Sustainable Children's Ministry

From Last-Minute Scrambling to Long-Term Solutions

Mark DeVries, Annette Safstrom

• Publisher: IVP
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN:
  9780830845224
• eBook ISBN:
  9780830888474
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Church

Are you a children's ministry leader on the edge of burnout? Do you find yourself working harder and harder to tame the chaos?Mark DeVries and Annette Safstrom know how you feel. Flash and fizz can be effective at attracting young families, but without sustainable systems beneath the unforgettable moments, the impact is almost always short-lived. In this practical resource, you'll learn how to recruit volunteers, partner with parents, navigate politics, and care for your own soul instead of frantically scrambling to do it all yourself. Sustainable Children's Ministry will help you build a ministry foundation that will still be standing long after you are gone.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• 1 From Chaos to Clarity: What’s So Different About Sustainable Children’s Ministry?
• 2 The Workhorse Syndrome: Moving Beyond a Do-It-Yourself Ministry
• 3 Beyond Goldfish and Bubble Machines: A Different Way of Doing Children’s Ministry
• 4 Measuring Up: Knowing What It Takes
• 5 Building Your Ministry with Simple Machines: The Essential Systems for a Sustainable Children’s Ministry
• 6 From Pearls to a Necklace: Putting the Pieces Together
• 7 Seeing What Others Can’t—Yet: Clarifying Your Vision
• 8 The Delegation Dance: Building Your Ministry Partners
• 9 Beyond Rotation: Building Your Dream Team
• 10 Beyond the Victim: Swimming in the Deep Waters of Church Politics
• 11 Children’s Ministry Is Family Ministry: A Recipe for Turning Parents into Partners
•  12 More Than Planning: The Essential Systems of Chaos Management
• 13 Your Ministry Marathon: Preparing Yourself to Go the Distance
•  14 Finding Your Bounce: The Inside Secret of Sustainable Children’s Ministry
• Acknowledgments
• Appendix A: Communication Plan
• Appendix B: Sample Goals and Benchmarks
• Appendix C: Sample Values Statements
• Appendix D: Core Competencies Samples
• Appendix E: Resources for Parents
• Appendix F: Preventative Maintenance Calendar
• Appendix G: Systems Checklist
• Appendix H: For Reflection and Discussion
• Notes
• Praise for for Sustainable Children’s Ministry
• About the Authors
• More Titles from InterVarsity Press
• Praxis
• Copyright