5 Building Your Ministry with Simple Machines: The Essential Systems for a Sustainable Children’s Ministry

Building Your Ministry with Simple Machines

The Essential Systems for a

Sustainable Children’s Ministry

Clutter fosters mediocrity.

Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

Every ministry goes through stuck seasons, seasons when we’ve stopped moving forward, seasons when we feel like we might be moving backward. If you’ve been in children’s ministry for even a little while, there’s a good chance you’ve experienced more than one of these:

I’ve been in every one of those spots. When we come to a stuck place, we’ve got a choice. We can react by trying harder to do what we’ve always done. We can get hyperfocused on treating the symptoms of the problem (like sending out a challenging email to our volunteers, reminding them how important commitment is). Or we can get below the immediate problem and tend to the systems (or lack of systems) that are creating the problems in the first place. Here’s what I mean.

Simple Is the New Strong

Remember in grade school when you started learning about simple machines—levers, pulleys, wedges, and inclined planes? These devices might appear inconsequential, but according to Dictionary.com a simple machine has the power to change “the magnitude or direction of a force.” In other words, with the right machine, you will put forth less effort and accomplish more.

Have you ever tried to pull a nail out of a board with your bare hands? It’s almost impossible. Well, I know a little secret that will save your hands from such trauma. The backside of a hammer has two little wedges that will lift that nail out of the board lickety-split. Those little wedges are a perfect example of how a simple machine can multiply force.

In this chapter, I want to introduce you to a few “simple machines” for children’s ministry, systems that have the power to transform the magnitude and direction of all your hard work. With the right ministry machines, you can multiply the time and energy you are now spending on building volunteers, visitor retention, and budgeting.

We’ll start with the foundational machines that every children’s ministry needs:

I’ll bet you just got a sinking feeling in your stomach when you read this list, didn’t you? I know what you’re thinking: I can barely keep my head above water now. How in the world am I going to find time to develop all these big plans?

Don’t worry. We are going to work through each of these simple machines one at a time. Here’s what you’ll discover: you are already spending time in many, if not all, of these areas. But there’s a good chance that your efforts in most of these areas is not a part of a large system, not a part of a machine that integrates, simplifies, and expands your impact.

That is the result we want to work toward in this chapter. The reason so few children’s ministry professionals build these systems is that there is almost never an urgent need to do so. But the lack of systems results in an explosion of dozens (sometimes hundreds) of urgent and immediate tasks that must be tended to now! These systems won’t prevent all emergencies, but they will keep you from spending all your time reacting to the latest fire.

The Database Machine

An organization that hopes to grow and build momentum will need an accurate, updated list of everyone involved in the ministry and those potentially involved: children, parents, volunteers, visitors, staff, and outside resources. You might be thinking: Hey, we’ve only got ten children in our group. I can keep that information in my head.

Really? If you’ve got a group of less than ten children, you might be able to remember their names, their parents’ names, their age and grade in school, their birthdays, their addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and food allergies, but why try? Why not follow Einstein’s advice and “never memorize something you can look up”?

When we ask the average children’s ministry professional about the accuracy and usefulness of their databases, it usually doesn’t take more than sixty seconds to hear all the excuses for why this list isn’t in good shape. Until you’ve got your list of children, families, and volunteers just the way you like it, do not delegate this task to someone else.

This is so important that I’ll say it again. Please, do not delegate this task to someone else. I can’t tell you how many children’s ministry directors are waiting for someone else to get their lists right.

This is one that you, as the point leader, must take responsibility for. Like squaring the corners on a building, if your database is shaky, you’re whole ministry will be. Some things are better not left to software.

Great news! You don’t have to wait. And you don’t have to be a computer expert either. You can take care of this yourself (and usually in pretty short order).

Start by deciding on a format that works for you. Some people use a different 3 x 5 card for every child. Some use an Excel spreadsheet. Some use a legal pad. Some use database management software. Some type the information out in a Word document. The key is to get it into a format that is accessible for you. The point is having a place from which you can easily pull information when you need it.

Once you’ve got the whole list of children, make sure you include

Once you’ve gathered basic information for every child, include the same kind of information on every volunteer or potential volunteer. If you’re using an Excel spreadsheet, you can create a separate tab for volunteers. If you’re using a Word document, you can create a separate page for volunteers. If you’re using 3 x 5 cards, you could use different colors for children and volunteers. You get the idea.

Gathering all this information will take a little time, especially if the information in your church’s database is unreliable. But it won’t take nearly as much time as waiting around for someone else to get it done!

Keep at it. There are few things that will affect the long-term stability of your ministry more than knowing your flock in this very deliberate way. As you get better at this process, it will become much easier.

Don’t get discouraged if your first system or two ends up not working the way you like. Consider those first few attempts beta tests in the process of finding what works for you. Learn a lesson from Apple—make next year’s iPhone a little better than this year’s.

Three other recommendations:

As an example, you can find a sample database (see “Children’s Ministry Printed Directory”) in the online resources for this book (ivpress.com/sustainable-children-s-ministry).

The Calendar Machine

Your database serves as a tangible reminder that your ministry is first about who, not just what and when. Once you’ve got your database in place (or even while you’re getting it fully updated), it’s time to create your programming calendar for the coming year. This foundational practice is, sadly, one of the most commonly procrastinated tasks in children’s ministry.

It’s totally understandable. There are so many more urgent programming and pastoral needs than the strategic, forward-moving tasks; they feel so mundane and often get pushed to the back burner.

Before you recruit one volunteer, before you ask for one dollar for your ministry, and before you expect one child to show up for your program, you need to have some dates nailed down. We’ve made it a standard practice at Ministry Architects churches to have every children’s ministry publish a twelve-month calendar. When parents have this information early in the school year (or even before), you have greatly increased the chances of having the participation you are looking for.

I am going to go so far as to say that there is no reason for not having a published twelve-month calendar other than a lack of discipline. In our experience it probably won’t take more than a couple of hours to gather the information you need and complete the calendar. If you’re still waiting for some information from schools or other staff people, go ahead and draft your calendar, noting the places where the dates are subject to change if new information necessitates it.

The return on that two-hour investment can be staggering. You will save yourself all the lag time that comes when you have to answer questions with “We’ll have to table that decision until we have a date set.” You will also infuse trust and confidence among your parents and your staff colleagues. Yes, there is a chance that some will be annoyed that you are working so far ahead, but most will be impressed!

A published twelve-month calendar is a huge gift to your families. Parents plan their lives around sports calendars, school calendars, job deadlines, career commitments, and community events. If you don’t get your calendar into their hands, the best you can expect from families is their leftovers.

So, the next time you are tempted to complain that families are choosing sports or other events over church events, remember that schools and city leagues typically give families more to work with when they distribute their calendars well in advance of our last-minute bulletin announcements. What would happen if your families received their church calendars first? What do you have to lose?

Once your calendar is created, share it in draft form first with the church staff for their input. Once it has been cleared on the church calendar, make a plan to get it in the hands of parents and volunteers. (Your fall kick-off event is a great time for this, if not earlier.)

The Volunteer Machine

For many children’s ministries, the number-one challenge is staffing all of our programs and events with the appropriate number and the right kind of volunteers. It is rare to go into a church to talk about children’s ministry and not hear the director lament the lack of volunteers.

More often than not, the problem is that there is no plan. Begging your pastor to make a plea from the pulpit is not a plan. Putting an announcement in the bulletin is not a plan. Tackling unsuspecting parents in the hallway is not a plan.

What every healthy children’s ministry must have is a step-by-step plan for recruiting volunteers. How are you asking? Who are you asking? And when are you asking?

Once you have a plan that is working effectively, then (and only then) should you try to enlist others to help you recruit. Most children’s directors try to delegate responsibility for recruiting, and the results fall somewhere between disappointing and disastrous.

Especially as you are building the foundation of your ministry, you should be the one to work the plan. Dividing up the list of names among your committee will only multiply your frustration and reinforce the (mistaken) belief that recruiting volunteers is next to impossible.

I know what you’re thinking: But we’ve always asked our children’s ministry committee to do the recruiting. As one talk show host says, “How’s that workin’ for you?”

If you’re using your volunteers to recruit others and you’ve got all the inspired, aligned, and effective volunteers you need, feel free to continue this process. Sing the doxology and keep doing what you’re doing! But only one out of one hundred churches experiences this.

Too often we have seen recruiting delegated to a committee, which often leaves vacancies in the volunteer roster and insufficient time for the director to fill them. Recruiting can be intimidating, so volunteers (like most of us facing an unpleasant task) tend to procrastinate, resulting in the all-too-common narrative, “We just can’t get enough volunteers.”

In

You’re probably thinking, I’ve already asked so much of them, I can’t ask them to come to another meeting! I know. You may think you are giving a gift by not asking them to come to another meeting. In fact, you are robbing them of the energizing support that comes with being a part of a team that shares the same vision, and you are multiplying the chances of frustration and volunteer burnout.

Think of it this way: when someone signs up to volunteer at a hospital, homeless shelter, or school, they always receive some sort of training. Why do churches get everyone signed up, send them a lesson plan, and turn them loose in a room full of kids? (And we wonder why they don’t want to sign up next year!)

A volunteer should never be shocked by how difficult their role is going to be. In fact, they should be so well prepared that they will leave each week knowing that (1) they are making a huge difference in the lives of children and families and (2) the job was a lot easier than expected.

When we fail to train our volunteers, we send the message that the job they signed up for isn’t really that important; it is so simple and clear that training would be a waste of time. A great training plan communicates that we believe our volunteers’ jobs really matter. They are not “helping us” with our ministries. They are on the front lines, doing the work of ministry, cultivating a new generation of disciples of Jesus Christ.

Of course, beyond formal training meetings, you have the opportunity (and responsibility) to care for and nurture your volunteers. In a sustainable ministry, your volunteers are your first flock, and the volunteers have the children as their flock.

There are plenty of creative ways to provide training and support for your team without overwhelming them with meetings. So stop apologizing for recruiting and training.

When you work a plan to train, nurture, and equip your volunteers, don’t be surprised to see your volunteers coming back to serve year after year, and describing their children’s ministry work one of the most life-giving experiences of their lives.

These three systems—database machine, calendar machine, and volunteer machine—represent the systems you’ll want to get in place as a starting point. In

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