Rethynking: Youth Ministry

I am proud of my profession. By profession, I mean “that which I do to make money” and I take pride in it. I am professional youth pastor. A shaper of young souls. A spiritual guide for the spiritually newborn. A Theology 101 professor. A tried and true, pal and a confidant… (ok, so that last one was from Golden Girls). The thing is, my profession has never been considered just that, a profession. Its always been void of any credit, any professionalism, and any prestige. Think Jewish carpenter.

In my eight years in full-time, vocational youth ministry, I have worked in some bad situations. For the first time in my career, I am at a church where I am excited about the vision of the leadership, I trust the board, I actually like being around the other pastors, and I would follow my lead pastor anywhere. But often, things aren’t always this way.

The youth pastor job at a local church is the thing that churches “have” to do but would rather not if they could get away with it. Any church in suburbia who wants to grow needs to provide babysitting for teens. Which is Reason #1 why youth pastors don’t get any props. Too often, the student ministries at churches are designed to keep the students from destroying the campus and from making their parents look bad in “big church.” This philosophy has given way to the idea that youth pastors are just babysitters for kids who can poddy by themselves.

Reason #2 for the lack of professional street cred in youth ministry is the turnover rate. Too many people have taken jobs as youth pastors who never should have been allowed to. The decision-making process goes something like this, “I am a young guy with a seminary or bible college degree (and lots of debt) and I need a job”… “but I am too young to be a REAL pastor and have to earn my stripes first”….”so I will take a job as the youth pastor at my father-in-laws church (aka minor leagues) until I can work my way up to the big time”. Brilliant! The problem with this is that it just feeds the notion that teenagers can’t be taken seriously when it comes to spiritual things… how effective can you be as a youth pastor if you look at your job as just the bullpen for the real deal?! Not to mention, the students always pick up this attitude and we all know the famous stat that the average youth pastor stays at a church for 14 months.

Lets talk about the students. I know several pastors (real ones) who actually think that students are not capable of spiritual living and thus youth ministry isn’t really “ministry” at all. Then you have parents who have this idea that the youth pastors job is the general and overall spiritual well-being of their child. See the quandry? Its Reason #3… there is often no consensus on what exactly the youth pastor does. I have been full-time in student ministry for 8 years and have worked at 4 churches and have seen exactly .5 complete job descriptions. The average youth pastor will deal with a senior staff or church leadership who doesn’t take him seriously, and then field a phone call from a parent blaming him because her child was caught with beer. How can both be true? The truth is, both sides are wrong. Nevertheless, this confusion only adds to the confusion and frustration and the burnout rate.

Which leads me to Reason #4… qualifications. Sometimes the guy given the youth pastor title is the seminary grad looking for a way to the top, but just as often the job is given (in a final act of desperation) to the 19 year-old grandson of the head of the women’s ministry who is going led VBS one summer. This guy, who thinks the idea of getting paid to hang out with his peers and watch them eat unsanitary amounts of marshmallows, jumps at the job. This may sound ridiculous but by my estimation, this is a common tale. So now you have the educated, experienced family man making the same amount and having the same title as the cocky, wet-behind-the-ears, late teenager.

So how do we fix it?
As youth pastors, we need to bring sexy back… in a professional, hands-off, sort of way. We need to act like professionals. We need to prove to our senior pastors, church leadership, parents, and students that we are not babysitters and that students are capable of amazing faith. First, we can demonstrate the benefit of a healthy student ministry. Show the leaders of our churches that students who are on fire for God will benefit the church as a whole. Think social justice projects, acts of mercy done by the students, helping fill needs for the church in general. This is the idea of “waving the flag” for you ministry, but instead have the students do it with their actions. Not too long ago, in our student ministry, we were talking about mercy for a series we were doing with the “big church.” One Sunday, we announced that instead of talking about mercy that day, we were going to do it. We had the students go into the parking lot and in small groups, go to each car parked and pray for the family who used it to get to church that morning. They then left a little card letting them know that the student ministry prayed for them and they were blessed.

Second, ask your senior pastor for support. I would never yell at my 5 year-olds teacher at church and blame her because he said a bad word, its ridiculous. But somewhere along the lines, parents thought that they could do it with youth pastors and they get that idea, in part, from pastors who allow it to happen. Don’t hesitate to take your pastor out to lunch, talk about your ministry philosophy and ask him to get your back. When you feel the support of your senior pastor, it feels like a safety net under your tightrope.

Finally, get out if you aren’t supposed to be in. It is a slap in the face to the students you are supposed to serve to view your current placement in their life as just another step on the ladder. Personally, I feel that youth ministry is the front lines of local church ministry. It is very real, very tough and not anyone can do it. I have no desire to be a lead pastor, I see the next generation as a key investment in the church and I believe they are capable of great faith and depth. If you don’t feel the same way, then its time to move on. Faking it until you feel it does not apply here. For the young guys, seek help. The most valuable times of my career have been weekly coffee meeting with other youth pastors who had been around for a while. Even though I acted like I had it all figured out, they helped me, encouraged me, and corrected me when I needed it… I would not be a youth pastor now if I had never met those guys. You never stop learning.

I am Professional Youth Pastor. My job is important and there are a lot of teenagers and parents who follow me. I am kind of a big deal.