Category: Church Staff

Quick Tip: Remember to See the Good

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Ministry gets hard sometimes. It can be critical comments from specific people. Elders and leadership making passive aggressive statements. Ineffective supervision. Lack of budget. Students not showing up. Burnout. Questioning of calling. Or whatever else is happening in your life or ministry.

Ministry is hard and when life gets hard we tend to become critical, biased, and we assume the worst. We think everyone is against us. Every comment made we take personally. We assume the worst about each situation. We believe our students don’t like us and don’t want to attend. Our hearts become calloused and we question our purpose and calling.

But what if we stopped for a moment and shifted our perspective? What if, instead of assuming the worst and only seeing the bad, we refocused and saw the good? Now I get it, that sounds easier said than done. I do not know your circumstances nor do I know your history. But we serve a good God who created this world and called it good. Yes, this is a broken and fallen world, but there is still good in it.

Instead of focusing on the bad, the frustrations, the tensions, what if you refocused and saw the good? I’m not saying we simply walk through life pretending like everything is okay. Instead I’m advocating for seeing things through a God-oriented lens that helps us to look beyond the tension and see what He sees.

For instance, maybe students weren’t paying attention during your lesson. Instead of being mad or frustrated about that, rejoice in the fact that there were students present. Rather than sit and stew in the comments made by your supervisor, seek to understand and adapt. Even if you don’t see eye to eye, continue to pursue what God has called you to and find joy in what He is doing.

Budgets or lack thereof can cause a lot of tension, but instead of seeing limitations, look to see opportunities and new ways of accomplishing what you’d like to do. Instead of allowing negative or passive aggressive comments to weigh on you, seek out godly and authentic voices in your life and rest in the truth of what they say over the rumblings and grumblings of a few. Remember that you serve God not man, and they will stand before God to give an account.

Another thing to remember as you look to see the good is to consider what good are you providing. We have an obligation to be doing good because God has called each of us to be purveyors of the Good News and to love others as He does! Therefore, we need to make sure that even if others aren’t doing or seeing good in us, we still need to be doing good and seeing good in others (yes, that includes even those who don’t do or see good in you).

Often when things aren’t going our way or difficulty abounds, we can become negative and only see the bad and wrongs in our world, our church, and in people. But when we refocus our eyes, minds, and hearts on what God’s heart is all about, it guides us back to what we should be doing: loving God and loving others.

When we focus on doing and seeing good, it re-frames how we approach things. It reshapes how we engage with others. And it reshapes our heart in a way that mirrors our Savior’s. This is not easy. Not at all. But when we approach life and relationships in this way, when we strive to see and do good as a reflection of Jesus, trust me when I say that you will begin to grow and mature in ways you have never experienced. Don’t give up, don’t get weighed down; look for the good and trust God in the process.

5 Steps to Picking Curriculum

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When it comes to what you are teaching, have you ever stopped to ask why you’re teaching what you are teaching? Or have you ever thought about the purpose of the lessons as they pertain to your vision and mission? Does what you’re teaching align with the general flow and direction in which your church is going? How does what you are teaching actually impact your students and help them to think about both internal and external applications of biblical truth?

Phew. Sounds heavy doesn’t it? You probably thought we would simply tell you to pick and teach what best suits your students. Yes, there is an element of that which is true, but we must be more intentional and thoughtful in what we choose to teach and why. Let me share with you some things to consider when choosing a curriculum and the direction it will take your students.

1. Choose a curriculum that will meet your students where they are at.

Each ministry is different and knowing what your students are experiencing and what they need will greatly increase your opportunity to reach and care for them. For instance, if your students are wrestling with grief and loss it may be a good idea to dig into a series on the Psalms or the hope that God offers us.

2. If using pre-made curriculum, don’t use it as is.

This is a big thing I always encourage younger youth pastors with: if you purchase a curriculum don’t just use it as is. Tweak it to reach your students. Make the stories and illustrations your own. Update the Bible passages to the translation your group uses. What you are doing is making this personal and relatable to both yourself and your group which helps them engage and process what is being shared at a deeper level.

3. Make sure your curriculum aligns with your mission and vision.

This is a big piece of choosing your curriculum. If it doesn’t align or communicate the heart and vision of your ministry and church, there’s a good possibility you shouldn’t utilize it. So be aware of what you’re selecting by reading through descriptions and content. Weigh the main points and applications and consider the implications for your group.

4. Look for opportunities to take your students deeper and wider.

Some curriculum can be pretty light on content and depth when it comes to Scripture and its application. In order to help your students grow and develop as disciples of Jesus, it is important to challenge them and have them think critically about what God’s Word says and its application for their lives. That means choosing and crafting curriculum that will challenge them to do just that. Pick topics and content that challenges their way of thinking, pushes them outside of their comfort zones, and helps them to think deeper about who they are in Christ.

5. Be willing to make your own.

Ultimately you know what your group needs to hear and you know your context and setting. That means you can discern what curriculum your group needs. But the reality is that sometimes there isn’t a curriculum that works for what is needed in your context. So, be willing to make your own when needed. Yes this may be more labor intensive but it may be the best thing for your students.

Quick Tip: What to Look For in Volunteers

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I don’t know about you but recruitment is hard sometimes! This year we only had to get a handle of new leaders but it feels like we struggled to find them and we still haven’t filled all the gaps.

In these situations it may seem easy to just take the next warm body, but that can be problematic for a litany of reasons. Instead we need to be selective and intentional in who we bring in to walk with and disciple our students.

Today, I want to share with you some key things to look for when you are searching for new volunteers, but keep in mind this is not all-inclusive. Things like meshing well with co-leaders, passing background checks, being on the same page doctrinally, and many other pieces matter. This is simply meant to be a quick checklist as you begin to interview potential volunteers to make sure they could fit within the context, vision, and expectations of the ministry.

Know their faith story.

When you meet someone make sure you know they have a relationship with Jesus and are tracking with Him. There are times we may be tempted to not ask those questions for a variety of reasons, but having clarity on this is key as they are leading students to be followers of Jesus. It is also a good idea to ask them if they could share the Gospel with you so you can gain an understanding of their knowledge and comfortability on that.

Don’t look for clones of yourself.

This is key, and I cannot stress this enough: your ministry does not need more yous. It needs a variety of personalities, backgrounds, gifts, and faith stories because your students are not clones of you. That means they relate to other people differently and perhaps better than they do to you.

So stacking your team with a variety of people with strengthen your ministry and allow for your students to grow and flourish in ways you haven’t seen before. As a brief aside, even with differences make sure there is still unity, teamwork, and collaboration. Don’t sacrifice those things to simply bring in different people.

Look for heart and passion.

Heart and passion are things you cannot teach someone. Skills like leading with another leader, teaching, listening well, and running games can all be taught. Listen for why they want to serve and what their desires and purpose are for serving. This will help you to know the individual, their heart, and their rationale for serving.

Seek alignment with the vision and mission of the ministry.

I’ve talked with many people who have wanted to serve with students but their values and ours did not align. I’ll never forget when a potential volunteer stated that the purpose of being a leader was to talk at students and for them to listen to all of the leader’s knowledge. That individual wasn’t joking either. When I began to share our philosophy and vision they self selected and said “I don’t think this is for me.” And they were right.

Our vision and theirs did not align and if there isn’t alignment that can and will cause future issues to develop down the road. I’m not saying people can’t change, but be willing to investigate and see if there is any flexibility or opportunity for growth in order to ensure alignment on key aspects.

Find people who are excited about Jesus and students.

This should go without saying but we want people who love Jesus and are passionate about Him and who also love students! When those two pieces come together, you will start to see immense growth among your students as they are being loved and discipled in the way Jesus has intended. Why? Because we are modeling the metric that Jesus gave to us: love God and love people. When we do this well we start to see life change happen!

Seek those with a willingness to grow and help others grow.

Looking for people who are learners and want to grow in their knowledge and wisdom is key to having a successful ministry. Look for people who are willing to engage with topics, come to training sessions, and learn new things. But also look for people who will help others to grow because of their knowledge, background, and skill sets. You are building the strength of your ministry by having these individuals on your team and that will help your team better minister to your students.

Quick Tip: Having Personal Boundaries

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Have you ever been interrupted on your day off with something from work? Do you answer phone calls at all times or do you keep boundaries? Do you struggle to figure out what takes priority when you aren’t in-office: family or work concerns?

Please don’t hear me as being critical because I’m not. I get it. For many years I didn’t have healthy work-life boundaries. I tried to convince myself that I did but it took a mental health leave of absence to realize that I didn’t. I used to check emails and respond to them on vacation. I was always checking social media. If texts came through, I’d respond.

It was all-consuming even when I had convinced myself it wasn’t. And for those who serve in ministry, we will often struggle with finding a healthy balance. We know our calling and we care for our people, but that cannot be our only focus nor should it be. Today, I want to share a few quick ways to have healthy boundaries.

Remember the order of your priorities.

You are called first to focus on your relationship with God and your holistic health, then to focus on your family, and then focus on your ministry. When these priorities are out of order you will find yourself out of sorts as well. And when these are left in an out-of-order scope and sequence, you will find yourself fully depending on you, not on God, and your boundaries being stretched further and further.

Utilize “do not disturb” and turn off notifications on your devices.

Removing the interruption of electronics is one of the best things you can implement to help incorporate healthy boundaries. This doesn’t mean you’ll never respond, but it does remove the tension, anxiety, and pressure that comes with always being connected. When you utilize these features, you can be fully present in the moment and with those who matter most.

Take work apps off your phone.

This may be easier said than done for some because it may be a requirement. Technically a job cannot force you to have apps on your phone unless they are paying for said phone, but enough about technicalities. My point here is this: if the apps are keeping you focused on work and pulling you away from intentional moments with those closest to you or keeping you from truly resting and taking a sabbath, that is a problem. Instead, take them off of your phone or at the very least turn off the notifications. And yes, that goes for your work email too.

Screen calls and texts.

No matter what, there will be times you get calls and texts, even on your day off. But not every call or text necessitates an instantaneous response. Instead use wisdom and discernment to diagnose which calls or texts warrant a response, and decide how quick those responses should be.

Talk about and make your boundaries clear.

This is something I wish pastors and ministry leaders did more often. We must regularly and openly talk about our boundaries. If we are calling people into a holistic life-changing relationship with Jesus, we should be modeling that not just in action but also in our speech. We need to talk about how we are creating margin and looking to refresh and take sabbath because that shows our people how important it is. This then gives them permission to do the same. It also helps our people to understand that while we love and care for them, we cannot be all things to all people; only Jesus can be that. What you are doing is highlighting personal, relational, and spiritual boundaries that allow you to create rhythms and margin to be the holistic pastor and shepherd you need to be.

Quick Tip: When & How to Refer Out

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We’ve all experienced a moment when we have had a student ask us a question or we are faced with a situation we don’t know how to handle. Whether we aren’t equipped or trained to handle it, or if it’s due to a lack of understanding or life experience, we have all faced this in some capacity.

But let me ask you a question: when you were in that moment, how did you respond? Did you do your best to give some type of reasonably decent advice? Did you frantically consult your commentaries or Google? Did you pull out a passage of Scripture like Jeremiah 29:11? Did you consider referring the student or circumstance to someone else?

Hear me out: I know there are circumstances and situations that warrant our immediate attention regardless of training. But what I am talking about is referring or deferring when necessary. In many cases this is not just the best option but an amazing resource and help to you and all those involved.

So what are some ways to help us refer to the individuals, ministries, and resources that will help those we are shepherding?

Know your community.

When you know what resources and capabilities are available in your community it affords you the knowledge you need to help others. Consider connecting with local hospitals, clinics, and mental health facilities as well as local doctors. You can also connect with local first responders, teachers, food distribution agencies, and support networks that help students.

Build relationships.

As you get to know your community, you’re building relationships that allow you to know the available resources and how they can best help your people. It also allows you to best see which people and organizations align with your church and ministry. As you build those relationships, you are also building a rapport that allows for you and your ministry to have a deeper relationship and opportunities for help with your resources. Building relationships allow for you to not only know your community but also to show them that you value and appreciate them.

Utilize resources in your churches.

Church congregations include individuals who are qualified in many different skills and careers that can be extremely beneficial to helping your ministry. Assistance may also come from other ministries that your church offers like a food or clothing bank, a financial assistance ministry, or even counselors in your church. Students may need a variety of resources and the more you are aware of what your church offers and who is within it, the better equipped you will be to serve your people.

Acknowledge your areas of expertise and growth.

When you know your skills and limitations, it helps to frame what agencies and resources you most need to connect with to help your people. So take an honest assessment of yourself and then seek to grow your network accordingly.

Continue to grow and educate yourself.

As you know your skill sets, seek to grow in the areas you aren’t as strong in. This doesn’t necessarily qualify you in all moments, but it helps you to continue to grow and care well for your people.

Quick Tip: Have Fun

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There have been moments on a Wednesday night or Sunday morning for me when all I can see are the tasks, objectives, and the schedule. I can get hyper-focused on trying to get things accomplished and staying on task that I just lose sight of the bigger, more important aspects of student ministry. One of the things I can miss is “having fun.”

I can blame this on my personality (I am an I/C in the DISC) or a litany of other things, but I know the nights I miss out on the fun because it feels like things just didn’t work. When we miss out on the fun, we miss out on relational opportunities, conversations, and bridge-building moments with our students and leaders. When we have fun it makes us more approachable and relatable to our students.

It’s easy to get caught up with accomplishing all the tasks and focusing on any of a variety of circumstances that demand our attention. But should we miss having fun in our career and ministry, we will surely miss out on the beauty of what God has called us to.

So in thinking about having fun, here are few key things to remember:

  • Laugh often. Tell jokes, laugh at yourself (especially when you get spiked on in 9 Square), be willing play with your group, and smile often. The more you laugh, the more fun you’ll have.
  • Don’t take things or yourself too seriously. Yes, you are a leader and yes, you are entrusted with walking with your students and volunteers, but remember the relationships are key here. That means while you can take your job and calling seriously, you don’t need to do the same to yourself. Keep approaching students at their level, don’t be so pulled back they can’t relate, and be willing to just be a part of your community.
  • Be willing to be yourself. Students don’t want or need someone who isn’t being themselves or is trying to emulate another person. They want you, and you are unique and special. So bring your personality, your humor, and your joy to the table. When you can be you, you can truly have a blast!
  • Remember who you work with. Students are hilarious! If you didn’t know that, here’s a friendly heads up. They say and do things that are absolute hysterical, whether it was intentional or not. You never know what they will say or do and that leads to some memorable moments that will make you laugh (maybe even out loud).

Quick Tip: Know Your Leaders

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A while back I was challenged by a post a friend had written. The gist of the post was a reminder not to forget about people around you. Now let me stop there and have you consider something: do you see all your leaders? Do you include them all?

Now I know my knee-jerk reaction to those questions is “yes,” but if I’m honest with you I didn’t always, and I sometimes still miss things. Let me give you an example. Ask yourself this question: do all your leaders drink coffee? If not, should you invite them to meet up “for a cup of coffee?” If not, do you provide alternatives for them when coffee is present (i.e., at meetings, training, leader lounge, etc.)?

Again I hear you on this one. It seems like such a small thing, but truly what is at the heart of this matter is knowing your leaders. When you know them, they feel known and seen and loved. The key is not just seeing them as volunteers but getting to know who they are and doing life with them.

Start by getting to know them. Hang out with them. Grab dinner, a beer, coffee or tea. Take a group outing together. Host a leader game night. Sit with them at church. These moments help you truly know them and foster meaningful relationships.

Create a leader questionnaire. I know this may seem a little clinical, but if you have a larger volunteer team this could be a great way to find out helpful information. Ask questions like:

  • What’s your favorite candy bar?
  • If I got a gift to this restaurant, I’d be really excited:
  • My favorite cold weather drink is…
  • When some does (fill in the blank) I feel seen and loved.
  • What food allergies do you have?
  • How can we pray for you?

Make sure to regularly check in with your leaders. Whether it’s a text, meeting up once a month, grabbing a bite out, or writing them a note, letting your volunteers know you care by checking in helps them to know that they are loved and cared for through an intentional and thoughtful moment.

Another key piece of knowing your leaders is knowing their food allergies. I have a few leaders and an intern who are highly allergic to nuts. A simple way of showing we know our leaders is we don’t put out anything with nuts at training, and if we do gift bags with candy in them we get them special items that don’t have nuts. But it isn’t just people with nut allergies we should be thinking about. There are people who can’t have gluten or dairy, people with allergies to shellfish (but on what youth ministry budget), people who can’t have soy. If you find out this information, you’re going to help people who often feel dismissed or forgotten feel loved and seen.

Lastly, regularly ask them how they are doing and how you can pray for them. Sounds simple right? But this is a huge part of you knowing and caring for your leaders. When you can ask them how work has been, how their family is doing (bonus if you know the names of their family members), what they have been doing to breathe and pause, how their relationship with Jesus is, and how you can pray for them, your leaders are going to feel so appreciated and known. But don’t just ask the question, make sure to actually follow up as well. Don’t let this just be a check mark on the board, but be intentional and make sure that you engage further.

5 Tips for Conducting a Review

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How do you feel about reviews? You may have read the title to this post and thought, “I’ve never had a review before!” Or perhaps your thoughts were more along the lines of, “Reviews suck, and I am always blindsided by them.” Or maybe you thought, “I’ve never given a review before and it’s never been modeled for me.”

Reviews, well, they get mixed reviews (pun intended). Some people love them and others hate them. For some it fills them with dread and for others they long to finally have one. The reality is that reviews in and of themselves are neutral. It’s what we do with them that allow them to be positive or negative, both in how they are executed and in how they are received.

Today’s post is all about helping you think through how to give a productive review to your team member(s). And even if you don’t have a paid staff, you can use these insights to help you proactively walk with, encourage, shape, and disciple your volunteers and even your student leaders.

1. Reviews should never be a surprise nor should the content.

I don’t know how your reviews have gone but I’ve sat in several where something is shared that completely caught me off guard. Sometimes it was positive and sometimes it was negative. But when those moments happen it can often feel surprising, isolating, debilitating, and even make us doubt our calling and career.

Whatever you share should be things, goals, challenges, and feedback of which your teammate is already aware. Reviews aren’t an opportunity to dump some new critique or rebuke but instead an opportunity to facilitate growth, empower your people, highlight achievements, and help them develop their skills and ministry.

2. Review the year and set goals.

Another aspect of giving a review is doing exactly what it says: reviewing the past year or set time frame. When you take time to look back and review the year you can focus in on victories and celebratory moments, and you can highlight areas where growth is needed. It also allows you to think and dream about what the next year will hold, which gives you the structure for setting and implementing goals. Goals are a great way to provide focus, intentionality, and mission to the review and to help your teammate grow and excel in their position.

3. Allow the review to be relational.

I have sat in too many reviews that have felt clinical. It’s felt one sided and as if the reviewer didn’t even know me as an individual or ministry partner. That isn’t how a review should be. Yes, there are aspects of you being the supervisor and the person being reviewed an employee, but that shouldn’t remove the intentional relational component.

You should be a shepherd in your entire role and that includes when you review people. You should still seek to love and care for them, to understand and hear them, and to be for them. When you approach the review from a relational perspective you have helped both sides to flourish.

4. Communicate care and growth.

Part of giving a review is being honest: honest in what they have done well and honest in helping them to see growth areas. This isn’t always easy and it can feel kind of crappy at times, but if you truly care about your teammate you want to help them flourish and grow. So even as you identify growth areas, do it from a position of love and care. Don’t be accusatory or aggressive, instead highlight what you have seen, how you care for them, and a path to flourishing.

5. Pray for them.

This is a big piece that I’ve been incorporating into my reviews over recent years. When a review is relational and personal, seek to care for your teammate in a holistic way. Ask how they are doing, what has gone well for them over the past year in ministry and personally, ask what has been difficult, seek to understand how you can shepherd them better, and then ask how you can pray for them. Inviting them into the process and showing that you love and care about them makes this review much more relational and allows you to truly care for your people.

What to Look For In a Teammate

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You just get told you can hire an additional person to your team! Once the excitement wears off, you now realize you need to find the right person for the position. But what makes someone the right person? Is it their relational ability, their skill at teaching, their energy level, their youth, the ability to connect with students?

I get it. I’ve had the ability to hire people at various times in my career, but what are the qualities, skills, and personalities that we should be looking for? What are the non-negotiables? How do we do our best to hire the right person? Today, I want to share some ideas to hopefully help you hire the best teammate for your ministry.

Find someone with a heart for students.

One of the things I always look for is someone who has a heart and passion for reaching and engaging with students. You cannot teach heart or passion, and it’s important to highlight that this is more than just a job or paycheck. Be willing to ask questions that focus on the reasons for serving with students when looking for a teammate. Questions like, why do you want to work with students, what excites you about with working with students, why do you care about students, and why is student ministry important? These will help you to discern the heart of the person you are interviewing.

Find someone who compliments your skills and vision.

When you are hiring a teammate you want to have someone who is not only onboard with the ministry but who brings their own skills and abilities to the table. Their skill set, while it can be similar to yours–like being a qualified teacher or someone who connects well with students–should be different because having someone who brings new and unique skills can be of immense benefit.

I’m not good at building graphics or even trying to be creative in that way, but my teammate is. She knows how to utilize resources like Canva in creative ways to reach students and thinks through how to make our training sessions not just educational but also invitational and warm. A teammate who compliments you will make you a better team leader and minister, and it will also help your ministry to flourish as it will allow you to reach a greater swath of students.

Don’t let stereotypical skill sets keep you from hiring.

You can teach skills but you can’t teach heart or passion, which we unpacked above. I am not saying that you should hire someone with no understanding of what they are doing, but instead to be flexible on certain aspects of the job. You may have someone who checks all the boxes but isn’t good at running games. That is something you can teach. Perhaps the person you want to hire isn’t good at using PowerPoint or ProPresenter, that’s something you can train them in. Don’t be afraid to think outside the stereotypical “youth person” box.

Look for someone who will challenge you.

Notice what I didn’t say there; I didn’t say look for someone who will be a challenge for you. I’m not asserting that you hire a difficult person, but instead encouraging you to find someone who will help you grow and mature as a leader. You shouldn’t be looking for a yes-man, but instead for someone who brings new and exciting ideas to the table and helps you to grow as a leader and minister.

Find someone who is a team player and willing to contribute.

Having a teammate who can work well on a team and who has a good work ethic will help your ministry to grow and develop. When they want to serve and don’t simply see their position as a job, your ministry and team will be the better for it. Part of this also means that they have the freedom and permission to bring new ideas and programmatic features to the ministry without having to fear that everything they offer will be shut down. This allows for growth and development holistically across the board in your department and ministry.

Look for someone who is willing to grow and go further than expected.

You’re not hiring a warm body or a babysitter; you’re hiring a co-minister to your students and as such that person should be willing to grow and take initiative. Finding someone who isn’t complacent and is willing to go the extra mile will help your ministry flourish because they will intentionally look to benefit everyone involved. When you have someone who wants to grow, you’re not only helping the ministry to flourish, you can help your teammate to develop as well. You are valuing them and helping to set them up for success.

Making Graduation Season Special

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It’s here! The time of year when we commission our graduates, celebrate their achievements, shed some tears as they move on, and reflect on all the memories we have made together. But with these moments come multiple opportunities to invest in, encourage, and champion them as they move into the next phase of their life journey.

There are commencement ceremonies, parties galore, senior parades, and more. Depending on your context and the structure of your ministry, you may be invited to numerous gatherings and events, and that begs a question: how do you make these moments special? Depending on your context you may be invited to a graduation ceremony with multiple students but perhaps you don’t have a budget to get them all a gift. Or maybe you’re invited by a specific family to a graduation, so do you bring them a gift…but what about the other students you know who are graduating?

In order to make the most of this special season, I want to offer a few suggestions for you to consider that will allow you to bless all of your students in a meaningful and personal way. These will specifically be cost-sensitive and will focus on ideas and engagements that will have intentional impact.

Be intentionally relational.

This may sound like a no-brainer, but sometimes it can be hard to engage with people relationally. Maybe it’s a student who just never had anything nice to say. Perhaps it’s a parent who spread rumors about you or one you never met. Or maybe you’re just feeling wiped out from talking to everyone and what’s the big deal with not talking to that family, that parent, or that student?

These moments are opportunities for you to continue to show that your students matter and that you are in their corner. Yes, it may take more time and energy, and yes, you may need to humble yourself in these moments. But I can promise you that if you engage relationally during this season you will see wonderful results as your students continue to grow.

Bring a personalized card.

We have quite a few students graduate each year and it honestly would cost a lot of money if we got each of them a gift, even a small one. So our ministry does gifts for each graduate at our senior commissioning, but Elise and I write out a personal card for each of them that we decorate and make unique. Sharing some memories, writing a personal encouragement, sharing a specific prayer, or even just letting them know how you’ve seen them grow makes the letter intentional and personal instead of a standard card. When you can do something as personal as a handwritten card it shows your students how much they mean to you and how you have seen them grow during their time in your ministry.

Show up when invited.

Our church is a regional church which means we have four or more public high schools, three Christian schools, and cyber learning or homeschooled students represented in our program. Most of our area schools only give out a certain amount of graduation tickets to students, so we don’t always get to attend commencement ceremonies. But when we do, we show up and try to connect with all of our students and families who are present. The same goes for graduation parties. Sometimes we get invited and sometimes we don’t. But when we get the invitation we do our best to attend and connect with our student and their family. These are intentional moments and they communicate love and care for your students.

Don’t be rushed.

I don’t know about you but sometimes I can feel a little pressed for time. There are moments when rushing is appropriate, but in moments when you are connecting with and celebrating your graduates, you need to slow down and be present. That means don’t relegate yourself to only a short time frame. Instead keep your schedule open so you can spend the appropriate amount of time at each special moment.

Continue to be present.

Some of our students experience a fear of the unknown and a fear of leaving behind something they love. In releasing and commissioning our students, one of the things we can continue to do is be present for them. Let them know that you will still be around and that they can still reach out to you. There will be changes, like they are no longer in youth group, but let them know that your love and commitment to them will not change. Continue to follow up with them, grab coffee or visit with them, host a Bible study for graduates, connect them with your college ministry, and utilize other ways to connect during the summer months. These moments help students know that they still matter and that you, and your church, are for them.