Yep - you read that right. I am celebrating 25 years of being in full time Youth Ministry this year...and yes that does mean that I started my first youth ministry when I was just 4 years old. Although short of stature, I have always been an over achiever.
Anyway I have decided that since I am feeling a bit nostalgic about this milestone, I will write some posts reflecting on lessons I have learned through my adventures in ministry. This first post is dedicated to the family God has blessed me with at the Conejo Valley Church of Christ. Tami and I and our kids, Brendin , Caleb and Alicia, owe a great debt of gratitude and love to this wonderful body of believers! The past twenty years of ministry have been spent in partnership with you and we have been blessed!
When people ask me how I have managed to stay at one church for such a long time I often joke that Conejo is just a hard place to get fired from. In reality, for us, it has grown over the years to be a place that would be very hard for us to leave. My children grew up here. That is no small gift. It is rare for kids to be able to grow up in the same house with Dad in the same job for their entire life. This is a gift Conejo gave us. Thank you for that!
While no place or person or congregation is perfect the truth is that the Conejo church has done an awful lot of things right to help us stay active and effective. In this first post I want to focus on just a few of those things.
1. Flexibility and Forgiveness - This church body has been open to trying new things and given me the confidence to stretch my creativity without fear of "getting in trouble." We have instigated some pretty outrageous ideas in the name of ministry. Where else could I start an October tradition of a German-style beer garden serving root beer with bratwurst, soft pretzels, and an apple strudel contest as a fundraiser for mission trips? What other group of elders would let me pit them against the youth in a contest several years in a row with the consequences being that the losers have to go into a dunk tank in front of the entire congregation? We have allowed a flash mob in the middle of the Sunday morning announcements in order to promote an upcoming youth event. We have given space to teens to help teach and preach during the Sunday morning sermon. Other ideas have not gone so well, such as a game of whiffle ball in the auditorium resulting in a broken skylight in the 40 foot tall ceiling. Gracious support and an atmosphere of trust have nurtured my creative imagination for ministry here. When things didn't go exactly according to plan, the response of both parents and elders has been characterized by helpful assessment and forgiveness. Those are the real secrets to longevity.
2. Support for my education - From the beginning the Conejo church encouraged me to keep learning. The elders gave me a book fund as a part of the church budget as soon as I came here. This did not come out of my salary or the youth budget. It is a separate line in the overall church budget, designated specifically for me to be able to gain the resources I need in my personal library for personal growth and improvement in ministry. They have also consistently encouraged me to pursue formal education - leading to my completion of the Master of Divinity and the Doctor of Ministry I hope to complete in the next year.
3. The elders offered me a seat at the table - In our leadership structure, the elders are the true overseers. They are "my bosses" in the sense that I need to respect them and follow their lead. They set the salaries and do the "hiring and firing." Though all that is true, my elders never made me feel like I was just an employee. From the beginning I have felt like a valued partner in ministry. I have always been welcomed to have a voice in key congregational, pastoral, and ministry decisions. Over the years, this has allowed me to watch and learn from their wisdom. It has also allowed me to stretch my wings in pastoral care and managing tough congregational decisions within the safety of their leadership. From talking with or advising other young ministers over the years who have struggled with various issues in their churches, I know that my situation in this regard is rather rare. This is because, I believe, the attitude of my elders is rare. I am very thankful for these men. God has taught me much through them.
Well there are just a few of the reasons I have lasted so long in ministry at Conejo. God has been good and will continue to be - I am sure.
More reflections to come...
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