So…How was your summer?
In the previous post, we discovered who the real person behind seeing numbers as success is. The fact…
So…How was your summer?
Summer in Youth Ministry can be a busy time. I love summers in Youth Ministry, but it always seems to me that it is gone almost as soon as it gets here.
We pack it full of camps, mission trips, youth events, youth trips, etc. We always see God do some really amazing things in students. We come out of summer with stronger relationships with students, parents, and even Youth Workers.
So, now that summer is coming to a close, and the new school year is around the corner, what do we do? Here are six things to do before the new school year:
1. Celebrate the summer
It is always important to celebrate the good things. I think too often we forget to, because the next thing is right around the corner. If you consistently forget to celebrate the good things you will eventually find yourself discouraged.
2. Evaluate the summer
This is a must do in anything. Take some time to evaluate how things went. What went really well? What could have gone better? What could you change or do differently to have a greater influence?
Seek out input from anywhere you can get it. Ask parents, Youth Workers, and even students.
WARNING: The temptation here is to find everything that went wrong. Be sure to identify the things that went well also.
3. Set goals for the coming year
I am big on setting goals. If you have no target to hit, you will never hit the target. Be realistic here though. Find one or two things before the new school year that you really want to focus on and put all your effort and energy towards those.
4. Plan your parents’ meeting
Regardless of the size of your ministry, you need a parents’ meeting. Be intentional with this. Have an agenda and a plan. Share the calendar of events (that you have planned already…right?) and the estimated cost of your bigger events. Share you vision, invite them to join you and be a part of the ministry during the new school year. Use this to get contact information from them and to let them know how to stay in the loop.
5. Send Thank You Cards
There were no doubt several people who really helped you pull summer off. Make sure you send Thank You’s to them. Let them know you appreciate them. This will go a long way for you and your ministry.
6. Pray and rest
Carve out time to rest and pray. Even if it is only one day away to rest…make this one a priority. Of all the things on this list, this one is by far the hardest to do. It is also the most important. Make sure you take time to do this before the new school year.
How was your summer? What kinds of things did you see God do this summer in your students? What do you make sure you do before the school year? Leave a comment and share below!
Photo credit: Wagner T. Cassimiro “Aranha” / Foter /Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
About #4 >> We have about 60-70 teens on Wednesday nights (6th-12th grades) and our last two parent’s meetings have been horribly attended. 2 times ago, 2 parents came. One of those works at the church. Last time, no one came. Over a hundred letters, emails, and other invitations, but 0 parents came.
I’m working this year on distributing valuable parenting content through email and mixing in ministry updates. I think this model might be the new parents meeting, at least where I’m located in northern California.
I think you are definitely on the right track Kurt! I also, give price breaks for early sign ups for camps/retreats/etc. So…I tell parents that they can find out how to save money on Youth Ministry events at the Parents’ Meeting (even if it is only $10). Saving money motivates us all I think.
If you’re not already, I would also suggest using something like Mailchimp so you can actually make sure they are opening and clicking through on the emails you are sending out. Otherwise, you may be spending a ton of time on emails that very few are reading.
Great thoughts Kurt! You have to find what works for your context for sure. The big thing is that you are communicating! Let me know how it goes this year. I would love to hear about it.