I have had lots of supervisors in my life from a Lieutenant Colonel in Vietnam to a Summer League Baseball Coach showing me how to rake the baseball diamond. I have had great ones and one or two not so great.
Many campus based college ministries now have one or two year Assistants or Campus Missionaries. Many church based College Ministers have Interns or part-time Student Assistants. Several years ago, I was given the responsibility of helping our one year Outreach Coordinators and working with their supervising College Ministers. Some of these recent college graduates were having a great experience, making a real difference on their campus, and others were frustrated and even confused.
What was the difference? I believe the simple answer was.....supervision. One College Minister said he told his newly appointed college grad Coordinator, "I am going to treat you like a professional. Go do what you think needs doing." Here was the problem with that: the newly appointed Coordinator with no college ministry experience had no idea what needed doing and especially what was beneficial. He was not a professional and had never done this before.
Two Things Lack of Supervision Can Cause:
Lack of Focus - I found those without supervision tended to jump from one thing to another. It was sort of whatever way the wind was blowing that day or whomever dropped by to visit. And, it was not connected to any long term strategy of what the ministry was all about. Consequently, their efforts did not make any significant difference in the ministry and left them frustrated.
Less than a Positive Experience - Those who did not have good supervision tended to leave their one year position with less than positive feelings about it or ministry as a whole. And, many had signed up for that year to see "Is this possibly something God is calling me to do?" There are more and more reports of young adults feeling called to ministry. We need to be doing everything possible to help young adults experience and respond to God's call to vocational ministry.
Two Things GOOD Supervision Does:
It Teaches - Usually, a supervisor is in that role because they have previous experience and a positive track record. One thing a Supervisor can do is help pass on that experience without them having to learn everything the hard....and sometimes painful way. One of our jobs as a Supervisor is to help them be and feel successful. Part of that is to help them process and evaluate their experience....both good and bad.
It Encourages - Good supervision encourages! First, it help them not feel they are in it alone. One of the biggest killers of College Ministers is the sense of eeling alone and that I am the only one that cares. Just knowing someone else care is huge. Even when something does not go well, we can help someone know their effort was good and worthy!
One More Thing Good Supervision Does:
When there is more than one College Minister, and even if the one or two other staffers are experienced, there has to be somebody in charge. Besides encouraging and teaching, they work at everybody being on the same page and pulling together in the same strategy. There are lots of different strategies that God uses. But, they usually are not successful, if multiple staff members are working on different strategies. So, if you are a Supervisor, make sure those with whom you work feel appreciated and cared about......and that everyone is on the same page in the strategy and what their role is in that strategy.
I will go way out on a limb and say not only is supervision not a dirty word, it is one of the tools that God can and does use.
Arliss Dickerson's book, A 3 Part College Ministry Strategy, is available at Amazon.com/dp/B0BZ6Q7HSV and A College Student's Guide to Spiritual Maturity is at Amazon.com/dp/B0CXTCTNB1.
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