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youth ministry, mission statement, student ministry, youth worker

Time to dust off the mission statement

By Doug Franklin August 5, 2009

It’s fall and many youth workers are preparing for the adult volunteer kick-off weekend. This is the time of year when we try and remember the mission statement so we can say it at the beginning of the weekend. What is it again…. reaching, serving, going… oh yeah…. growing. And we can’t forget discipleship. The truth is we all have mission statements but few of us use them for direction in our ministries.

Here is a test to see if your ministry is run by your mission statement.

True or False – Every part of your ministry is tied to a part of your mission statement. For example, if you are offering a Six Flags day, do your students know it’s a reaching event or if you are offering House Groups do your students know it’s a growing event? Do your adult volunteers know?

If you answered false because you know your students have heard the mission statement but don’t have any idea how it pertains to them, then you have a mission problem. Most youth ministries don’t lack direction because they don’t have a mission statement, but because they never connect it to their events.

About the Author

Doug Franklin

Doug Franklin is the president of LeaderTreks, an innovative leadership development organization focusing on students and youth workers. Doug and his wife, Angie, live in West Chicago, Illinois. They don’t have any kids, but they have 2 dogs that think they are children. Diesel and Penelope are Weimaraners  who never leave their side. Doug grew up in…  Read More