5 Ideas to Enlarge Your Ministry

It is not unusual for a College Minister to be asked after an event, "Did you have as many students attend as you had hoped?".  My answer to that has always been, "I have never had as many as I hoped...no matter how many came.".  Most of us want our ministry to be larger.  We want to win more students to Christ.  We want to train more leaders for the future.  We want to impact our campus in a great way.  We like big crowds (maybe that one is just me!).

Here are 5 Ideas to Help Enlarge Your Ministry:

1.  Visit two different college ministries to see what and how they do it.
We can always learn things simply from talking to leaders of different ministries.  But, I am convinced we will see and learn things when we visit that we would not pick up on otherwise.  If possible, I would encourage you to visit one of these that is very different than you and yours.  It will stretch your thinking.  Maybe, if you are Baptist, visit a non-Baptist ministry, etc, etc.

2.  Invite a different fraternity/sorority or campus club to be special guests at one of your events.
Recognize them, introduce their officers, and say something about what they do that benefits the campus.  Some do this at their weekly Lunch Program and others do it monthly at their large group worship event.  Even if none of these students immediately begin attending your ministry, it helps spread campus wide awareness, which is never a bad thing.

3.  Volunteer to speak in Leadership classes or Freshmen Development classes.
Or, is there another area of expertise that you have that might benefit some class or group?

4.  Volunteer one day a month on campus helping some department or group.
A College Minister told me recently of volunteering to help the Student Affairs Office stuff Orientation Packets.  He worked all day for them for free.  Again, awareness of a ministry is huge.  Does the campus even know you and your ministry are there?

5.  Connect in a particular and on-going way to a different group on campus.
Does the band need a chaplain?  Does the tennis club need a sponsor?  Lots of people are chaplains for athletic teams and that is a very good thing.  But, there are lots of different groups on campus that you might benefit and open up avenues to a whole new group of students.

Then, there is always the old and proven method....lie about your numbers. Or, "estimate".  Obviously, I am joking...but....yes there are some who do it I am sorry to say.  It is wrong...don't do it.  If you give numbers, count and use "math numbers" not "ministerial numbers".

5 Tips for College Ministers Getting More Done

Don't you wish you had a dollar for every day you did not do any of what you had planned or thought you would do that day?  College Ministers' days are often crazy busy, but at the end of the day, we often feel we did not get much done.  Here are some ideas that may help a little.

1.  Do not open social media (facebook, emails, etc) until 10:30.
Often, we see a message we need to respond to or someone has a task they need us to do.  How would it change your day and accomplishment, if you spent the first two hours of your day each day doing what you deemed most important or significant that day...rather than what someone else thought?

2.  Do your prep work for speaking away from campus.
When I had an on campus office in our BCM Center, I learned that was the worst place to do my prep work for speaking each week.  Someone would need to talk to me for just a minute or there would be a phone call I needed to take.  When I began to do my prep work away from the Center, I got done in three or four hours what took all day at the Center.  My prep was better AND I was more available on campus.

3.  Schedule a time each week that is "paperwork time".
College Ministers are notorious for not getting reports, etc done on time.  For me, Friday morning was paperwork day.  Have a set time blocked out when you do it.  You will get it done on time and not be frustrated by it others times thinking, "I need to do that.".

4.  Keep a file that you throw "Talk Ideas" into.
Sometimes, you come across an article that gives you a great idea.  Just copy or tear it out and throw it in your folder.  Sometimes, doing your quiet time you have a great idea for a talk.  Jot it down on a piece of paper and throw it in your idea file.  When it comes time to plan and lay out your talks for the semester, it is wonderful to pull that file out.

5.  Schedule one day a month to hide out and work on major projects.
Sometimes we are so busy on a daily basis, it is hard to think about and plan for the big picture.  Or, we cannot get that Bible study series written that we have always wanted to do.  This also will help your personal sense of accomplishment.

5 Tips Series

Last week I posted "5 Things That Can Get a College Minister Fired".  Over the next week or two, I will continue a series I am calling "5 Tips".

The 5 Tips Series Will Include:

5 Really Simple Rules for College Ministry Success

5 Ways to Grow Your Ministry

5 Ideas for Self Care

5 Ways to Kill Your Ministry

5 Tips for Getting More Done

5 Tips for a Better Home Life

Have a great week!

If you have any suggestions for "5 Tips", let me know.
Arliss
arlissdickerson@gmail.com

5 Things That Can Get a College Minister Fired!

Some years ago I asked to meet with one of our church College Ministers.  He had only been at the church a short time and he had asked if I would provide a letter from our ministry that would allow him to play intramurals.  I had because I knew that would be an excellent way for him to connect to students.  He was an excellent athlete with an outgoing personality.  He quickly became widely known.  But, students began to come to me about his profanity in games and their concern about how it reflected on him and the church he represented.  In our meeting I told him of students voicing their concerns to me and that this would be a major concern to his church.  He thanked me and basically that was the end of our relationship on his part.

Evidently, he thought it was none of my business.  I never knew if the pastor or other leaders at the church became aware.  But, I do know that many students began to leave the church over the semester.  So, is your behavior anyone else's business?  Whether we like it or not, the real world answer is.....YES!  When we serve on a church staff or work for a state wide or local campus ministry group, our behavior is not our own.

Here are 5 Things That Can Get You Fired:

1.  Misbehavior or the appearance of misbehavior with students.
There is greater sensitivity to this right now than there has ever been...particularly in the area of male/female relationships.  Be careful to avoid even the "appearance" of misbehavior.

2.  Not keeping your supervisor in the loop about major changes or issues.
No one likes to be blindsided by an issue or problem.  Make sure that those who supervise you are aware of flying objects that might come their direction.  Although, you may have total authority to make changes within your ministry, it is always wise to keep a supervisor in the loop of what and why.  That allows them to be able to respond to concerns that might come their way.  And in the long run, this helps protect you.

3.  Breaking work rules even though they are stupid rules.
Most work places have a rule or two that is dumb or is long outdated.  But, also know that breaking it can bite you.

4.  Posting dumb stuff on social media or connecting to questionable sites.
I know this is over said again and again.  But, again and again I see ministers posting dumb stuff on social media.  Think twice and then a third time before you push that button.  Also, "liking" a certain article can show up on a feed which is connected to a site that has questionable material on it.  A pastor friend doing sermon research (honestly) had some questionable sites begin to show up on his facebook page.

5.  Breaking unwritten rules.
Some would say, "If it is not written, it is not a rule.".  I hope you know that is not true.  If there is any question in your mind about the propriety or "ok-ness" of some action, choice or behavior, ask about it.  Breaking unwritten rules can and has gotten people fired.