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.

The art of teaching yourself.

March 16, 2014 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

I usually get the question… “Where did you learn how to do that?” Here are a few examples…

Pro Presenter
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Premier Pro
Adobe Lightroom
WordPress CSS
How to raise chickens…

You get the idea. Sure, someone led me to the stream, but I had to learn how to drink on my own. When it comes to any kind of foreign territory that would advance my knowledge or add skills to my tool belt, I am intrigued to learn. I love learning new things! Having a smorgasbord knowledge of “how to’s” is critical in so many situations, not just in ministry but life too. Here are some of my more unusual learnings in life and things that I have become a student in…

Yes, raising chickens.
Being a chimney sweep.
Juggling sticks.
Playing the tuba.
The Weber Grill.

Find something that intrigues you and take it to the next level. Read a book on the subject, watch a video online or ask an expert in that field. The rest is up to you.

What’s one area in your ministry that you need to become a student?

Juggling Rocket Ships.

October 2, 2012 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

What goes up must come down…so the saying goes. But what about the rocket ship? If it goes high enough it will reach zero gravity and stay in orbit for a long time! That ship is not coming back down unless given a force in the opposite direction in from which it came.

In ministry, don’t you wish you were juggling with rocket ships?! What some of us would give, to know that we could throw a task so high that it succeeds in flight and all we need to do is keep an eye on it, making sure the flight pattern is on the right path.

Often pastors, staff, and volunteers throw one ball up at a time just for it to come back down. One area of your ministry needs help, attention, a process – you spend hours, days and even weeks helping it succeed. Just when you think you have thrown that ball high enough you see many others speeding at you like asteroids about to hit your ministry. You have now lost focus of the one ball you spent so much time with! And very soon, it too will be speeding back at you.

I’m not here to say I have the answers to this juggling act, but rather offer some sympathy and encouragement…

I know ministry is exhausting at times, find strength in the Spirit. I understand you are frustrated, find contentment in the Gospel. I recognize you are probably not getting the results you desire at the moment, find fulfillment and joy in being a child of God!

What are you juggling right now? Budgets, retreats, capital campaigns, small groups, recruiting leaders, meeting with students, parents, equipping volunteers, casting vision for staff, writing messages for Sunday. I’m right there with you. So, how do I juggle these tasks? I recognize that the Spirit has given each one of my staff, leaders and volunteers a gift. I play to their strengths. You are not alone in ministry…so don’t do ministry alone!

How am I currently juggling? I try to begin with prayer, knowing that God is ultimately responsible here. “God, give me someone to oversee this check-in process.” Now you have to act! Seek out people who have a gift of hospitality – put them in charge of overseeing your greeting and check-in process. This one person can focus on the one ball of greeting. Seek out who has a gift of humor, I strongly believe God has created some people to be more funny than others…and every student ministry needs one. Have this person focus on the one ball of games. I am a partnering students with these adults in the juggling act, help share the load and feel the ownership. I would strongly discourage you from just putting anyone in a postion of coaching or ownership in an area of your ministry, make sure they are qualified, passionate about that specific area, and gifted in that way. It is better to keep looking than try to find a quick fix!

As these teams develop, you do not get a free ride. In some cases, your position becomes more difficult. You will have to learn how to explain your vision, desires, why’s and how to’s, when it comes to juggling. Hopefully, somewhere along the way you aren’t the one juggling all the balls that make up your ministry. You have gone from juggler to aircraft control tower – directing the airspace in your ministry where your rocket ships have launched and are flying high!

I am praying for all the pastors out there today who are juggling away. I pray that God guides you to people who hold gifts and passions that your ministry needs to successfully launch!

If you are really interested in learning how to juggle, take a shot at it!

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Caring for Volunteers.

September 17, 2012 by Chris Parker Leave a Comment

It’s a task for sure. My wife and I are doing our best to have a one-to-one meeting with each of our leaders and volunteers as we hit the ground running. It is important to give individual attention and care to each sheep in the flock. This comes naturally for some, but is difficult to follow through for anyone. My calendar is quickly filling up with back to back meetings for the next month! I would ask the question, “What are your priorities? Are they on your calendar?” As the shepherd of a flock, you must prioritize your sheep, all of them. If you aren’t caring for them, I hope someone is leading them to food and water! Sure, some eat more than others and some like to sleep all day, but being handed the duty of shepherd the initiation is on you to reach out and care for them. Eventually you should provide a good shepherd to sheep ratio by developing other shepherds, you cannot provide quality care for 30+ people. A quote for the day from a book I’m reading, “The Way of the Shepherd”

People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

While developing a team and sharing vision, it doesn’t matter if you know how to build a rocket ship…go out of your way to show sincere encouragement, compassion, and love for your staff and volunteer team. Think about serving them before you think about leading them.