TEAM POWER
Wouldn’t it be great if the responsibility for strategic oversight of a ministry didn’t start
and end with a single youth worker? Claire Farley unpacks Mark DeVries’ approach to
strategic-level youth ministry teams, and asks whether this US model can be adapted
for a British context.
I used to work in a parish of two churches as the shared youth minister. A youth ministry management team was set up between the churches, and team members were recruited to ensure a fair representation of gender and churchmanship, with a preference for those skilled in youth ministry or management.
The team were great at overseeing periods of transition between youth ministers and providing support for youth volunteers. However, when a youth minister was employed and line-managed by one team member, it was difficult to work out what the other team members were supposed to do. One suggestion was that they could advise on the progression of the youth ministry, but while the team members knew the parish and understood the history of youth ministry there, they were not equipped for this role due to a lack of knowledge of current best practice.
Another alternative was that the team became partners with the youth minister in leading the youth ministry forward. However, in hindsight I can see that team leadership at a strategic level was not fully embraced by church members. This led to a feeling that they had employed a youth minister to do the job they were now being asked to do!
So, I decided to investigate whether teamwork at a strategic level of leadership, where the vision, mission and values, as well as the policies and structures were decided and led by more than one person, could actually work to help youth ministries like mine become more effective at serving young people.
A theology of cooperation...
Most of us quickly discover that effective youth ministry relies on our own relationship and partnership with Jesus. He encourages us to stay constantly connected to him and commands us to love each other in order to do anything of worth (John 15). The Apostle Paul goes on to describe the church working together & loving one another as Christ’s body (1 Corinthians 12). Reading the Old Testament we see God working with a whole community to reach out to the world and even though the people are difficult we see God faithfully persevering. And it is this God who calls us to love as he loves and cooperate with his plan and with each other for the sake of the world. I’m sure there is an easier way, but we always pay a price when we sacrifice teamwork.
Lone ranger to team leader
Since the 1980s, youth ministry has moved from a model of leadership where one individual leads everything on their own to team leadership, where one individual works closely with others to lead the youth ministry forward. The transition has looked something like this:
1. Team leadership directly with young people is more effective than individual leadership Youth Ministry: The New Team Approach (by Ginny Ward-Holdernness) challenged the assumption that it was reasonable for one adult to minister alone with young people and recommended developing a team of adults to lead together.
2. Team leadership directly with young people is essential for effective youth ministry Youth Ministry Management Tools (by Ginny Olson et al) argued that team leadership is essential for contact work with young people in order that different young people can connect with different adult leaders.
Read this article in full in the March 2010 issue of Youthwork magazine. Check out our great subscription offers now!