Slice your ministry in half.
It’s okay. It won’t bleed or die.
Cut it right through the middle. You’ll see something remarkable.
‘Contained within a single tree is its unabridged chronicle. Year by year, never skipping a beat, it records its history slowly. Some lines speak of seasons of plenty, while others cry of famine. The size of the rings are never the same. Each engraving bears witness to battles waged in.’
Nao Tamura
Lets rephrase that:
‘Contained within a single youth ministry is its unabridged chronicle. Year by year, never skipping a beat, it records its history slowly.’
From the time you took on your youth ministry, and even before there was a story being written. Each ring, every season, speaks of many things.
The minstries we serve will look something like this tree. The darker patches, a season of winter, the lighter patches a season of life and fruit.
The wider, speak of a season of fruit, of being well fed, of wealth and prosperity, of youth coming to know the Lord, a head teacher saying yes to programmes in schools, a young person overcoming a long-term battle. Maybe even a funding project having gone well.
The thinner rings speak of the drier seasons. Those seasons where it lacked depth, funding and support. Every drop-in or youth group feels like a push, funding is drying up, trying to bring in volunteers is like pulling teeth. Maybe you yourself feel fed up with the speed at which things are happening.
The distinctly dark, thin, ‘barely there’ rings: those moments of utter barreness. Those seasons in ministry that you would rather not talk about. Those moments you hide when at meetings with other youthworkers in case they knew how ‘unsuccessful’ your ministry was. Perhaps funding got pulled, a volunteer fell into some trouble, the church made some decisions you didn’t agree with, kids fell off the radar and you just couldn’t see God in any of it. You were tired, worn out and fed up.
‘Some lines speak of seasons of plenty, while others cry of famine. The size of the rings are never the same. Each engraving bears witness to battles waged in.’
What do your youth ministry rings look like?
The reality of life is that we live in a battle. The Bible says that our battle is not against flesh and blood but against powers in the spiritual world (Ephesians 6:12). Our youth ministries are going to take a hit.
But every ring, no matter how small is pushing back darkness.
Each season, no matter how dire or bright, is a season of growth. A season that contributes to building a sturdy centre for your ministry. A season that contributes to the wider picture, the wider story of the fight, of the life and the faithfulness of God in each one of those seasons.
Only in hindsight can we see that the dark seasons are crucial for the growth of us, as leaders, and the youth ministries.
Every ring in the tree is part of the foundation, the structure of the final product. Without any of these rings, the tree would cease to exist. Your seasons are all part of the foundation, the final product.
And make sure the life source at the root system is your relationship with God (see Psalm 1). Without a good life source the whole tree dies.
So go on. Slice your ministry in half. Look back. Celebrate the good years and thank God for his faithfulness in the tough years.
Be proud of your rings. Every ring speaks of something that makes your ministry what it is today.
Contributed by Becca Willett.