MIM EZINE, MARCH 21, 2006

Ministry in Motion has a  new look, but the same promise of quality in Leadership Excellence!

---

Scott’s Ramblings:  “Football and Worship!”

Scott Miller

smiller@milfordfirstumc.org

In the words of Marvel Comics, Stan Lee… “Welcome True Believers!”

You are going to be riding on an adventure similar to a roller coaster in this series of articles.  My name is R. Scott Miller and up to a few years ago I was in the mold of what I would consider traditional youth ministry.  I truly believed that my job was to do program ministry, plan retreats and trips, coordinate fundraisers, go to meetings, be a mentor and be the forever “big Kid.” (Okay, some parts don’t change.)  A little over 5 years ago that paradigm was turned upside down and backwards for me.  Over the next months I want to share with you about the direction I have gone and hope that you will begin to consider what you are doing in youth ministry as well.

What Happens When the Sr. Pastor Skips Church?

In the Fall of 2000 my senior pastor and his wife were given tickets to a Cincinnati Bengals Football Game.  It happened to be on a Sunday the Associate pastor was preaching.  They attended 9:30 Service and as they were driving away, they saw something that caught them off guard.  They saw a group of around 20 youth walking from his church to a local fast food joint.  They should have been moving from Sunday School to 11:00 worship.   From what I have heard, the staff meeting the next day was quite interesting.  Out of that meeting the staff decided there needed to be a worship service developed that kept these kids in church rather than leaving right after Sunday School.

The associate pastor at the time who was currently working with youth began to look at models of contemporary worship.  Some of the youth, youth leaders, and the associate pastor visited different churches doing contemporary worship.  During the month of March of that year they experimented with 4 contemporary worship services.  These experiments were well attended and revealed the necessary reasons that a service directed toward youth would begin with a good core group.    {Read More....}

“How to Find Ministry Employment”

Rebekah Hanover

Worship Director

Crossroads UMC, Ashburn, VA

Looking for a job is not for the faint of heart, particularly if you are called to full-time ministry. Keep in mind your giftedness, your calling, and some of the basics of job hunting.

You know people who know people. Eighty percent of all jobs are never advertised and over half of all employees find their jobs through networking (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Network either intimidates people or gets a bad reputation. Never use people but know how to ask for help. Most of us don’t realize how extensive our network is. You have to tell others what you are looking for and ask if they have any recommendations for you. If you know someone who has with experience in a position in which you are interested, spend some time learning from him or her. Look for advice.  {Read More...}

Ministry in Motion Ezine Subscription.  Ezine subscription page