youthpastor.in.transit

I'm a youth pastor and I'm currently in my second transition. I left my first position as a full-time paid intern because the 2 year contract I signed was up. I consider this a legit position because I was leading and giving oversight to the high school ministry at one of the church's multisite campuses. At the end of my contract a position was available for full-time but I didn't get hired for it. It was clear to me, after I had a number of discussions with leadership, that this decision was hard for them. I respect them for putting in the prayer and making a challenging call.

This time around my transition is much different. I was hired as a full-time middle school director. Not many churches have the resources to hire a full-time position for middle school so this gives you an idea of my current church's size. After 1 year here I felt a strong call from God that my time was coming to an end. This transition is extremely difficult because I need to respond to God's call and make the hard decision this time.

There are a lot of things we have to navigate when transitioning out of our positions. Here are some thoughts from a youth pastor in transition.

Leaving is hard

Leaving a position as a youth pastor can be extremely difficult. When working with students the investment is much more than pizza parties and chaperoning. In some cases we watch our students grow up from being hand fed spiritual milk to feeding themselves on a daily basis. Putting the growth of your current students into someone else's hands can feel like you are abandoning them. The highly relational nature of what youth pastors do always makes this process tough. Don’t try and make it easy. Let it be hard. Be honest with students about your concerns and use this as a teachable moment. Create messages in your last weeks about student leadership and challenge them to trust God with their future. Redeem this difficult moment into something full of Jesus, hope, and renewal.  

How do you leave?

I know that I have to do everything I can to help my students see that this decision is a calling. Before you leave over communicate that it’s not because of something the students did. Reinforce your love for the students and faith in God.

Leaving is an opportunity to cast vision for the future and empower others for ministry. If a leader has lead well then the transition should produce fruit. Good leaders have other very capable leaders under them that can sustain the responsibilities of the ministry until a permanent replacement is found. If you have been slacking on the investment you made in leaders it will show here. Make sure to invest in the leaders without asking them to do your job or the next guys job.

DO NOT THROW A PITTY PARTY! 
There is nothing worse than making this transition about us. God didn’t call us to ministry because we’re special. God has a plan for students regardless of who the leader is. We must make it a priority to help the students and the staff see our hope and faith in God. Encourage them in their faith and what God has planned for them. People may want to throw a pity party for you but those parties have to be crashed with hope and positive reinforcement.   

We are not in control of how people react
Sometimes people can be the driving force behind why we do what we do. We love the students God has put under our care. It’s obvious that we have invested in them with our blood, sweat, and tears. In my case that is literally true. We have to be prepared for any responses that may come from others. Sometimes the responses from students can be hurtful. If we have done the hard work of following Jesus then we know our decision, although it’s a good decision, may not make sense to a lot of people. We have to be understanding and display the grace and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. We are in control of how we respond. Create space so that you have extra time to respond to what’s going on rather than react in the chaos. Always communicate truth with grace.

           

Fight the temptation to check out early

God has called us to ministry for a reason. We have been given a responsibility to take care of those students. Have faith that God will take care of things like, where you will move to, and how this will affect finances. We will rarely get disappointed by doing our best and taking it one step at a time. It seems impossible to give your best if you are focused on yourself and not God. Keep your eyes on the work at hand. God will prepare the next place for you. 

Prayer and fasting

This spiritual discipline is one of the few things that Jesus actually commands us to do. We learn from Jesus that going away to pray and fast builds a stronger relationship with God. (Mark 1:35) Prayer and fasting is an act of surrender and respect, it's an invitation into the heart, and it's an offering of our will to be directed by God, it provides new discovery and opportunities. Without it we fight for air as the waves toss us around in a sea of fear and anxiety. I know this may sound like an obvious thing for a Christ follower to do but the truth is that prayer and fasting should be a regular part of our lives. Make sure you pray and you fast about this extremely important change in your life and the lives of those around you.

Thanks for reading my blog.
Are you in transition? I would love feedback. Thanks!

Death is a new beginning

In about 45 minutes I'm going to be teaching my students about death. There has been a tragic accident recently involving a good friend of mine from High School. He was on his honeymoon taking a helicopter ride with his wife and the helicopter crashed and they both died. Two other deaths that people very close to me are dealing with has inspired me to teach on this topic. The reality is that every student will have to face this issue in their lives. Eventually someone close to them will die and it will pave the way for hard questions. I hope that this lesson will teach my students that Jesus is someone they can go to when this happens.

The BIG IDEA this morning is that Jesus turns death into life. As Gungor expresses it in their new album "When death dies, all things live"

If you are a youth pastor how often do you teach on death?
I would love to know how you approach this with your students. Especially the middle school students.

adding hours to your life

So here I go again. Another day and another opportunity. I'm trying to start my day off on the right foot. I learned some great stuff in my small group last night that would be great to apply as I progress throughout my day. Last night we read the Matthew 6.25-34 passage and discussed what Jesus was trying to teach his followers about worry. As I type this post I already feel the worry starting to creep up on me. The possibility that I wont have enough time to get all of my other tasks for today accomplished if I spend too much time writing this concerns me. That concern I have is not a bad thing. When those concerns start to consume me to the point that I am less productive and my hope for accomplishing those tasks starts to decrease, then I have crossed over the line from concern to worry.

So here are a few of my thoughts for this morning "concerning" my worries.

Priorities
If I prioritize my responsibilities I can gradually work at seeing them get accomplished. Not everything is going to get done today. I do have things that need done today and I know that there is something I can do to accomplish those things. Spending too much time being concerned about what the result of my task will be can cause me to worry. Everyone is afraid to fail so I shouldn't feel abnormal because of that. Being concerned is a great thing because it helps me feel more responsibility for getting my goals accomplished. Being consumed by the results can decrease my effectiveness in getting my tasks done.

Process
If I am honest with myself I will understand that I can't perfectly accomplish all my tasks today. If I truly love what I do I will never be satisfied until it is being done in the best way possible. So I will leave space in my spirit for mistakes to help me grow. If things are not perfected today there will be another chance tomorrow. I will always be able to play a part in the process of "perfecting" my tasks.

Humility
I need to be humble enough to admit when I don't know how to accomplish my tasks. If I ask questions to figure out how to do something I am struggling with I may save myself hours of trying to figure it out. If I need to learn how to do it anyway why not ask someone who knows how?

Love
I want to love my job today. Some of the things I do may not be ideal or even enjoyable but they always help me learn more about myself and what I'm made to do. I know there will always be tasks that I have to accomplish no matter how much I hate doing them. But those tasks should never be the majority of what I am spending time on. If they are then I am wasting my time because I'm in the wrong profession. I am always being shaped to love what I do and/or do what I love. I will not worry if what I am doing today isn't the perfect job for me.

"Can anyone of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" -Matt 6.27

"Therefor do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." -Matt 6.34