Has Your Youth Ministry Come to a Dead End?

I was running late for an appointment so the slow traffic was an annoyance. My bright idea was to take a short cut. I was cruising until I turned down an unfamiliar street, coming to a screeching halt at a “Dead End” sign. It was not the end of the world but in my current state of mind you would have thought it.

There are parallel incidences that happen to us in ministry bringing us to a dead stop. We think we are moving forward when something unexpected happens, causing us to question ourselves, our ministries or our calling to work with youth.

Here are some Dead Ends we face in Youth Ministry Leadership:

• The youth group plateaus.
• A student leaves your church.
• One of the girls gets pregnant.
• The student you were discipling just stops meeting with you.
• The youth budget gets cut…again.
• The two best leaders on your team quit.

So what do you do when you reach your very own personal youth ministry leadership Dead End?

1. Take time to reflect. Take inventory of where you are before you push the panic button. (1 Samuel 12:24)
2. Take time to pray. Get alone with God, crying out to Him for answers before you talk to people. (Psalm 46:10)
3. Take time to read. Go to the Word of God and find His promises or mandates relative to your situation. (John 15:7)
4. Take time to talk. Seek out the wise counsel of those who have walked these paths before. (Proverbs 20:18)
5. Take time to plan. Once you have gathered counsel from God’s Word and trusted friends, then move forward. (Luke 14:28)

We all face Dead Ends in our ministries at some point, but the goal is to define them not to be defined by them.