Investing in humans who are investing in humans is one of the most complicated and challenging things I do as a youth pastor.

I believe we all have a leadership role in the lives of others. Some have a greater capacity that others.

John Maxwell talks about the Law of the Lid–that someone’s leadership ability determines their level of effectiveness. I spend a lot of time contemplating that concept–how do I raise my lid and how do I raise the lid of those around me? Definitely one of the most challenging and complicated things we do. Thanks for sharing!

When I have a TASK that needs to be done, I focus on who can get the task completed. If we’re talking about getting chairs set up or preparing a food item, there are A LOT of people who are capable of doing that. If we’re talking about more soft skills like helping teenagers feel welcome and cared for or investing in teenagers, it’s not only a smaller group who can accomplish that, it’s also about potential in humans.

If I see a person is capable of filling a need in our youth ministry, I need to invest in them personally the way I want them to invest in teenagers. That means I need to know them fairly well before I recruit them, but also they need to trust me before they’ll say yes to something. Then I assess what skills they need to develop and equip them to develop them. It’s basic discipleship in the context of ministry.

I don’t say all this to imply it’s easy. Investing in humans who are investing in humans is one of the most complicated and challenging things I do as a youth pastor. However, I think we tend to either say that anyone can lead if they are willing or say that only an elite few can lead. I believe we all have a leadership role in the lives of others. Some have a greater capacity that others.