Raising the Bar in Ministry

Raising the Bar in Ministry, four key areas in youth ministry that are essentials that deserve a higher standard.

Youth ministry as a career and a profession is now being recognized. Great schools offer higher levels of education and degrees in the study of youth ministry. There are now professional-level, executive-style search companies helping churches seek, interview, and hire for the “youth pastor” role or another from the related long list of titles.

Youth ministry is no longer only a “stepping stone” ministry that individuals do while they wait to get into “real” ministry. It is not just a job for a few years before moving on to something better. I and a growing number of youth ministry professionals have continued on in ministry for 20 or 30 years. While my role and title have changed slightly, at the end of the day, I am still connected to youth ministry. Still actively teaching and leading eye-to-eye with young people.

With many years of experience also comes reflection and insight. I have a bit of an “over the hill” perspective as I look back at myself, my peers, and the younger generation of youth workers coming up. I believe it is time for a reminder…again. For us to continue to keep the bar raised in youth ministry. Ladies and gentlemen, we are professionals. Even if we are not paid, or we are underpaid, we need to raise the bar in youth ministry in four important ways.

1. Competence
We need to present ourselves as competent and worthy of our position. People trust us with their children, as they do with teachers and coaches. Our competence needs to match their trust and our position.

The way we present ourselves and our ministry needs to be at the same, if not higher, standard than in other places. Imagine a parent walking into a meeting with a teacher or coach, and they are sitting unshowered in a pair of shorts and flip-flops. While we work with students and there are times to be casual, are we presenting ourselves as competent adults when interacting with other adults?

We may complain about students choosing sports or other extra-curricular activities over our ministry. Still, part of this is our fault when those other things offer competent leaders that are respected in their position and knowledge. Are we seen by our students, parents, and staff as trusted sources of expertise and Godly wisdom?

Being seen as competent will get you a position, and raising the bar in competence will help you keep it.

2. Communication
We are paid communicators from the stage and in every way. While our focus may be on raising the bar in our spoken communication, we must also remember that the spoken word is only 7% of what we communicate. We communicate in many other ways, most of which are not verbal.

The written word is even more important in raising the bar in communication. Poor grammar and slang terminology when communicating with adults makes us look bad. While social media and digital forms are the new lifeblood of communication, we need to be intelligent and savvy in communicating virtually.

Across the board, we need to raise the bar in communication by being:

Consistent

Considerate

Concise

Constructive

3. Character
Character is critical in ministry, especially in the continual swirl of stories of ministry failures. Like no other time in recent ministry history, it is time to raise the bar on character. We need to be living a life above reproach. This may mean we need to take extra steps to ensure there are never any questions about who we are and how we do ministry.

Even in something that has been in conversations and controversy in recent years, the “Billy Graham” rule. Things like this will set us apart and are seen as taking the extra step to make sure our character is never in question.

The view of your character may also come from your work ethic. Coming in late, leaving early, and missing meetings make those in youth ministry appear lazy or even not giving our absolute best in our world.

It comes down to a matter of Honor, Honesty, and Heart. Our honor needs to be about the integrity of character. Our honesty comes down to trustworthiness. Our heart needs to be centered on Christ, living a life of spiritual purity.

4. Commitment
Students and parents will not join us in our ministry vision until they know we are committed. We are committed to the calling of youth ministry, the place we serve, and them as people. Youth ministry is no longer a “stepping stone” ministry, but there is still an idea that continues that we are only there for a short time. I can speak from experience in being in a place for 11+ years serving and doing life with others in youth ministry that have spent way longer than that at a single church.

When we make the choice to be committed, the bar is elevated to another level in our ministry. When we are not looking “over the fence” to see where the grass is greener, our attitude changes. We need to live down the urban legend of the 2-year youth pastor tenure.