Ministry endeavors and summer adventures!

June 24, 2015 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

This summer is flying by faster than my chickens… yes I do have chickens, and yes they run & fly when I call them, and yes they are trained… okay enough of that, back to summer.

UPGRADE

The season started quite rapidly with the promoting of all grades at our church. This was a first for us, we previously promoted in the fall at the beginning of a new school year but missed the boat with many students feeling too old for their former program during the summer. Our previous 8th graders are fully engaged and now participating in our HS program, solidifying these friendships and program as part of their schedule before their freshman year begins.

VOLUNTEER RECRUITING

During the same 2-3 weeks we were in the trenches of a church-wide volunteer series. “You are here: Do something.” It went well…too well. There are 500 people that expressed interest in getting plugged in and trying a serving/volunteer role at our church. 180-ish of those people expressed interest in serving within NextGen. This is great and all but with our small staff processing this many people you can only imagine the amount of work on top of what we are already doing – but we are doing it and really excited to see how many become weekly volunteers in our ministry.

GO! TEAMS

Enter GO! Teams. Go! Teams are the serving experiences we offer during the summer for kids/students 3-12 grade…yes 3rd graders participate! This year we had 6 different sites across the country, and 1 international site being in Haiti. Almost 200 kids, students and adult leaders served God this summer through kid’s clubs, feeding the homeless, prayer walks, relational ministry, refugee ministry, and a few small construction projects. This wouldn’t have been possible if we hadn’t had the help from our global serve leader Calla (my wife, she’s awesome) and her partnering with NextGen and our like-minded ministry partners to offer something truly special for our students.

This was the first year since being in youth ministry for 7 years that I did not lead a trip. I went as an adult leader on our Portland trip to shadow a team leader and give feedback, he did awesome! Portland is FULL of ministry opportunities, it is a city that is in desperate need of Jesus.

Getting back a few days ago, I realized there is much more work to be done this summer, but also much playing to be had!

Here’s what I have coming up – stay tuned for updates!

Work Hard

Interview and accept 4 interns by September 1st for a 1-year internship in student ministry at Gateway. Interested? Apply now to our Leadership Development Program!
Onboarding and training volunteers and small group leaders for the fall.
Helping find a new staff member for our NextGen team. (Early Childhood)
NextGen Family BBQ. Last year we had 800 show up to feast and meet our staff and small group leaders.
Scheduling out the remainder of the summer and executing a 6-week trial run on new high school program hours. (we are trying a 4-6PM program time on Sundays, what works best for your highschoolers?)
Wrapping up 2015 stumin poll and getting results out. (Sorry this has taken forever, but it’s still 2015 right?) Haven’t taken it yet? You can right here!
Book reviews for Orange… I’m thrilled to read some of the latest from the Orange store, I just have to find the time!

Play Hard

Next week I’m spending a few days in Geneva with my wife at our favorite hideaway. (Geneva, IL not Switzerland!) The Herrington Inn is a MUST for any couple wanting some R&R. It’s a real gem.
We are buying a jeep from one of my former roommates in Chicago and driving it back to TX next week! 1,145 miles with Calla! 98′ XJ Cherokee Sport 4×4 4.0L 5spd for those Jeep freaks that want the details.
Getting a few 14ers under my belt with Kenny Conley and flyfishing in Colorado. We are for sure going to climb Gray’s/Torrey’s peak.
One week with no agenda, just resting and spending time in Ft. Collins, CO with my wife and her family.

What kind of youth pastor do you think you are?

February 17, 2015 by Chris Parker 35 Comments

Last week I found myself in a room of guys and gals from across the city of Austin who held the title of youth pastor, student director, high school pastor, etc. It has been neat to network with others that find themselves in my shoes and do the work that I do. We can exchange victories and failures in a safe place where we really understand the unique yet adverse opportunities we face on a weekly basis when working with students, parents and volunteers.

However, as I shook hands in this room full of 25 other youth pastors and started exchanging position titles, our job descriptions, and current goals I realized quickly that I’m a bit different than the majority. [Read more…]

5 reasons you should leave your church and go to another one.

January 28, 2015 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

Ever wonder what meetings are like on the other side? At a different church? How have they already solved the problems you are currently having in your church? Take a closer look at the churches around you. What appears the same on the outside could be very different on the inside. [Read more…]

Inside peek: Planning our Winter Camp.

January 8, 2015 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

The only successful to-do list includes this formula: Assign + Execute = Done.

What appears to be a massive to-do list is almost just that. Some of these to-do’s will take 10 minutes while others may have taken 10 collective hours poured into them by our entire NextGen team. The multi-color spreadsheet to the right is our master schedule of 3 camps happening simultaneously at the same location on one weekend: 3-5 grade, 6-8 grade and 9-12 grade.

Assigning. This is probably more important than execution. If the task is assigned a champion to ensure it is completed then you do not have to worry about the 10 minutes – 10 hours it may take to execute the to-do. Evenly distributing your workload for a huge task like winter camp is the only way to go. It should never be one person’s job. If the item is not correctly delegated it will most likely not get done or present a source of frustration for the whole team. On our to-do board, in each checkbox there are initials representing the champion of that task, most of our team picked their own tasks to own. This came out of experience in a certain area or a gifting that made that task more preferable.

Executing. It usually always takes longer than you think, so allow double the time you think it may take so that you can produce quality work and not simply just get the job done. I’m not only talking about your input or work on the project: take into consideration graphic artists, t-shirt companies, shipping+handling timelines, and room for error if something needs to be redone. Set some timers. Today I had 15 minute timers going to keep me on task to execute my current to-do so I could move on to the next one. In the same manner, when a team-mate finishes their tasks you should start playing dominos (let one person that is finished fall into another persons task to help them until they are finished so that you can speed up the endgame)

This is probably not far off from what you and your team does before a camp or retreat. In a project as this you will be heavily reminded the importance of teamwork, if not you may be doing something wrong. You might be able to lift a few heavy things but you can’t do it all. Learn that now and you will still be sane in a few years and perhaps even your longevity in student ministry will increase.

A word of advice: Don’t wait until the last minute to think out loud with your team and start assigning and executing tasks. It’s never too soon to begin a project, but too soon can turn into too late very quickly. Set dates on your calendar now for planning your next big event, set alarms on your phone, and reminders on your calendar for certain tasks. I suggest 4-6 months ahead of time.

Do you want more students at your camp? Do some forward thinking like some of your families.

If your personal and work life feel like they are overflowing with to-do’s try this exercise, I call it the “brain dump”.

Relational vs. Informational

December 18, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” -The Way of the Shepherd

Putting processes over people can be a threat to your ministry, and I’ve been guilty of it. Naturally, we enjoy relational time over being talked to or informed by a single person. When there is relational time involved people make a connection with those they are talking to and are able to contribute to the relational aspect. When receiving information or being talked to, many shut down because it’s a one way street they can’t turn onto, they just have to sit at the red light awaiting staring at the traffic of information until the relational green light flips back on and they can once again engage with those around them.

I do my best to find a balance for my leaders. I try to start every meeting with a conversation starter that will help the leaders exchange personal experiences in life so that they can connect with each other. Although this is true I do my best to make the conversation starter tie to the thought or win for the day. I also ask them to rotate through different leaders so they can get to know some that they might not know so well.

My leaders look forward to connecting with each other every week, I don’t have to ask them to be on time to a meeting anymore. They show up expecting to have some relational time accompanied by some information for the week.

Do you simply hold the floor when it comes to talking or do you create a space for the leaders to engage relationally with one another?

Get more time with your leaders.

December 17, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

It was 9:28AM on a fall morning last year, right before my middle school large group program was about to begin. The morning was going pretty smooth, everything seemed ready for the program and students were beginning to show up, signing in and getting their name tags. As I watched the second hand tic-toc on the clock I began to get overwhelmed with anxiety, “Where are our leaders?” I blurted out loud. The one leader that was always on time gave a knowing smile to remind me that this was an every week occasion. I knew in that moment something had to change. It was no longer an accountability factor, we needed a change in our leadership culture.

After talking with some other youth pastors and some of my staff I laid down the ultimatum. I announced the shift from what was normal and asked them to trust me and give it a try. The shift being, instead of asking leaders to show up 15 minutes prior to program and arrive where the students arrive, we would meet 30 minutes before program in the staff office space. This locker room mentality before the big game would allow us all to really dial in each week, look at our content, how we will engage the students and have time for Q&A.

The shift did not come without a cost. Yes, it’s one more thing the youth pastor has to prepare for, but it’s totally worth it! When you get 30 minutes to lead your leaders every week you would be amazed at how much closer your feel to them, the pulse you have on their leadership and the trust that is continually established.

Here’s the coolest thing, it creates community for your leaders. When you create a space for them that doesn’t involve the common denominator that which is students, they have to connect with each other. We throw in free coffee with the signature creamers and some snack food to show them we do appreciate them giving us additional time. I have stopped asking leaders to show up on time because I don’t have to any more, they want to show up early and hang with their friends! 90% of my 50-60 leaders show up 30 minutes prior to one of our three student services every week, they are rarely tardy.

When your leaders are getting more time with you and each other they are better equipped for ministry.

The time with my leaders include:

A conversation starter, giving them 5 minutes to connect with each other.
The WIN for the week.
An overview of the message and small group questions.
Push any events outside of regular programming.
Prayer.

How do you spend time with your leaders?

Gift yourself – free book for first commenter.

December 1, 2014 by Chris Parker 1 Comment

Your a student pastor, perhaps a dad, a coach, a part-timer at Starbucks, or just someone looking to dive deeper into the student ministry realm. For those that want to be a better youth pastor…yes that’s all of us, then you need to gift yourself this book. Whether it’s with your church budget (they will thank you for reading this book) or your own money (you will thank yourself for reading this book) you must read Make Believe. Once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down, this book builds a strong case for why the larger nation wide student ministry could be suffering and how you can be part of reversing that statistic by building a ministry that outlasts you. I tell you what, I believe in this book so much that I want to give one away for FREE, I want to buy you a copy. The first student pastor/director to leave a comment that doesn’t have this book, I will ship you a copy.

In this book you will find that Ben and Kevin (both leading very successful student ministries) hit the nail on the head. Once again, I think this could be the best book out there for student pastors right now…other than the Bible of course 🙂

A different perspective.

November 6, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

I know it’s bad writing to give it all away in the first few sentences, but I care this much for you, so I’m going to give you the nitty gritty up front. You need to look at things differently. We are all guilty of a biased view of most situations and that is ok, God gave you a perception and the free will to feel and observe differently than those around you. You as a student pastor may be feeling opposition, lack of support or feel like your entire staff or volunteers just aren’t seeing what you see. Take moment to look at your situation or problem from their point of view. Look at it through the lens of your senior pastor, your boss, your students, your volunteers, your parents, etc. This can greatly impact the way you lead through something or react to others during confrontation.

One of my jobs while being in college was wedding photographer on the weekends. Bumping up against other photographers I realized quickly that the art is totally subjective. A great angle to take a photo for one photographer, may be seen differently by another photographer. Art is subjective, one artist may love this style while another artist doesn’t care for it or think it can be done better. The way we run our programs, retreats, use of budgets, recruiting and developing of leaders is not too different. There are 200 different ways to do programs, 300 ways to develop leaders and a million ways you can shift your budget to fit your ministry goals and desired outcomes.

When someone critiques what you are doing or you are feeling big opposition, do yourself and the other party a favor. Look at things from their perspective. This should help give you a broader perspective so that you can make a better decision for yourself and your ministry.

Every 26 seconds this happens to a high school student.

September 8, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

Every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States alone. That’s a student every 26 seconds – or 7,000 a day.

Unbelievable. I knew the dropout rate wasn’t a pretty number. But wow! These students have been part of a system their entire life (public education system) and then in the blink of an eye, just a few years or months shy of graduation they surrender by throwing their hands in the air and give a defeated, “I’m out.”

Why are they dropping out? How do we keep them more engaged? Is their success or future in danger because of the decision made? Do we completely blame the student or is this a parenting problem as well?

I know there are plenty of answers and perspectives taken on this, but I wanted to be one of many to bring awareness to this situation. You can’t stop 7,000 students from dropping out each day, but maybe you could reach out to the one in your sphere of influence that is thinking about it or struggling with an issue that could give them the excuse to drop out.

Graduating high school is an accomplishment. Be a positive and encouraging voice to these young people, it may go farther than you think.

7 ways to prime your ministry.

August 31, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

Just like priming the pump for my old rusty lawn mower before I get it started, you and I both have some things we could do to prime the pump of our ministry before the school year gets underway. When you don’t prime the pump you could be putting yourself and your ministry into deep weeds that could have been avoided.

WARNING: Now is the easiest time to fall into bad habits, make careless leadership decisions, and be totally side swiped by some amazing and not so amazing opportunities. What you do now at the beginning of a school year will dramatically impact the kind of year you have. Do these 7 things now to prime your ministry and you will be set up for a win!

Calendar out your curriculum and teaching schedule. Spend a few hours with those that help your ministry operate, whether it be staff or volunteers. Get everyone in a room and say, “We will not leave this room until we have every Sunday covered until Christmas.” It may seem brutal, but you will thank me later. Having a game plan for the the next 4 months will save tons of time you would waste in the next few months “trying to figure out” what you will do next.
Have a big camp/retreat this fall or winter? Start registration now. For my students we do a winter camp. Though it’s in January we opened registration this weekend! Why? Because I want as many students at camp as possible. This maximizes promotion time and allows families to plan both financially and ample time to put it on the family calendar. Upon first day of registration this year we had 180 kids/students pre-register…that’s 75% of numbers from last year. I’m not at all worried about getting enough people to camp. We will most likely be at or over camp capacity this year. This also gives visiting students or new guests something to look forward to more than Sunday mornings. When they see everyone is doing it and they sign up…well, the chances of you retaining this visitor is high!
Map out your budget according to your goals. This seems simple in theory, yet many opportunities will pull at your ministry wallet this year. If meeting your goals is the most important thing, then budget for them not against them. This year I’m really trying to grow the high school program, I will be spending a lot of my budget on this.
Give away more leadership to those that have earned it. You can’t do it all, and don’t pretend you can. One of the best things you can do as a leader is figuring out what is on your plate that you could give away while at the same time empowering someone else. It doesn’t matter whether they are a staff member or a small group leader. Target those that are high-capacity “doers” and trust that they could do a better job than you!
Develop a WIN calendar. Each week I give my small group leaders a win. Each week the win is different and revolves around connecting with students, engaging the parents, developing sticky community. These wins are small and tangible, if the small group leader follows through they know that they have won that week! For example: The win for this week is to put on the calendar an outing for your small group that isn’t on Sunday, communicate it to their parents.
Meet the parents. This could be one of the most important ways to prime your ministry for success. If you have parents on board with what you are doing there is little you can’t accomplish. We just had a BBQ after church last week for all parents that attend and have children birth-College. Over 800 people showed up to eat food and hear the vision for our NextGen ministry this year. Most importantly though, each parent had the opportunity to meet the child’s small group leader that would be in that child’s life every Sunday this year. If you don’t do something like this, you need to figure out how to make it happen, it’s one of the most important things we do.
Get Prime! This may sound silly but I can’t tell you how much of a time and money saver this is for my ministry. If I need game supplies, stage props, materials for camp, gifts for small group leaders, etc. this is the first place I stop. With an Amazon Prime membership I get almost everything in 2-free day shipping plus access to millions of songs with ad-free streaming. I’d argue Amazon Prime pays for itself in just the first few weeks you use it. It’s funny, almost every Wednesday I ask myself, “Is there anything I need for Sunday?” If so, it’s just as easy as jumping online, a few clicks and boom! Done. No trips to the local grocery store or dollar store, I’m done. This could be the most resourceful and responsible $99 you spend for your ministry.

Life of a youth pastor .

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