If you work in church ministry, you know … Fall Ministry Kick Off is ahead. It’s a great time of year! The school year begins, football is back and new rhythms become established when the summer heat begins to fade. And so, it’s time to get to work connecting with and energizing your ministry team.
If you’re leading a team, staff or volunteers, here are some strategic tips and ideas to help encourage and equip you in this upcoming season!
A few months ago, we talked through ways to activate your ministries during the summer, and now you have a team of people to rally with for the fall. But how will you lead them? How will they apply get connected and take a deeper dive into your ministry? Let’s talk through a few ways to get things going.
Give your team something to look forward to.
Vision is crucial! Where are you headed and why. Who do you hope to engage with and how will you serve them or what value will you bring.
As you head into the fall season, write down and articulate the goal or goals of this season. Consider creating short-term and longer-term goals to create expectation, momentum and excitement!
Take time to encourage your team around these goals, tie it to the larger mission of your church, and communicate your next steps together.!
“Where there is no vision, the people perish.” - Proverbs 29:18a
Create a space.
Give your team a space to make their own. This starts as you’re casting vision and goals with your team (mentioned above), and also ongoing as you serve together. This is not only a place to rest and commune, but can become home base for your team. Maybe this is a room in your building, maybe it’s at a house or could be shared space online! Give your team a consistent place to call home together to sit, laugh, pray and grow!
Highlight successes and give voice ongoing.
So now you have vision/goals and a place to talk about them. Great! Now it’s time to give voice to your team and share even more with one another. What learning is needed - especially for new volunteers? What wins are you having? What are you praying for together? How can you encourage one another? Ongoing sharing is a great way to rally the team around great moments and to create new ones! Open this time up for your team to engage with each other.
Get the conversation started or continue it with some open-ended questions like:
- What is going well?
- Is there a time you leveled up in this ministry? How?
- What are you excited about in this new season?
- What are you learning that would be helpful for others to hear?
- How do you see others on our team serving? Let’s call each other out (in a good way)!
Give a practical next step with each person in mind.
We are starting to know our team and what is expected, so let’s continue to encourage good next steps for serving together! Each person has unique skills and growth edges so as the leader you can look for opportunities to personalize your encouragement and your feedback. For each person, celebrate something they are doing well, give them a suggestion for growth or something new to try, and thank them/celebrate who they are.
Share a meal.
There is a reason churches used to have potlucks.These were times where the community came together! Enjoying a meal together is an intentional moment created. Food = connection. Food = community.
Find a time to sit and share a meal with your team. I’m not talking about snacks (although snacks are amazing), I’m talking about a meal. In the book “The Culture Code,” there is a whole chapter dedicated to this idea and the value it brings to people. Give it a try!
Do something fun! Take a field trip!
Have you ever played a video game and gotten to a checkpoint? That’s what this is. Throughout the coming months of great ministry, plan a checkpoint, and make it fun. Go somewhere! Bowling, Dave and Busters or putt-putt. You can host a game or movie night.
Something and somewhere to get people away from the norm and doing something (different than just your ministry) together. It is healthy to set a checkpoint for your team. It’s even better when it’s fun! Laugh together and create memories to fuel the crucial work you all do together in and out of Sundays.
What ideas do you have? Anything you would add to this list? We’d love to hear! The fall season is one of the best times to rally and prepare your team for the year ahead.
If you’re looking for more ways to grow and strategize this fall, give us a call! We would love to help your unique team grow in how you communicate and point people to Jesus!
