1 of 4
Worth Cheering About
A recent incident confirmed that a hectic ministry pace can serve as a big, constant distraction in life.
1 of 4
A recent incident confirmed that a hectic ministry pace can serve as a big, constant distraction in life. On the other hand, maybe I experienced the effects of my ever-increasing age. Right now, though, let's blame busyness for the near-frequent times that I fail to notice important things. For example, today I walked to my car after several hours of planning meetings, personnel conversations, and phone calls/emails in abundance. My mind continued to race—okay, slosh—as I fumbled in my pocket for my keys, and for the first time I noticed rust forming around the rear tire well. Great, I thought, that's one more thing to take care of before it becomes a larger problem. Then I saw the small crack in the windshield, and nearly shed a tear as I imagined the repair bill. While inserting my key in the lock I wondered why I let myself get so busy that I didn't notice that the car I drive every day was falling apart. When the key wouldn't unlock the door, I panicked at the thought of a locksmith's fees. And it was precisely at that moment when I realized I was trying to get in someone else's car. I chuckled with relief that repairs were now unnecessary. Yet I couldn't laugh away the reality that busyness distracted my mind from noticing the obvious. Sure, you've probably never tried to take the wrong car. But do you ever find that the constant pace to execute children's ministry every week prevents you from noticing ministry opportunities? Our ministry recently realized that something obvious was about to escape attention. We have a class of fifth graders that will soon leave our ministry to attend our junior high ministry. Hopefully. And "hopefully" just doesn't seem good enough. From conversations I've had with other churches, many of us share a common challenge: to ensure that kids will attend the junior high ministry after they graduate from the children's program. That process is known by several names: hand-off, baton pass, transition, and the list could go on. The same issue repeats between the junior high and high school ministries. Very real challenges, no doubt. Maybe that's why children/youth pastors make so much money. Wait a minute; please insert the word "should" in the previous sentence. Back to the story … So this year our team decided to make a big deal of our fifth grade class's departure—in part to give them a big push into the junior high program. That won't make anyone cheer overly loud, though; so there's an even larger reason to mark this moment. I've heard it said that you can tell what's important by what gets celebrated. Assuming the validity of that wisdom, we began the process to create a significant spiritual milestone in the lives of our graduates. After all, many of them have been with us for over a decade. Along the way most have started personal relationships with Jesus and now follow Him. Plenty worth cheering about, don't you agree? At the same time, we want to challenge them to continue their spiritual journey and attend the junior high program. |        
       |
share this page
Average User Rating: Not rated
Submit Your Rating and Review *