STUDENT MINISTRY: The Many Hats of the Second Chair Leader
As the associate/family/youth pastor at my church, I wear a variety of hats. That has always been the case in my ministry. Even when I was the lead, I had to wear several ministry hats. Do I mind it? No. My time serving is never boring. I am always figuring something else out. During COVID, it was how to livestream our services, keep our people connected and provide an online giving option. In recent months, I have had to upgrade our treasurer’s computer. Some days, I am the church photographer. For others, I am the backup worship leader. On the slower days, I get to focus my attention on our students.
For many, this type of varied job might be daunting, and there are times when it would be nice to simply say, “I don’t know.” However, God places us together in our church bodies for a purpose. If you are the resident jack-of-all-trades, don’t resent it. Lean into it — not for your glory, but for God’s. There are some things you should remember when you serve in this capacity:
• Do all things for the glory of God, not your own. I Cor. 10:31 (NIV) is pretty clear: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.” So, if you are working on the baptistry, taking pictures or maintaining the church’s social media, remember that we do all for God’s glory. That is what this life is all about. It should permeate our ministries. It is easy to enjoy the gratitude that is often expressed, but we can’t make that our goal. We must remember that it is all for Him.
• People are more important than things. As I work on “stuff,” I can bring those things to the level of people. That should not be. It has been said that two things will last for eternity — God’s Word and the souls of men and women. If I have to choose between finishing our weekly email by my self-imposed deadline or spending time with my church members, I need to invest in people. We can’t ignore the tasks that need to be completed, but we do need to understand the hierarchy of responsibilities that lie before us.
• We should train others to do the work. As pastors, our priority is to pray and study the Word, but as we have already discussed, we get pulled into a wide range of activities. Are you willing to hand off tasks, even if they aren’t done exactly how you would like to have them done? Unfortunately, many of us would rather kill ourselves with activity and rob others of the opportunity to serve because we think we are the only ones who can do it right. That attitude will only limit the growth and capacity of your ministry. We need to hand off ministry as much as we can.
Will there come a time when we will only wear one hat? Probably not, but let’s be honest, that would be boring. Let’s serve with gladness and be mindful as we serve our churches and the King of Kings. If you feel you are starting to break under the weight of the many hats at your church, talk with your lead pastor and discuss what you can set aside or hand off to others.
Join the conversation at facebook.com/groups/StudentMinistryMattersCommunity. We would love to hear about some of the other roles that you carry at your church.
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Dan Carson
BMA Youth Department Director Dan Carson writes a weekly column titled, Student Ministry Matters, through which he inspires, challenges, and informs BMA of Arkansas churches and church staff about all things pertaining to student ministry.
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