by Chase | Leadership
Everyone wants to get a bargain.
Whether you follow money saving blogs or are meticulous about your finances, being cheap isn’t easy in our culture. We try to save in creative ways that seem small but can yield large savings over time.
While saving money is a noble cause, at times being cheap can cost you more money in the long run.
When it comes to ministry, there are many areas that you can fine-tune your annual budget, but sometimes being cheap costs you money.
Quality is typically cheaper than quantity.
For instance, buying a quality computer is cheaper in a four-year period than buying a cheap computer that you have to constantly repair. Buying one quality machine (versus two or three cheaper ones) does carry a bigger up-front cost, but will save you money in the coming years by not replacing it 2-3 times (quantity).
All of us can find these ideologies in our ministries. Here are a few questions to see if you are wasting money by being cheap.
Are You Wasting Ministry Money By Being Cheap?
Will it cost more to repair or replace the broken item?
Does the technology need to be updated because of it’s age and lack of usability?
Is it better to buy one quality item or a cheaper option that may need to be replaced 2-3 times?
Are you wasting valuable time working around a problem instead of fixing it?
Are you putting bandages on a broken arm?
Are your cost-saving ideas causing problems in the future?
Have you planned on the appropriate upkeep for the new building, ministry, or system?
Now What?
I’m not advocating that you should always buy the most expensive option — we would all be broke if that were the case! But there are some situations where you must weigh what is best for the ministry – quality or quantity.
Leading change in this area can be tough. One of your biggest advocates is to budget appropriately on the front end of your fiscal year.
How can you align your leaders into a quality is better than quantity mindset?
by Chase | How To, Leadership
Every leader feels the pressure to complete more.
- Create more products.
- Meet more people.
- Attend more meetings.
- Write more posts.
The pressure for more is a leadership constant. Entrepreneurs and leaders rarely experience contentment. But how could we? We tend to see the broken aspects of the world and are wired to fix, adjust, and change.
So, we end up working longer hours, pushing families, businesses, and ourselves to the limit.
In the name of doing “more” we fine-tune our personal disciplines and meticulously monitor our progress. Our source of guidance and direction come from our:
- Schedules
- Deadlines
- Processes
- To-Do List
Can we be real for a minute? You can’t get everything done.
If you are anything like me I bet you know that this is a reality, but it doesn’t stop you from being consumed with worry and stress.
There are some items on my list that I am incapable of accomplishing. In fact, there are many items that I have absolutely no power over.
That is why I have started creating to-do lists for God.
Now, before you think this is the most arrogant concept that you have ever heard of (I know that I am a nobody and that God does not take orders from me) my intention is to create a space that is a reminder that God is God and I am not. There are conversations, situations, and projects that I cannot control. I need to hand them over to the One who has control and dominion so I can stop worrying about them and focus on the tasks that God has for me today.
We make lists for our employees to take ownership of, why not acknowledge God’s part in your work life?
Why Create a God To-Do List?
1. Admits Your Dependence Upon God
Like I said, we need a daily reminder that our power fails in comparison to God’s. By God’s grace you are in a place of authority and influence. Don’t forget to depend on His strength and wisdom as you lead.
2. Increases Your Prayer Life
Making a “God To-Do List” is essentially the practice of writing down prayer requests. I would suggest that you pray through any to-do lists that you create, but shifting tasks from your side to God’s is an easy way to start praying.
3. Shifts Your Focus on What God Has For You To Do Right Now
You need to do what God has given you to do for the day. Stop worrying about the situations you cannot change, instead you are investing in the areas that God has planted you. The deeper the roots you develop now, the stronger your leadership will be tomorrow.
Now What?
What items and task are weighing on your heart that you need to hand over to God?
Your pride will want you to depend on your own strength. Fight the urge to do more and start pursuing a God-honoring philosophy of work.
by Chase | Kid Min, Leadership
Adults should become more like children during worship.
Notice I didn’t say “act like children.”
Lord knows that some of you all have enough drama posted on Facebook! The last thing that you that you need is to add to your issues by fighting over crayons and spilling goldfish crackers all over the worship center!
Let me say it in another way: We should spend less time trying to make children worship like adults and more time worshipping like our children.
This is counter to what many of us believe. Whether it was our upbringing or some other reason we often try to force adulthood onto our children. Truth be told, we expect children to grow up quickly and mature faster than they should.
Before I get too deep into this conversation, I promise you that this is not a post about parenting and how to raise your child. In fact, it is the exact opposite.
You need to become more like your kids. Yes, that is correct. You, the adult, needs to become more like a child in your relationship with Jesus. And if you think this is absurd, this isn’t my idea, but a teaching from Jesus. Check it out:
- Matthew 18:3-4 “And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.’”
Why would Jesus say this? Simple. Kids have no other choice but to be rely on others.
Jesus was making it clear that pride and self-righteousness have no place in the Kingdom of Heaven. We must humbly submit to Jesus and rely on His provisions. Adults need to depend on Jesus while they journey with Him.
This verse gets me thinking about some of the ways that children worship. Each week I lead the large group-teaching portion of our Kids Worship. I love seeing how elementary kids interact with one another and worship with Jesus.
At times we all come into a worship setting with the wrong attitude and heart. I know children are not perfect. I get that. But I do think that some adults would experience more of Jesus when they release their control and depend on the Spirit of God to move in their lives.
There are many areas of our lives that we try to hold onto our idea and preferences more so than allowing Jesus to move in and through us. Below is a short list to serve as a conversation started around this idea of shedding our pride and fully depending on Jesus in the same way that a child depends on a parent for care.
Here are a few reasons why adults should worship like children.
4 Reasons Adults Should Worship Like Children
Kids Are Excited To Attend Church
Kids are excited to experience God, connect with other people, serve one another, voice prayer requests, and create crafts that center on the day’s Bible passage. Their energy for worship is contagious to the leaders! They have a joy about life and a faith that believes that Jesus will take care of everything. Many adults need a fresh wind and excitement about the things of God.
Kids Are Ready to Learn
When I lead kids worship each week our children are ready to learn about Jesus each Sunday. Many of them bring their Bibles to church, they sit attentively, and remember content from week-to-week. They crave knowledge about Jesus and live out the lessons that they have learned.
Kids Are Not Afraid To Ask Questions
If you spend time around kids you know that they will ask the most random questions! But notice that they are willing to ask anything to learn more and to engage in conversation. One key to community and discipleship is to be willing to ask questions. Asking questions takes humility and a confession that you do not have it all together.
Kids Are Willing To Try New Things
Kids are spontaneous! They are willing to seize opportunities for fun and adventure. Many adults in our churches need to come back to an adventurous spirit. Jesus wants us to journey with Him with a spirit of dependence and adventure (not with a cantankerous attitude).
Now What?
Does worship seem cold and disconnected from Jesus? In what ways do you need to lay aside your pride and humbly depend on Jesus?
What other reasons would you add to this list?
by Chase | Kid Min, Leadership, Student Min
Humans were created to live in relationship with one another.
In Genesis we read that God knew Adam would need more fulfilling relationships than simply having nature – humans need humans. (Genesis 2:18)
The foundational key to discipleship is relationship: This is how humanity exists and why Jesus endured the cross. Without relationships, discipleship fails. Thriving and sustainable churches understand that every ministry (from the welcome team to the worship band to the nursery volunteers and beyond) must build a culture that values people over programs. While programs are important to reach our mission to preach the Gospel, they are nothing more than a tool to further the mission.
We know relationships are key, but along the way church ministries start moving away from relationships into ministry management. Let’s be honest, relationships are tough! To be invested relationally with others means that you are committing your time, energy, finances, and care to a smaller group of people. It is far easier to serve on the outskirts of relationships than to be invested in others’ lives. So many fail to invest relationally and are consumed with busywork inside the church.
Below are three habits that, when left unaddressed, can hinder relational ministry.
3 Habits That Hinder Relational Ministry
- Affirming the Ministry Without Partnering in Mission
Pastors know that you agree with the student ministry. If you didn’t affirm it, you would be seeking to serve at another church. Ministries do not need a head nod of approval but committed partners who are rolling up their sleeves to do work. Partners invest relationally.
- Asking About People Instead of Using Direct Communication
As a youth pastor and I chatted over coffee a few weeks ago, we discussed a weird phenomenon that church members fall into. It is the thought that asking other people about a person is the same as directly asking the person. Confused yet? Some people would rather pick up the phone and text 12 people to ask why someone has missed church instead of directly talking to the person who wasn’t there. If we are going to build relational ministries we need people to check in and minister directly to those in their small groups.
- Serving People Without Investing in People
Handing out a bottle of water with your church’s name is an easy way to say you are doing ministry without actually building relationships. As I stated above, ministry happens through relationships and at times those relationships will be frustrating, costly, and time consuming. Ministry leaders must avoid service opportunities that promote service that is void of relationships. Don’t get me wrong, serving in tangible ways meets immediate needs, but if you never build a relationship you will never be able to make lasting impact.
Now What?
In what areas are your ministries avoiding investing relationally?
by Chase | How To, Kid Min
How you provide for kids tells parents who you actually are as a church.
Every church desires to be friendly, kind, loving, and invested. We all want our churches to teach the Word of God in love and walk alongside of individuals and families as they navigate each phase of life. But every now and again churches must take a step back and see if they are organized and functioning in these ways.
Children’s ministry is a unique area in the church because of the investment each parent has to their kids safety and comfort. Yes, parents of teenagers care about their child’s safety too, but we have to agree there is a different dynamic when we talk about caring for a preschool or elementary child for several consecutive hours. This is a great responsibility that most parents limit to their extended families.
Since caring for children is such a great responsibility, children’s ministries must go the extra mile to ensure that they are providing for the family’s needs when a guest arrives on campus.
Below are eight checklist items that serve as a foundation for a church to examine their ministry space to see how welcoming and warm their ministry space is for a first time guest. Now, this list does not provide specifics about room designs, check-in systems, or security processes. This is simply an entry point to create a welcoming culture in your children’s ministry.
8 Checklist Items To Ensure You Have A Welcoming Children’s Ministry Space For Guests
The Rooms And Lessons Are Ready Before The Kids Arrive
You should not be cleaning as parents and leaders are showing up to drop off their kids. In the same manor, you should not be running around the church collecting craft supplies and games for your lesson. The rooms and your lesson should be ready to go when the doors of the church are opened.
The Teachers Arrive Early
It is a rarity that first time guests will show up late to a worship service. Guests will always arrive earlier than your regular attenders. Why? Guests want to make sure they know where to drop their kids off, speak with their children’s teachers, and find a seat in the worship center before the service starts. To ensure that your team is ready for guests, family ministry leaders must arrive at least 20 minutes early.
The Facility Light Are On
Nothing says, “We are not ready for you” as loudly as having facility lights turned off. Do not try to pinch pennies and save energy by turning off lights to hallways, stairwells, and bathrooms. Trust me, if someone falls because you were being cheap you will pay more in legal fees. Your facilities must be lit. If the lights are turned off it communicates that you are closed and unwelcoming to the community.
The Welcome Team Is Approachable and Informative
The children’s pastor isn’t the only person who can welcome a new family and lead them to the check-in area. Your front lines (welcome team and check-in leaders) need to have kid and adult class information, understand the process for guest families, and be attentive to needs. Doors should always be opened for people as they arrive in your building. It is the small acts that communicate that you value others. Within this conversation is adequate exterior and interior signage to direct parents to the family ministry entrance.
The Check-in System Is Easy To Operate
The parents must know where the check-in system is located, how to check-in their children, and the process for checking their child out after service. Our church has a worker in both kiosk locations (preschool and kids ministry entrances) to assist first time guests and ensure their questions are answered and that they are correctly entered into the system. An easy way to make this process quicker for first time guests is to provide a fillable or downloadable form on your website for parents to complete before their visit.
The Teachers’ Names Are Posted
First time guests have a hard time remembering all of the names of people they are meeting in their small group, worship services, and their child’s leaders. Make sure that every volunteer has a name tag on each week and that the leader’s picture and name are visible by the room door so parents can avoid awkward name exchanges in the coming weeks.
The Teachers Are Attentive
Does the guest family have any allergies that need to be discussed? How about questions about feeding bottles? It is best to have two leaders per room so that one leader can stand by the door before and after bible study to answer questions, transfer information on upcoming events, and brag on the kids to their parents. When teachers are attentive to a family’s needs parents are more comfortable leaving their kids.
The Parents Are Contacted Within Three Days By The Small Group Leader And Church Staff
It is important that both the small group leader and the church staff contact guest parents within three days of their visit to the church. To have one and not other contact will limit the potential relationship the church can build by supporting small group leaders as they minister on the front lines in the children’s ministry. Use this as a non-threatening, informal survey about their experience. Ask them about their visit, if their kids enjoyed their room, if there are any questions that you can answer for them, and inform them of the next event that is coming up.
Now What?
As a small group leader: How can you ensure guests are noticed, cared for, and comforted?
As a children’s leader: How can your team ensure hospitality and care is extended to every family this Sunday?
