous, or hateful, go to the kid's parent. If it is something you just do not like, keep your mouth shut. It is not your responsibility to raise kids who are not your own.
8. Never poke a kid. Its kind of creepy. Also, its a good way to start a poke war that will only end when one you dies.
7. The exemption to rule 9 is when I see a student I know well trash another kid on facebook. For me, I always give the same response. I send a private message saying, "I do not want to criticize you but your post sounds more like a momentary passion than something you should broadcast out. What goes out on the net stays out forever and I know from my personal mistakes this is something you probably do not want to put out into the world." Never call a kid out in public and always share your mistakes when you try to guide them with theirs. Humility goes a long way with students.
6. Exclamation marks are your friend!!!! They make you seem happy and enthused. Around half my sentences on facebook in with exclamation marks, though in my defense, when I speak, 2/3 of my sentences have exclamation marks.
5. Keep your student group invite only and hide as much info as possible. No one needs to see your membership and/or your pictures. Nothing but bad will come out of lackluster cybersecurity. Also, parents will think you are really on the ball with the 21st century even if you still use AIM.
4. Post lots of pics! Kids love pictures and they only take about 20 minutes to upload 100 of them. Its totally worth the effort and it shows kids who skipped out that what you are doing is really fun and exciting (unless you do lame stuff in which case, why are we talking about facebook when there is friendster and myspace?).
3. Keep your facebook profile clean. I would think I wouldn't have to say this to student ministers, but half my friends in student ministry have something on their profile that makes me really mad. You do not need to flaunt to your students that you drink, or curse, or animal sacrifice, or practice nudism. Common sense guidelines are good on that one.
2. Be active. Kids expect instant response. Its ok if you are not instant, but do not check your facebook just once a week. Its the new e-mail.
1. Kick yourself everyday that you did not think of facebook first. I mean its just a phone book on the computer and Zuckerburg made billions. How unfair is that?
Now go and get online!
-Schutte
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Relational Ministry
I have some heart breaking news. Church will never be as much fun as the xBox is. Sorry to be the one to break that to you, but it is a solid fact of life. If you were to ask most kids what they wanted to do, it would be rare that you would find a kid who will say, "Hang out at the church." So how is that we get kids into the church?
From my experience, only one thing gets kids who are not in the church into the church: relationships. Humans are social creatures and being such, we long to do what people we like and respect do. Going to church is one of these things.
One of the ways we use relationship is using kids to bring their friends. When a kid says to his friends, "Do you want to go to 6 flags with me and my church. We'll meet up at the church, take church vans, pray before we go, and represent Christ," all the friend hears is "Do you want to go to 6 flags BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH," (that is a scientific fact, there have been papers and stuff on it). The best recruiters out there are your own kids. Make sure you foster a welcoming environment.
The other type of relationship is the adult student relationship. This should be the relationship where your kids get most of their spiritual growth. Think back to your youth pastor/leader as a kid. (S)he was someone who was always willing to facebooked/aimed/e-mailed/snail mailed/currier pigeoned you anytime you needed to talk. Someone who would always hang out. Someone you respected and liked. Aim to mimic that.
Building those relationships is tough. In my opinion, it means first chasing after a kid. I've always believed that all great student pastors are secretly good creepers (well no, not really, and please don't quote that). Be willing to go to the schools to have lunches, go to sporting events, visit kids at work, call and text them and add them on facebook. Obviously do not push yourself on a kid to the point you could even remotely be considered creeping, but put yourself in their environment. I knew one YoungLife guy who was not allowed to eat lunch at the schools so he instead sit in the high school parking lot at the end of the day when it let out just to get facetime with students. It is unfair to expect a kid to come to church when you have yet to visit them in their environment.
Step two is persist. Do not give up on a kid. Not all kids will become the next Billy Graham or even want to consider a relationship with Christ even if you do everything right, but do not get up on them. One of my favorite memories was a kid who I knew at an old job who I knew for years and who I could not get to step foot in the church despite her family being super invovled. When I left, she came to my going away party and told me that I meant a lot in her life and with her faith in God. I cried like I do when I watch Titanic. That was ministry, even if there was not an ounce of getting plugged in with it.
Lastly, do what you can to get the kid plugged in. Not all kids are going to be youth group or bible study kids. That is ok. Find a ministry that they can get plugged into and be humble if its not yours or even at your church. One of the hardest things I ever have to deal with is when a major church parent comes into my office and says, "My kid wants to go to another church where they have a lot of friends." As a youth pastor, I want all the kids who's families are in the church to be involved in the youth group, but sometimes God has a way of saying, "It is not about what's best for you, its what is best for the child." You need to be at the point where you are comfortable saying "come to our programs" or "go to these programs at another church, I think they would fit you better" depending on the situation. Before you know it, other youth pastors will be pushing kids your way when they feel it is best and all will even out.
Relationships are 90% of student ministry in my opinion. Consciously work on them. New Christians are earned, not found.
God Bless,
Schutte
From my experience, only one thing gets kids who are not in the church into the church: relationships. Humans are social creatures and being such, we long to do what people we like and respect do. Going to church is one of these things.
One of the ways we use relationship is using kids to bring their friends. When a kid says to his friends, "Do you want to go to 6 flags with me and my church. We'll meet up at the church, take church vans, pray before we go, and represent Christ," all the friend hears is "Do you want to go to 6 flags BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH," (that is a scientific fact, there have been papers and stuff on it). The best recruiters out there are your own kids. Make sure you foster a welcoming environment.
The other type of relationship is the adult student relationship. This should be the relationship where your kids get most of their spiritual growth. Think back to your youth pastor/leader as a kid. (S)he was someone who was always willing to facebooked/aimed/e-mailed/snail mailed/currier pigeoned you anytime you needed to talk. Someone who would always hang out. Someone you respected and liked. Aim to mimic that.
Building those relationships is tough. In my opinion, it means first chasing after a kid. I've always believed that all great student pastors are secretly good creepers (well no, not really, and please don't quote that). Be willing to go to the schools to have lunches, go to sporting events, visit kids at work, call and text them and add them on facebook. Obviously do not push yourself on a kid to the point you could even remotely be considered creeping, but put yourself in their environment. I knew one YoungLife guy who was not allowed to eat lunch at the schools so he instead sit in the high school parking lot at the end of the day when it let out just to get facetime with students. It is unfair to expect a kid to come to church when you have yet to visit them in their environment.
Step two is persist. Do not give up on a kid. Not all kids will become the next Billy Graham or even want to consider a relationship with Christ even if you do everything right, but do not get up on them. One of my favorite memories was a kid who I knew at an old job who I knew for years and who I could not get to step foot in the church despite her family being super invovled. When I left, she came to my going away party and told me that I meant a lot in her life and with her faith in God. I cried like I do when I watch Titanic. That was ministry, even if there was not an ounce of getting plugged in with it.
Lastly, do what you can to get the kid plugged in. Not all kids are going to be youth group or bible study kids. That is ok. Find a ministry that they can get plugged into and be humble if its not yours or even at your church. One of the hardest things I ever have to deal with is when a major church parent comes into my office and says, "My kid wants to go to another church where they have a lot of friends." As a youth pastor, I want all the kids who's families are in the church to be involved in the youth group, but sometimes God has a way of saying, "It is not about what's best for you, its what is best for the child." You need to be at the point where you are comfortable saying "come to our programs" or "go to these programs at another church, I think they would fit you better" depending on the situation. Before you know it, other youth pastors will be pushing kids your way when they feel it is best and all will even out.
Relationships are 90% of student ministry in my opinion. Consciously work on them. New Christians are earned, not found.
God Bless,
Schutte
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
The Problem of Numbers
Let's talk about 'That Guy'. 'That Guy' is the guy who does all those cliche things that make the normal person go crazy. Any youth pastor out there knows a 'That Guy' and if you catch yourself saying, "I don't know a 'That Guy'", you are one. Sorry to break that news.
One of my favorite quotes that you will hear from 'That Guy' is the following question: "How many kids you got?"
I hate that question, I really do.
There is something difficult about the numbers game because it is an important question. Acts 1:15 starts with, "During this time, when about 120 believers were together in one place..." and later says, in 1:41 "Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day-about 3,000 in all." Luke, the author of Acts, was obviously into giving the numbers of the church.
So what is the difference between Luke and 'That Guy'?
My mentor put it to me best, "Numbers, while not the most important thing, are a sign of health." The number of students who go to your church is a piece of internal information that you can use with your team and your pastor to judge if you are healthy and growing.
This being said, I feel they are a test, not an outcome. Your outcome is whether you produce lifelong Christians out in the world. Obviously if you do not have any numbers, you are failing the test, but if you are not producing strong Christians, your whole ministry is failing.
With all this being said, there is not set number that every church should aim for. I've heard it said that you should have 8-10% of your Sunday congregation at your main weekly program. This might work for a few churches, but it isn't good enough to be used as a rule of thumb. I've seen churches that are young that should be doing 20% and I have seen older churches where I live in Florida where the average congregant walked with Jesus on this earth that should aim for 5%. Look at the congregation you are at and judge from there. And remember, its only a test, if all else, Christmas tree it!
One of my favorite quotes that you will hear from 'That Guy' is the following question: "How many kids you got?"
I hate that question, I really do.
There is something difficult about the numbers game because it is an important question. Acts 1:15 starts with, "During this time, when about 120 believers were together in one place..." and later says, in 1:41 "Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day-about 3,000 in all." Luke, the author of Acts, was obviously into giving the numbers of the church.
So what is the difference between Luke and 'That Guy'?
My mentor put it to me best, "Numbers, while not the most important thing, are a sign of health." The number of students who go to your church is a piece of internal information that you can use with your team and your pastor to judge if you are healthy and growing.
This being said, I feel they are a test, not an outcome. Your outcome is whether you produce lifelong Christians out in the world. Obviously if you do not have any numbers, you are failing the test, but if you are not producing strong Christians, your whole ministry is failing.
With all this being said, there is not set number that every church should aim for. I've heard it said that you should have 8-10% of your Sunday congregation at your main weekly program. This might work for a few churches, but it isn't good enough to be used as a rule of thumb. I've seen churches that are young that should be doing 20% and I have seen older churches where I live in Florida where the average congregant walked with Jesus on this earth that should aim for 5%. Look at the congregation you are at and judge from there. And remember, its only a test, if all else, Christmas tree it!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Entry # 1 : Why Start A Student Ministry Blog
Why start a student ministry blog? That is the million dollar question. I literally have a million dollars in cash in my office right next to me right now I will give away to the person who can answer that.
I guess for me it is that I have been doing this student ministry thing for a few years now, 3 in camp ministry, 1 at a mega-church, 4 at a small country church and now I am at a large contemporary church each with benefits and drawbacks. At this point, I feel like I have been around the block. I want is to share some ideas and things that have worked for me in the past and probably more importantly, some goof-ups that have held me back. There will also be some guest bloggers and if you want to put something up on this page, let me know; knowledge is power.
Please follow and comment with your opinions, even if your opinion is one that is different than mine or the posters. Keep it from being personal and more importantly, keep it from being dumb!
God Bless,
Schutte
Galatians 4:5 "God sent Him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children."
I guess for me it is that I have been doing this student ministry thing for a few years now, 3 in camp ministry, 1 at a mega-church, 4 at a small country church and now I am at a large contemporary church each with benefits and drawbacks. At this point, I feel like I have been around the block. I want is to share some ideas and things that have worked for me in the past and probably more importantly, some goof-ups that have held me back. There will also be some guest bloggers and if you want to put something up on this page, let me know; knowledge is power.
Please follow and comment with your opinions, even if your opinion is one that is different than mine or the posters. Keep it from being personal and more importantly, keep it from being dumb!
God Bless,
Schutte
Galatians 4:5 "God sent Him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children."
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