Heartprints

Evaluate Your Ministry… “When To Make Changes” Part One

Have you ever heard these words from your volunteers?  “I love the curriculum. Why do we have to change?”  Or perhaps, “we have been doing it this way for years and it has worked…do we really need to change?”  Here is a classic, “our kids love coming to Sunday school, why do we need to try something new?” 

Have you ever heard these words from your volunteers?  “I love the curriculum. Why do we have to change?”  Or perhaps, “we have been doing it this way for years and it has worked…do we really need to change?”  Here is a classic, “our kids love coming to Sunday school, why do we need to try something new?” 

If you have served in children’s ministry for any length of time and have made changes to your program, perhaps you have heard these same comments and questions.  Change is hard and can be difficult, unless you have a team of people who have a passion for children and are supportive of the changes that you wish to implement.  Success happens when you have a strong support system of people who have the same vision, the same goals, and have a desire to see children grow spiritually.  

Big or small, God is the ultimate goal setter and will allow you to accomplish what He has established for your ministry, in an orderly and decent fashion.  All things are possible with God’s guidance and His direction for your ministry.  Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans, but for God all things are possible.”  (Matthew 19:26)  

Set God’s goals, work diligently, and then trust Him to help you achieve them. As we see from God’s word through His creation, He was orderly and organized.  He paid close attention to details and formed everything into being without chaos or confusion. (Genesis 1:1 – 2:24)  If we desire to honor God in our ministry, then we should use His example and set our minds on establishing a quality children’s program that functions with solid administration and fine-tuned organization.     

So what should you do first?   

If there are no existing goals, gather a team of five or six key children’s ministry staff or volunteers within your church and go through the process of establishing reasonable and attainable goals.  Goals should be set according to your church’s philosophy of ministry, the needs of the children you serve, your church’s approach to Christian education, and the unique ministry needs within your program.  When setting goals, be careful not to get caught up in thinking that you need to be competitive with other churches in the surrounding areas.  Make goals attainable by adding intermediate goals under the larger goals in order to measure your progress.  Many times goals will take months or years, but intermediate goals can be accomplished more quickly and results measured and evaluated much sooner.  And remember, a goal is no good if you cannot measure its progress.

Once goals have been developed, constantly assess which ones you have achieved which ones may need to be adjusted because they are unattainable, unrealistic, or not conducive for your ministry.  Take a special note of those goals that have been accomplished and those that have contributed to the success of your ministry.  Periodically evaluate whether new goals need to be set in order to further the success of your ministry, or if old ones need to be readjusted or removed.  This takes time and can be overwhelming unless you have an evaluation plan for your ministry in place.

The evaluation process should be a priority and a regular responsibility within any children’s ministry.  A thorough evaluation of your ministry should be conducted at least annually, with regular progress assessments done throughout the year.

Leadership consisting of the children’s ministry team paid or volunteer staff should be included in the evaluation process.  The children’s pastor/director/leader should be the responsible person in making the final decisions concerning changes or additions within the ministry.  Major changes such as building construction, room size extensions, remodeling or moving ministries would most likely need approval of the senior pastor, elders, and or congregational boards.

During the goal setting process set landmarks along the way to help determine how far you have gone to meet the goal and how far you have yet to go.  You are on your way to a successful evaluation process.  Stay tuned in for part two…

Lisa Goodyear holds a Master of Arts degree in Christian Education, with a focus in Children's Ministry, from Dallas Theological Seminary. She has over twenty-eight years of local children's ministry, as well as an extensive background in early childhood education and international ministry to children. Currently, she is serving with the family/children’s ministry in her local church in Shawnee, Kansas. Lisa's passion is to see children from every nation, tongue, and tribe trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and grow in their relationship with Him. She is married to Rolla and they have two grown children and three grandchildren and a little Yorkie, Romeo. Lisa lives in Olathe, Kansas.