I had the chance to speak to more than 300 student leaders on campus a couple of days ago. At lunch, immediately following the presentation, a student at a nearby table commented that he was putting something I said up on his Facebook…
I took a deep breath and said, “OK, what?”
The statement that he took away from the 40 minute presentation:
You’re a leader now, so you’d better have some idea of where you’re going… because as a leader you are telling others, ‘hey, let’s go, follow me, I know the way.’
I tried to tell him that this statement was likely something I had heard before, so he probably shouldn’t give me credit for it, and then commented that I was glad he had found a takeaway from our time together!
A direct message from a new campus minister today got me thinking about a similar question for those of us leading leaders and ministries to consider at the start of a new year…
How do I start this new year off right/well?!
While answers will vary from campus to campus, and minister to minister, I do think there are some secondary questions that we need to ask ourselves (as well as the teams we work with) to assist us in answering this question, and so that we don’t come to the end of the year and wonder… “What happened?”
Here are the questions:
1. Where am I? Or, where am I at? We need an accurate assessment of “where we are at,” as leaders, as well as where our students and campus cultures are at so we know where we need to go. We need to know what the most significant needs of our students are if we want to serve them best. If you’re new to your ministry context, one of the best things I can offer you is this… take your time to get to know your students and their needs (and compare them to what you currently offer). Even though it might seem like a “waste of time,” the last thing you want to do is get to the end of the semester or year and find out that you really have wasted your time because the things you chose to be about were unnecessary. This question establishes our starting point.
2. Where do I want to end? Or, where do I want to see my students at the end of our year together? This is what gives us our direction at the beginning of the year, as well as a vantage point to evaluate from at different points along our year of ministry. This question establishes our goal(s) that we will strive towards throughout the year.
3. What is realistic? Given the current state of your ministry, leadership team, student base, campus environment, local church support, etc., what is an accurate estimation of what you (with God) can accomplish this year – you don’t want to bite of too much and find yourself spread too thin, or going in too many directions, throughout the year, and yet, you don’t want to do too little and find yourself wishing you had done more! Praying for God’s leading in your leadership is essential! This question establishes how attainable our goals are – a good thing to consider at the beginning of the year.
4. What challenges can I foresee? Sometimes, if we can anticipate certain challenges, we can plan accordingly and/or work more effectively when they arise. Are there student leaders that don’t seem “all in?” Are there budget cut-backs that are going to have a negative impact? Big things happening on campus? Are there big changes happening within student or professional leadership? This question establishes potential roadblocks between your starting point and desired end point. Any one of them has the potential to sideline you and your ministry.
5. What is it going to take? Realistically, what’s it going to take to get from where you are to where you feel led to be in the end? Do you have the right leadership in place to help you get there? Do you have the right self/soul-care habits and space established for your ongoing pursuit of Jesus? Are your students ready for what you’ve got planned? This question is your gut check. If you can answer YES to being up for whatever it’s going to take… then proceed with everything you’ve got!
Ministry with college students is such an adventure! Different from year to year, semester to semester, month to month, week to week, day-to-day, hour to hour, minute to minute… and student to student!
We must continually and prayerfully take the intentional steps that will move us (our ministry and students) towards the goal(s) that God has set before us. We must be ever-aware of how the Spirit is leading and flexible to changes that might be asked or needed along the way.
“Our ministry” is really God’s ministry… as faithful servants we are called to come under His leadership and into alignment with what He’s already at work doing in that place.
God’s grace and peace to you at the start of a new school year!
