For nine years I was part of a band. Our rehearsals were largely made up of disagreements, frustration and trips to Asda. But every now and then, out of the chaos would emerge something magical – a sweet spot where instrumentally and vocally everything was soaring. It felt good, it sounded great – we had found our rhythm.
We’ve all experienced moments like these in our youth ministry. We’re on top of our workload, our team is united, our young people are passionate, our sessions are fresh, our relationships are deep and our work makes us feel alive; we’ve found our rhythm.
That’s the place we want to live, right? So if you’re there right now, how do you stay there? If you’re not, how do you get there?
01. DEVOTE
The single most important thing you can do is to spend some time with Jesus. When we regularly stop to pray and open our Bibles (not just to prepare our next session) we open ourselves up to the renewing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We are stronger in our battles against sin, fresher in our revelation, and more sensitive to the leadings of the Spirit. Our faith seems deeper, our resolve stronger, our ideas fresher, our courage greater, our leadership stronger, and our passion more contagious. If you don’t do this every day then stop reading right now, pick up your diary (or calendar app) and get this into your schedule every day. Doing this one thing will totally transform your life and your youth ministry. There is no shortcut to relationship with Jesus that bypasses time in his presence.
02. EXERCISE
Imagine if you could have extra to get everything done. It would be a game-changer right? A recent study showed that exercise and proper rest patterns give about 20 per cent energy increase in an average day. We make a mistake when we separate our physical health from our spiritual health. Finding a healthy rhythm of exercise will make a huge contribution to finding a healthy rhythm of life.
03. REFLECT
To paraphrase Andy Stanley, ‘Experience doesn’t make you better, evaluated experience does.’ Without space to reflect in my week I’d be in danger of continuing to do the same thing I’ve always done, without ever asking why. Out of these times have come some of my best ideas and biggest dreams. It’s is so easy to let this space go for something more urgent. But let’s not allow what is immediate deter us from what is important.
04. READ
Every great leader I know reads – a lot. Read while you’re waiting for the bus, while you’re sitting on the toilet instead of scrolling through Facebook or watching TV. There is such a wealth of wisdom out there, so soak it up. Read leadership books, devotional books and youth ministry books. Read articles and blogs. And always, always, read Premier Youthwork (Cheque in the post – Ed.). 05. Collaborate I recently had a couple of hours with a well-known leadership consultant. After a while she said to me, ‘You’re more of a Harley Davidson than a bus.’ I didn’t get it either. Until she explained: ‘A Harley Davidson makes a lot of progress very quickly, but it doesn’t take anyone with it. A bus goes a lot slower, but everyone’s on board.’ Are you a Harley or a bus? Leadership is not about getting stuff done, it’s about getting stuff done through people. There is no greater joy than seeing others grow because you gave them the opportunity, encouragement and support to do so.
06. ENCOURAGE
Humble yourself by elevating others. Sing their praises privately and publicly. Champion your colleagues, your team, and your young people. Be a cheerleader for others and watch how their loyalty, work ethic, enthusiasm and determination skyrockets as you do.
07. SERVE
Leadership is not about being at the top of the tree, it’s about being at the bottom. The topsy-turvy, radical kingdom leadership of Jesus demonstrates this in the most profound way: the greater the leadership responsibility, the greater the requirement to serve.
08. RISK
How much faith does it require for you to live this week? What faith adventures are you on right now? In what ways is your youth ministry causing you to get on your knees and pray for God to show up? If it’s not, perhaps it’s time for you to dream a little bigger and take some God-sized risks. The best place a leader can live is just over the border of their capacity. You cannot grow in your comfort zone; you have to be stretched to be strengthened.
09. WORK
Every leader who makes a difference has one thing in common: they work, they work hard. At Serious4God we have a phrase around our small staff team: ‘attack the day’. That means we aspire to show up and bring the very best of our energy and efforts to God that day. The mission is too important for anything less!
10. REST
I’m willing to wager that if you stole something, killed someone or slept with someone other than your spouse you’d feel pretty bad about it. So why is it that we almost feel proud of ourselves when we work seven days straight? ‘Remember the Sabbath day’ is not one of ‘The Ten Suggestions’. As Rob Bell so beautifully puts it, ‘Sabbath is taking a day a week to remind myself that I did not make the world and that it will continue to exist without my efforts.’ So stop thinking that you’re way too busy and important to rest for 24 hours. Stop working and do something that refills, refreshes and replenishes you.
Tim Alford is Serious4God’s national director.
