When I was in college, one of the many skills I obtained was the ability to juggle- poorly. I could juggle three tennis balls for about ten seconds before it was a mess of neon green bounciness. To be honest, I never did become proficient in juggling. One of my dorm mates juggled bowling pins, torches and small children as a profession. But alas, I left college with a degree in computer programming and as a complete failure as a circus carny.
As life has moved on, I’ve discovered that I never really left juggling behind. I may never brandish three finely sharpened axes while riding a unicycle, but I do juggle nonetheless. Especially when it comes to youth ministry, juggling is the name of the game. The job is a continual process of keeping various responsibilities and roles in the air- preacher, pastor, developer, leader, servant. And the goal is to be successful in all and keep any one role from splitting my metaphorical brain-case.
I’m coming to accept the fact that I’ll always be a juggler.
- When juggling, know what is in the air. Part of the challenge of doing youth ministry is the ever-present surge of important things. You have to prepare a message. You need to reach out to a teen. You need to meet with an adult leader. It’s important to have a list somewhere that tells you all the roles you need to juggle.
- When juggling, know when to share the ax-load. I’m only good at a very small list of things. And let’s be honest, I’m not too good at those things either. So whenever I have an ax I can hand off, I do. Because I don’t need to be only one in our ministry executing, so long as the job gets done well. And if someone else has a strength in an area that I don’t, great.
- When juggling, remember your audience. With so many roles, it’s easy to fall into “people-pleasing” mode. You want to please those whom you serve. But “people-pleasing” becomes a problem when it dictates your priorities. So it’s always helpful to remember that you’re working to honor God. You’re a juggler for Jesus. Serve others faithfully but remember that your identity and value are tied to Christ, and not what you do.