by Nick Blevins | Mar 2, 2016 | Family Ministry
In the survey I recently did, volunteer training was one of the top topics family ministry leaders were interested in. Training volunteers is crucial and I believe it is something many leaders struggle to do well. It's also something that isn't a one-size-fits-all...
by Nick Blevins | Feb 29, 2016 | Family Ministry
Recently we had a big training with all of our children and student ministry teams. The primary focus of our time together was to re-cast the vision for the importance of Lead Small (having kids and students in small groups). However, we also wanted to take the time...
by Nick Blevins | Feb 15, 2016 | Family Ministry, Popular
The role of Family Pastor / NextGen Pastor is somewhat new in the church. I'm referring to a staff person who is responsible for leading a staff team of people that oversee children and student ministries, from birth through high school (or college). Because the role...
by Nick Blevins | Feb 1, 2016 | Family Ministry, Popular, Strategy
Almost anyone who works in children's ministry or student ministry understands what it is like to be underpaid and overworked. That comes with ministry in general, but for various reasons churches often pay children and student staff even less than other roles in the...
by Nick Blevins | Jan 21, 2016 | Family Ministry, Leadership
In a previous post, I wrote about the importance of establishing a volunteer leadership pipeline in our ministries. Leadership pipelines provide a clear leadership path and a structure the entire ministry can be built on. As I network and work with other churches I'm...
by Nick Blevins | Jan 13, 2016 | Family Ministry, Strategy
I read a great post over on Tony Morgan's blog last week about focusing on health instead of growth. I completely agree with that line of thinking and one of the big questions that comes up when it comes to church health is – How do you measure that? I think the...
by Nick Blevins | Dec 7, 2015 | Family Ministry, Strategy
When our church was started as a church plant almost 15 years ago we believed the foundation of our children and student ministries needed to be a partnering with parents. We really believed, and still believe, that parents are the primary spiritual leaders for their...
by Nick Blevins | Dec 1, 2015 | Family Ministry
About a decade ago I was told studies had been done about what helps people want to return to church after their first visit (or not). Preaching and worship were the top 2 reasons people returned. Three of the top reasons people did not return were: A bad experience...
by Nick Blevins | Nov 19, 2015 | Family Ministry, Leadership
Every ministry leader wants more volunteers, but what if we are a barrier to making that happen? Moses was a barrier to leading the Israelites until his father-in-law offered wise counsel. The disciples neglected their primary responsibilities until they shared...
