Youth Missions Insider | How The Power of Missions Can Make A Difference That Lasts Forever

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts Biggest Struggles: The pressure to grow

I don’t know if you struggle with this but I do… I feel pressure from so many different places. I feel it from the leadership I report to. I feel it from those that I work with. I feel it from everyone that is served by our ministry. But… it’s not what you think.

The pressure I feel may not actually be real. My leaders expect great things from our ministry. But, they don’t put pressure on me – personally. My coworkers have high hopes and big goals for what we do – but they don’t pressure me. The churches we partner with want to see more people at the mission trips they attend because it makes the experience have that much more impact and therefore that much better. But they don’t pressure us.

The truth is… I put the pressure on my self. I love what we do. I’m very blessed to have a job that I want to go to every day. I believe we create amazing experiences and have the privilege of seeing God use those experiences to powerfully transform lives. I would love to help as many people as possible be a part of what we do. I believe in our ministry.

And that’s where the pressure comes from – me. I put pressure on myself grow our ministry. I put pressure on myself because I believe in where God has put me. I believe that God has called me to be part of this ministry. I believe that we have a purpose and a ministry to fulfill. I believe we can help more people if we grow.

And so… I feel pressure to grow. Pressure to grow the ministry. Pressure to serve more people in need. Pressure to serve more churches and youth workers.

2 View Comments September 18, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts Biggest Struggles: Budgets…

Budgets can be complex and frustrating. How do you know for sure how much everything is going to cost? How do you know for sure how much money you are going to bring in? Are those items set for you? Are they your responsibility to figure out? So many questions…

I struggle with all those money ideas and issues. In my role I am responsible for the budget of our ministry. I have to answer those questions. And it’s not easy. The leasers I am responsible to value good stewardship. They consider it a major part of my job to make sure we spend less than we bring in. And I agree. If there isn’t any money left over, we can’t give anyone a raise (ever), we can’t replace worn out equipment, we can’t do anything new or more or better. All those things require money – money left over after a year of doing ministry.

It’s really should be the same for all of us in ministry. We should all be great stewards of the resources God has given us responsibility for. Let me give you some insight/help from years of budget success and struggle.

1) Find someone who loves Spreadsheets! You can’t live without this one. You just can’t… Unless you know how to create a formula that will give you the average expenses per month… you need to find someone who does. When I started taking over responsibility for our ministry budget I really didn’t know anything about spreadsheets. But I had a mentor/teacher who did. There is someone who will help you with the creation and tracking of your budget. You don’t have to do this if it’s not your gifting.
2) Take it seriously. It’s part of being the professional leader of your ministry. There is no faster way to lose the trust of the leaders you report to than to not take your financial stewardship responsibilities seriously. It’s a major reason I struggle with budgets. I respect my leaders and want to handle the finances well. So when we either spend more than we said or spend more than brought in, I struggle. I feel like I’ve let people down.
3) Stay on top of it! Don’t ever lose track of where you are with your budget. You should know month-to-month where you are at with your budget. You should never be taken by surprise by the finances of your ministry. Know when a big expense is coming. Know how much you’ve spent so far (either too much or not all of it). Staying on top of your budget is a great way to show your leaders that you care and are responsible.

With giving and financial support such a struggle for everyone in today’s economy, struggling with budgets and money is not going to go away any time soon. Learn to take your role with finances very seriously and it will set you up for good leadership in other areas of your ministry.

Add Comment September 12, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts Biggest Struggles: What is Success? Is it #’s?

For the next couple weeks, I’ll be confessing what I struggle with most in ministry. As I’ve been thinking about these things that frustrate me and tend to hold me back, I believe it’s the pretty similar to what I struggled with in church ministry…

How do yo define success? Is it numbers? Is it lives changed? Is it growth? Is it the sense of simply God’s will being accomplished?

I struggled with all of these actually. Each and every one…

We have goals and dreams for our mission ministry. We believe in what God has called us to. We believe so much that we want as many people as possible to be involved. We hope and pray that our ministry grows. We believe God has given us a mission. We believe it’s something worth doing. Something that’s good enough that it should grow? Is that success?

Instead of simply counting people, sometimes we talk about the number of lives changed. The number of people positively impacted by our ministry. But… how do you count that? Is it people starting their relationship with Jesus? For us, is it the number of people served because their lives are changed by the service? Is it just the total number of people involved because we trust that they are experiencing Jesus? I don’t know. I love the idea of tracking #’s this way but I don’t know the best way to do it.

I struggle. I struggle tracking #’s. I struggle with reporting #’s. I feel “up” when #’s are “good” and “down” when #’s are bad. I stress about why #’s aren’t “better.” I want to have a healthy relationship with #’s and our ministry.

Here’s where I’ve come to believe is a healthy way to look at #’s. It’s a good way to keep account of your ministry. You can track how many are involved overall, by event, compared to the beginning of the year, from the last time you checked, etc. It’s fine to look at #’s as part of that overall evaluation. The downside is when it is the only way you’re accounting for your ministry. If all you’re worried about is how many students you have, how many went to the last event, or how many more you have then when you started. That’s not a great way to exclusively evaluate the work God has given you to do.

Add Comment September 10, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts I have been able to draw closer to Christ

We’ve been posting several quotes from students around the country who have had their lives transformed by a mission trip experience this summer. This next quote is another good example of how a mission trip can bring true life-change.

“This week has been a time of renewal for me, as I have once again been able to draw closer to Christ in an intimate way. God has truly cleared from my mind certain anxieties and nagging thoughts because he has promised to make everything new and now I realize that. This week I have come to appreciate more the gift of fellowship as I was able to connect through Christ with my fellow trip members.” John age 18

Add Comment August 28, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts A Whole New Take on Things in Life

Another “WOW” story from a student.

“Wow, where to start. This week has been life changing for me. I can honestly say that God has shown me he is real and he is amazing. Before this trip, God was kind of missing in my life and I feel that he brought me on this trip for a reason. That is that God is always with you. He is always showing you in some of the simplest ways that he loves you. This trip has been an emotional rollercoaster for me. I cried, I laughed, I loved and much more. But I did all of those things because God was really becoming clear to me for the first time in my life. He has brought me so many new things from great friendships to a whole new take on things in life.” Gianna age 15

Add Comment August 25, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts Back to School Special

No… Not an after school special like ABC (if you’re old enough to remember those) – a Back-to-School Bundle!!

Our friends at Simply Youth Ministry have put together a great special for you since it’s time for all your students to go back to school.

It’s a great deal and it’s called: Jason’s Back-2-School Bundle – 50% on resources from CIY, Marko, Group Mag, Kurt Johnston, Rick Lawrence, and Brian Berry.

Add Comment August 23, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts This Week Renewed my Faith in Jesus

Another great quote from a teenager who’s life was changed by their mission trip experience.

“This week has definitely renewed my faith in Jesus. I was reassured and reminded that God always forgives us. It was amazing to be used by God to help the people of Birmingham. Being a part of the mission trip team is one of the best parts of my summer. It’s awesome to be surrounded by people who also love Jesus and can keep you on the right track.” Kelly age 17

Add Comment August 22, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts Top 25 Youth Ministry Blogs

The Youth Cartel posted the Top 25 blogs on youth ministry. Thought you might enjoy the list. A lot of great ministry ideas are represented in these blogs.

The Top 25 Youth Ministry Blogs

Full Disclosure: We love The Youth Cartel. We’re one of the sponsors of their Middle School Ministry Campference.

Add Comment August 17, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts One of the Most Rewarding Weeks of My Life

Even a person on their first mission trip can understand how the experience can completely impact and change you.

“This week has possibly been one of the most rewarding weeks of my life. This being my first mission trip, I was skeptical as to what the whole week would be like. Spiritually, I did not know whether I would change at all, but over the week I grew closer to God than I have ever been. This trip has opened my eyes to how God works through each of us. I also grew inspired by Jesus to work harder and harder each day to improve my resident’s life. The mission trip has also improved my work ethic, and I have grown to enjoy volunteer service, and look forward to volunteering more. While working with people I had never known before, I increased my people skills, team work and leadership skills. By the end of this week my crew and I accomplished more than we ever thought possible, and I made many friends.” –Jake

Add Comment August 15, 2012

Jeff ThompsonMore Posts “My Relationship with God is so Much More Meaningful to Me”

Inspired by last week’s posts, we’ll be posting quotes from students about their mission trip experiences over the next couple weeks. God uses these experiences to change lives. We believe that teenagers encounter Jesus in the context of a mission trip in ways they don’t with other youth ministry experiences. I hope these quotes will help people understand why we believe this.

“Devoting a week of my summer to help families in need is so rewarding. This mission trip has truly influenced me as a person, as I appreciate and am so much more thankful for everything God has given me. The trip has shaped my life, as my relationship with God is so much more meaningful to me. I have made some amazing new friendships with people in our youth group and people I met on this trip. I have developed a better understanding of what it means to be a leader, and the memories I’ve shared will always remain with me throughout my life, as I continue to grow in my faith.” –Emma