Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church of Marietta, Georgia · 2019. 10. 16. · Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church has been a center point of faith for many generations for over 175

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CHILDREN’S MINISTRY ASSESSMENT REPORT Building Sustainable Ministries . . . One Church at a Time

www.ministryarchitects.com

Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church of Marietta, Georgia

October 24, 2016

By Bryant Johnson, Senior Consultant and Becki Manni, Staff Consultant

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BACKGROUND Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church has been a center point of faith for many generations for over 175 years in Marietta, GA. The main campus sits on 44 acres and provides a beautiful setting for the church to achieve its mission: to be a Christ-centered culture which draws people toward an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, transforming them into disciples who are full of the Holy Spirit, resulting in the overflowing of God’s love through purity of heart, compassion to the needy, service to our world, sacrifice of ourselves, and the sharing of His message to all people. As the church has grown, a new worship opportunity was launched in 2014 at what is now known as the North Campus. The service takes place on Sunday mornings at the Mt Bethel Christian Academy’s upper school facility. Some people describe the church as “evolving,” “transitional,” “welcoming,” and “busy.” The membership of the church on the rolls is 9,832 and on an average week, 1,700 people attend one of the church’s four worship services. The current Senior Pastor, Dr. Jody Ray has recently moved into his position in June 2016. He oversees a staff of seven pastors including Associate Minister of Missions Rev. Carey Akin Associate Minister Rev. Kelly Brumbeloe, Associate Minister Rev. Kim McGarr, North Campus Pastor Rev. Steven Brumbeloe, Associate Minister of

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Congregational Care Rev. Glen Ray, Associate Minister of Discipleship Rev. Andy Rogers, and Worship Leader Rev. Robert McMichael.

The children’s ministry has a long history of successful programing and is overseen by a staff of ten people, comprised of both full-time and part-time positions. While the director of children’s ministry and two others have joined the staff within the last year, some of the current staff in children’s ministry have been with the church for many years including one who joined the team in 1989. The children’s ministry program has a number of key components. Nursery care is available for children age 0-2 on Sunday morning and throughout the week as necessary, including Mother’s Day Out opportunities. Pre-school Sunday School, Catechesis, and God’s Garden are available to those who are two to five years old. For kindergartner’s through fifth graders there are options for Sunday school, Catechesis, KQ (Kid Quest) POD (Place of Discipleship). During the week a variety of options for children are offered including, children’s choir, drama and music lessons, and life groups. Currently, there are about 831 children, 0 – 5th grade on the rolls of the church. During a typical week, about 365 of them participate in either nursery, Sunday school, children’s worship or children’s life groups. Children’s programming also includes special events such as VBS which has participation of over 700 children on the two campuses, 3rd Grade Bible/Unlocking the Mysteries of the Bible with 38 children; Scream Retreat with 66 children and 5th Grade Crossover with 70 children. The children’s ministry is described by some parents as a “good,” “safe,” and “faithful” place, while others say it is a “compartmentalized,” “disjointed,” and a ministry that currently “lacks passion and priority.”

The church has a 2016 budget of $10,121,000.00 of which $304,260.00 is dedicated to the children’s ministry. This includes the program budget as well as the salary and benefits for the staff, consisting of the director of children’s ministry, preschool coordinator, administrative assistant, catechesis coordinator, elementary coordinator, worship coordinator, worship leader, nursery director, assistant director of nursery. There are about 80 adult volunteers involved each week in one of the major children’s programs. Others help out at special events, such as VBS, or behind the scenes throughout the year. The ministry is led by a director of children’s ministry who has been at the church since September 2015. There is also an active children’s counsel which reports to the director of children’s ministry and meets every two to three months to serve as an advisory body and addresses major items before the ministry, including the check-in and check-out procedures.

The church offers an incredible academy and preschool during the week and an environment to match. The children’s ministry also lives into these spaces as they offer the church’s Sunday ministry opportunities. This requires that the physical layout of the children’s spaces are scattered throughout multiple buildings With a newly appointed senior pastor, there is a sense of new beginnings and desire to live into a new potential in the wider community. The church leadership is looking into all the exciting

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possibilities these new beginnings may offer. Rather than react with random programmatic changes, the church is asking how it can strategically evaluate the ministry and rebuild a foundation that the ministry can grow upon. Ministry Architects was invited to do an initial assessment of the children’s ministry and to make recommendations about how it might move strategically forward. Ministry Architects met with 63 individuals in 10 focus groups or one-on-one meetings. In addition, 38 others provided feedback through an online survey identifying assets and challenges. What follows are the findings gleaned from those conversations along with recommendations and a proposed timeline for the future.

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY IN CONTEXT One lens Ministry Architects likes to use for understanding children’s ministry is the idea of the “three rents.” Children’s ministries that “pay these rents” tend to have much greater freedom to be creative, take risks, and experiment with innovative ideas. Those children’s ministries that fail to pay these rents often find themselves mired in distrust, second-guessing, and discouragement.

It has been Ministry Architects’ experience that though these three rents, in and of themselves, do not ensure an effective or faithful ministry, they are often the most immediate evaluation tools used by children, parents, staff, and the congregation at large.

Rent #1: NUMBERS—A significant percentage of children need to be participating visibly in some aspect of the church’s ministry. It is important for this target number to be clearly agreed on by the church leaders and the staff. Ironically, when target numbers are not established, the children’s ministry is typically more likely to be judged by numbers than if the target numbers are clearly established.

The consensus is that this rent is not being paid. While there are a significant number of active children, people tend to be focused on those who have left, are not plugged in, and not involved.

Rent #2: PROGRAMS—In order to “earn the right” to experiment with changes, the children’s leadership needs to provide the church with a few visible, effective children’s programs that give both children and parents “something to talk about.”

Although Catechesis of the Good Shepherd was raved about, there was no other children’s ministry program that is held in similar regard or named as successful. Because of the mixed opinions, one could say that this rent is only paid in part.

Rent #3: ENTHUSIASM—The joyful enthusiasm and positive attitude of the children’s staff, volunteers, and the children themselves are essential to building trust with the leadership of the church and with the parents.

A perceived lack of priority, volunteers who feel overwhelmed, and confusion about recent changes in the children’s ministry suggest that this rent is unpaid. As the leadership of the children’s ministry develops its long-range vision, it will need, at the same time, to be attentive to these “three rents.” In this sense, the children’s ministry faces parallel challenges.

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Ministry Architects pictures the parallel challenge this way:

As the children’s ministry leadership steps into this parallel process, four rules of thumb –“children’s ministry norms” – will be helpful to keep in mind. These are not necessarily targets for success; they are simply what an average church typically experiences:

1) 15% of the Worshiping Congregation—In a typical church, the size of the children’s ministry tends to settle at a number that is around 15% of the worshiping congregation. A church with an average worship attendance of 1,700 could expect an average weekly attendance of around 255 children per week. The current weekly attendance of 365 children is over and above what a church of this size could normally expect to see. This should be celebrated.

2) $1,000 per Child—With a budget of $304,260 (including program budget, staff salaries, and benefits but not paid baby-sitters or nursery workers) dedicated to the children’s ministry, Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church has the capacity to effectively reach and maintain a weekly participation level of somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 children in some aspect of the church’s life. While there is an additional $82,000 raised for children’s ministry throughout the year, it is not calculated in the amount of money that the church is annually investing in the children’s ministry, however it’s no less significant. With 365 currently participating every week, the ministry appears to be underfunded. With the funds raised each year are included, then the ministry is right on target for its current level of participation. However, based on the actual annual investment the church is making in the children’s ministry, it is not likely that the ministry will be able to do more to reach the 831 children on its rolls without more of an overall financial investment.

3) 1 Full-Time Staff Person for Every 75 Children—Considering all the positions giving time to the children’s ministry, including director of children’s ministry, assistant director, preschool coordinator, administrative assistant, catechesis coordinator –elementary coordinator, worship coordinator, worship leader , nursery director, and assistant director of nursery, Mt. Bethel United Methodist church has the equivalent of 6.9 full time staff persons (not including paid baby-sitters or nursery workers). According to this rule of thumb, Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church has the

Laying the Foundation: Building a foundation and infrastructure that will ensure the children’s ministry’s future effectiveness, and at the same time,

Continuing to Do Ministry: Maintaining the current children’s ministry in a way that builds the enthusiasm of children, their families, the staff and the church at large.

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capacity to sustain the engagement of about 517 children on a weekly basis. The current staff configuration allows room for significant numerical growth. 4) 1 Adult for Every 5 Children— Ministry Architects likes to think in terms of “spans of care,” recognizing that, realistically, most volunteers cannot effectively oversee the church’s Christian nurture of more than about five children on an ongoing basis. With 80 weekly volunteers, Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church is currently at a ratio of 1 adult leader to every 4.5 children and provides the ministry with a capacity for 400 children weekly. The current team seems to be the right size for the current ministry of 360 children. However, if the church wants to expand its impact, it will need to consider recruiting more volunteers.

BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE STAFF When a ministry is based solely on the giftedness of a single staff person, instability is a predictable result. Ministry Architects has found that the most stable approach to staffing a ministry, particularly in the early stages of a rebuild, is to build a staff of three different kinds of people:

● The Architect: A person or organization that designs the building plan and ensures that

building is done in compliance with the agreed-upon plan. ● The General Contractor: A person or team who manages the flow and sequencing of work,

manages the building process according to the agreed-upon blueprint, and ensures that the appropriate number of “laborers” is in place for each stage of the project.

● The Laborers: Those people charged with specific gifts and responsibilities for particular aspects of the work. In children’s ministry, a laborer might have particular skills in relating to children, in planning and managing events, or in teaching.

Each of these roles is important as the Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church pursues a more sustainable model of children’s ministry. As the church moves forward, the following observations will be helpful to keep in mind:

● It appears that no one party or group of people is currently playing the role of architect in the children’s ministry.

● It’s unclear if the staff are given the time or training to do their important work as the “general contractor” of a complex ministry.

● The staff are often expected to serve in all three of these roles throughout the ministry. This is a recipe for congregational dissatisfaction and staff burnout.

● The children’s ministry council is serving as an advisory board without a clear responsibility in any one area, but at times asked to be involved in all three.

ASSETS Strengths to protect in the current children’s ministry Clarity of Need Throughout the listening groups, there was a consensus that the children’s ministry is ready to move on to the next level, addressing challenges along the way. There was a healthy appreciation of the steps the children’s ministry has been making along with a clear desire to see the ministry become all that parents are hoping for. This desire was evidenced by various statements parents made which included:

“I want the children to be a priority of the church.”

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“I hope that the children’s ministry provides a community in which all children belong.”

“There’s an opportunity for us to see the children’s ministry as a mission of the church.”

“I have a sense that we have something really attractive.”

“This children’s ministry is like a rubber band stretched out and ready to shoot.”

“How do we welcome new families in such a way that they will stay?” Catechesis of the Good Shepherd In all ten of the listening groups, someone mentioned Catechesis. “Those who have had the opportunity to get involved with Catechesis, are fully bought into it,” one parent said. Another said, “My children love coming and being involved in Catechesis.” Other parents described their children as “asking to come to church” and being “excited to talk about what they learned.” While space is limited in the classes, it’s clear that children, parents, and volunteers love Catechesis of Good Shepherd and the opportunities it provides for children to actively engage scripture. Children’s Ministry Manual Having a manual on hand that outlines the vision, values, and goals for the ministry, lists volunteer opportunities and detailed job descriptions, outlines strategic volunteer training plans, provides a preventative maintenance calendar, budgets, purpose of program, faith formation plans, milestones, contact plans, and so much more is a brilliant idea! The director of children’s ministry has done a fantastic job in taking the first steps to building the manual. This will provide the children’s ministry with a launching pad to create buy-in from parents and volunteers, set the foundation for a thorough volunteer recruitment plan, and help move the ministry that has good ideas to one that implements strategic plans. Signage

Friendly attractive signage designating that you’ve arrived in a children’s space has been developed over this past year and it’s fantastic! The signage is bold, bright, and easy to see. In a children’s ministry that is spread out across a large campus, over multiple floors, with entrances scattered about it’s easy for parents to feel lost, wonder where to go, and question if they are in the right place. The signs that are brought out to the welcome areas of the children’s ministry are a cue to parents that children belong, are attractive for children to see, and. in a church that takes advantage of shared spaces,

adds a signal that this is Sunday.

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Nursery The nursery, or “the big room” as some called it, has helped parents with younger children feel safe and cared for. One mom stated, “The nursery is great! I feel safe, secure, and that my kids are loved.” Another echoed, “The caregivers are very loving.” Another parent added, “Even if you’re not connected to this church, you’ll feel good about dropping your child off in the nursery.” While some said that it would be convenient to have a bathroom and some windows in the nursery, the space is complete with high chairs, changing tables, age appropriate toys. There was agreement throughout the listening groups that “the nursery staff are great,” it is well equipped, and provides a resource that allows parents to engage in worship, Sunday school, and other church opportunities throughout the week. Life Groups Life groups were another highlight for many. For those who participate, God’s Girls and Fishers of Men has been a resource for parents and engage their children in their faith development in deep and meaningful ways. One parent said, “When they hit 4th grade that are asking really important questions and talking about things that matter.” Another said, “I’ve been really pleased with what my children are learning.” At minimum the parents and children have an opportunity to discuss questions about Jesus, God, and faith in way that feel refreshing. It’s more likely, though, that parents are being given the tools necessary to have a Holy impact on their children’s path of becoming more like Christ. The Faithful Few In every church there are volunteers that others express their gratitude for. It’s not very often though, that volunteers are making six-year commitments to walk with children in their faith development from kindergarten through 5th grade. It is even more unlikely that there would be a team of people who have served in some form for more than 10 years. Mt. Bethel has been gifted with both! One of those highly committed volunteers said, “People don’t understand how great it is to teach!” Another said of her and her husband, “We made a commitment during their baptisms that we feel is important to keep,” when referencing her since of responsibility to serve in the children’s ministry. Others shared of the “joy” that comes from teaching children as the key source of their continued commitment. Parents, volunteers, and children’s ministry staff all shared their deep sense of thankfulness that God has called these servants to the ministry. As Jesus might say, “Well done, good and faithful servants.”

CHALLENGES Obstacles to moving the children’s ministry strategically forward Space Conflicts

We all know that you only have one chance to make a good first impression and here at Mt. Bethel that is being lived out weekly. While the church has incredible academy and preschool programs during the week and an environment to match, the children’s ministry has to find a way each Sunday to live into these same spaces. As these spaces are geared to the week day programs as opposed

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to church’s Sunday ministry opportunities there is a tension that exists in trying to make it all fit the multiple needs. While Catechesis has been given dedicated rooms to use, the physical layout of the children’s spaces throughout multiple buildings present challenges for members and visitors alike. Children’s facilities are spread across campus in a haphazard fashion that, at times, resemble a patchwork quilt. Accessibility is an issue for those needing to pick up children in various places as those classes are often in separate buildings on multiple floors. The need for dedicated space for classes such as Catechesis, the desire for large group gathering rooms that are inviting and exciting was evident throughout the listening groups. Additionally, having kids in the basement sends the message that kids are not a high priority at Mt. Bethel. This could not be further from the truth, but facilities that try to accommodate children as an after-thought do not make ministry to new families and visitors a hospitable experience. Dedicated space that is accessible from the ground floor is needed for nursery space, preschool and special needs ministries. Bathroom facilities, multiple entry and exit points and sharing space with adults all make for a slew of security concerns. These are all barriers that make it harder to attract and keep newcomers.

Strategic Staffing Plan

According the staffing norms, Mt. Bethel has graciously supplied the children’s ministry with an ample amount of staff. However, when a ministry is overstaffed it is fairly predictable that the ministry will have volunteer issues, too. Many people think, “We should have enough staff to get it all done.” Others may describe the ministry as “complacent.” Those results are not unique to Mt. Bethel, but a typical result of a ministry that is overstaffed. It provides an easy scapegoat or a place to point fingers. In addition, affluent churches may often move quickly to hire additional staff to solve problems, rather than recruiting high-capacity volunteers. One person asked, “Can we hire the additional volunteers we need to have weekly commitments?” A strategic staffing plan seems to be missing that differentiates the roles staff and volunteers play and names staffing goals for the future. As long as the staff are expected to play all three roles of architect, contractor and worker, building a growing yet sustainable ministry will be difficult. Role definition and job descriptions to match are a crucial component for the church to achieve its purpose and goals for its children’s ministry. With each additional staff position the organizational structure for the ministry needs to be re-evaluated to make best use of the gifts and talents of the current team. Volunteer Recruiting Every adult that comes into contact with children at Mt. Bethel represents an opportunity for a transformational relationship whether it is on the recreation field or in the Sunday school class. Mt. Bethel’s volunteer numbers give the impression is that there are enough volunteers, according to the norms, yet the general consensus is that there are still not enough adults to build those life-changing, transformational relationships. What actually seems to be the issue is that an effective and predictable system of recruiting volunteers is missing from the program.

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Rather than taking an approach to volunteer recruiting that builds excitement for the minsitry and adds confidence in its leadership, the church body often sees a desperate cry in the bulletin or a mention from the pulpit that only tells people that this is a sinking ship looking for more life-boats.

We heard “most of the people teaching Sunday school are the parents of the kids in those age groups. How do we engage more of our older members to pour their wisdom into our children’s lives?” and “how do we find the people with the gifts and talents to serve in these roles?” Or, “it was a personal request by a staff member that made me feel valued and needed so I agreed to serve.” Mt Bethel’s children’s’ ministry should consider other ways of engaging new volunteers that do more than just plug the immediate holes in the dike. Many group members shared their concern about the lack of consistency as a result of the volunteer system currently in place. Some volunteers have agreed to teach a specific group of children from Kindergarten through fifth grade essentially looping upwards each year. On the other end of the spectrum are the volunteers who can only sign up to serve for a single week each month. Consequently, there is no consistent teacher for those children to connect to on a weekly basis. One parent said, “It is hard for kids to see a different volunteer every week.” Another agreed and added, “If my child doesn’t come, I want someone to notice.” The current system doesn’t set the stage for all volunteers to build meaningful relationships with the children or their parents. The occasional volunteer option also contributes to inconsistent teaching, frequent absenteeism and lack of ownership on the part of the volunteers. In order for the church to build the deep, life-changing relationships between children and adults that it desires, a new approach to volunteer recruitment expectations will have to be implemented Volunteer Equipping

One refrain we heard repeatedly was that there was a fear of volunteering because of the lack of equipping and support that volunteers receive. We heard comments such as, “Burnout comes from the job becoming bigger than you thought at first,” and “I feel like I’ll get signed on for life because the perception is that there is an expectation to loop up with the kids each year Kinder through 5th grade.” We heard from staff and volunteers alike, that the ministry needs more thorough equipping training for volunteers so that they are better equipped to teach, to lead, to engage in hospitality and become more welcoming to new people coming in. One volunteer stated, “There are weeks that I am scrambling at the last minute getting all my materials ready for the last-minute changes to the curriculum and I don’t have the time to interact and build relationship with the kids.”

A fully developed strategy for identifying roles and the necessary gifts/abilities needed for those roles leads to a better fit for eventual volunteers. Volunteers then find joy and fulfillment in their position and begin to build a strong foundation for a lasting and sustainable ministry. This will attract volunteers on its own merit.

Families Who Worship Together Throughout listening groups parents mentioned that it was important for them to have opportunities to be in worship together with their children. One said, “Does anyone know why we don’t have the worship moment with children anymore? I wish there was a time in worship for my children.” Another said, “I would like to see at least a once a month time for children and their families to be in worship

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together.” While not everyone agrees on what this may look like, every seems to agree with the way one dad said it, “I want the value of worship to be a part of who they become.” Taking the necessary time to intentionally plan the opportunities for families to be in worship together will be an important and crucial next step for Mt. Bethel to take. Climate Control Staff, parents, leaders and volunteers all point to the fact that the environment of the children’s ministry can be, at times, less than welcoming. Many parents pointed to cliques as a problem facing the current ministry. These parents were quick to point out that it is not just kids from new families who can feel excluded from the children’s programs, but quite a number of kids from “core families.” Those who attend the academy may have many friends but those from other local schools can struggle to make connections with kids they only see a few times a month. One parent’s experience seems typical: “I would love for my kids to love the church as much as I do, but they don’t. They are not feeling the same way that I feel. They talk about the cliques…they feel like outsiders, even though the family attends all the time.” And from another parent: “We know of friends and neighbors who have moved to other churches because their child couldn’t find a connection with others inside the ministry.” Children tend to build relationships with those they interact with frequently and share similar experiences. Life groups, Catechesis kids or those in Sunday school classes that loop Kinder through 5th grade build lasting and life impacting relationships. But if kids are not drawn into those types of groups, especially those that are new to Mt. Bethel, there needs to be an inclusive, inviting assimilation plan to be sure no kids slip through the cracks.

Where There Is No Vision…

Over and over again, an almost helpless concern was voiced that the children’s ministry needs a game plan, a vision, a direction. Without such a vision, there is little objective standard by which to evaluate the program or the staff. When volunteers and staff were asked to dream about what could be, the only tangible dreams they could imagine had to do with facilities. There seems to be a lid on dreaming when it comes to the children’s ministry. The boldest idea that came up was returning to some of the previous programs on Wednesday nights and moving them to Sunday nights. While there is a vision statement created by staff, buy-in from parents, volunteers, and the children’s council has yet to be captured. In addition, values and goals that designate how the vision will be achieved have yet to be drafted. Faith Formation Plans Though there are a few programs doing great work at speaking God‘s Word into the lives of the children at Mt. Bethel, a clear cut spiritual overview for the entire ministry is missing. Without an over-arching discipleship plan for what we want children to know, feel and do with their Christian faith, we run the risk of a hit or miss approach rather than giving their children all that God intends for them to have. Without a clearly expressed, well-known set of spiritual developmental milestones and an understanding of when the children will reach those markers, the possibility strongly exists that the many could miss the significance of key points within their Christian education.

Another risk of working without a scope and sequence net is that volunteers may be left with the responsibility of choosing their own version of what they think the kids should know. While this works

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sometimes, it often leads to fuzzy spiritual planning. Working without a defined spiritual theme plan between the Sunday schools and children’s worship hours leaves the risk of missed opportunity for spiritual growth, repeated topics or missed educational opportunities for the parents and the children. When parents were asked what their kids were studying, no one knew the answer other than parents who teach Sunday school. Silo Mentality

The children’s ministry seems to be separated from the rest of the church. What happens with children downstairs is perceived to be totally separate from what happens upstairs with adults. One group member said, “It feels like children’s ministry is something that happens in the basement while everything else is going on upstairs.” There seems to be a desire among parents, volunteers and staff for children not just to be involved in the children’s ministry, but also in the larger life of the church. Parents and leaders expressed the need for greater integration and more intergenerational experiences.

The weekday preschool and academy operate largely independently of the broader context of Mt. Bethel children’s ministry. Collaboration is needed in the planning and execution of weekly programming and special events as well as the sharing of vital resources. The inclusion of pastoral staff in the collaborative discussions could yield fruitful results as pastors became aware of opportunities to be visible and to become a champion for children and families in all appropriate venues.

Fishing Only One Side of Your Boat

When Jesus first met some of his fishermen disciples, he suggested to them that maybe they should consider tossing their nets to the other side of the boat. He was telling people who knew how to fish to try a new approach. Mt. Bethel has been fishing, but seems to have forgotten that a potential net-filling catch is swimming all around the boat. While hundreds of young people and their families walk across the campus each week, there hasn’t seemed to be an intentional plan developed for how to connect the school and recreation families with the children’s ministries. In the process of “doing church as usual”, Mt. Bethel may be missing out on the chance to simply lower their nets into a new part of the water. One focus group participant said, “We have hundreds of backpacks going home from school without flyers about the upcoming week at Mt. Bethel children’s ministry.

Among members of the listening groups, there was a lack of awareness of how many academy students were not currently participating in any other churches in our community. Now, with at least anecdotal evidence that many families are unchurched, the church is challenged with how to best invite these families into the children’s ministries. Intentional visioning will need to be accomplished moving forward if the church truly hopes to experience “the big catch.”

Rites of Passage

In all churches, we find that there needs to be an intentional plan for how children are moved from one stage to the next within children’s ministry. Regardless of which grade is determined to be the best place to make these milestones, it is essential that children and their families know how the progression takes place and are educated as to what new responsibilities and opportunities come with each move forward. The step from being considered a “child” to being a “youth” is significant in the life of a young person, and if not handled proactively, can also be the place where a young person (and their family) walks away from the church.

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Check In/Out Challenges

There is a clear appreciation of the staff’s effort to make Mt. Bethel’s children safer. There is also clear agreement that the old processes were not tight enough. But, there is an overwhelming concern that the pendulum has swung too far in the other direction, especially at pick-up in the elementary area.

“I know security is important, but it's insane what this has created for my pick-up of all my kids.”

“What happened to the self-release option? This is creating real problems for families with multiple children or for those of us who volunteer.”

Out of the Loop Throughout the listening groups, there seemed to be confusion about communication. Some parents expressed concern over the number of emails that might be received if you have children involved in the children’s ministry, children’s choir, school of the arts, catechesis. Additionally, one of the Sunday school classes has decided to send out its own emails. Others are concerned that they are not receiving any emails at all. For some parents and volunteers, it seems that the communication plans are not quite under control. For others, they just feel out of the loop saying:

“I’ve heard about Catechesis, but I have no idea what it actually is.”

“It would be good to have clarity about when the nursery is and isn’t open.”

“We just decide to send out our own emails.”

“What about Christmas carols? I haven’t heard if we’re doing that this year.” In addition to the organization issues around communication, there is a lack of an intentional marketing plan for the children’s ministry that tells the good stories of the ministry that other simply “want” to be a part of and will go out of their to join. Until an organized communication and marketing plan is implemented it will continue to feel haphazard to parents and families. What Happened to Wednesday?

A question that was raised in multiple listening groups pertained to the former programming on Wednesday nights. Many expressed the desire for mid-week opportunities to stay connected to the church as a family. One participant noted, “If we’re offering some options on Wednesday, then it would be more convenient if it could include options for all family members.” Another said, “It was a good family night with dinner and fellowship.” The questions were frequent enough to indicate the topic needs to be addressed. Whether or not Mt. Bethel chooses to return to Wednesday night programming will need to be decided and clearly communicated to the families.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Reframe the next 17 months as a time of building long-term infrastructure for the children’s ministry. Understanding that significant and immediate momentum will be built throughout the process of renovating the children’s ministry, target April 2018 as the date when the children’s ministry renovation will be complete.

2. Establish a Prayer Team to undergird this renovation process.

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3. Present this report to the administrative board, requesting that they endorse an 18-month strategic design process for the children’s ministry.

4. Establish a Children’s Ministry Renovation Team as a subset of the children’s ministry committee, made up of at least three non-anxious, goal-oriented volunteers and the director of children’s ministry who will work closely with Ministry Architects to ensure that the outcomes of this assessment are achieved. These recommendations include two overarching responsibilities:

I. Addressing the immediate pressure points facing the ministry as it transitions toward a thriving, sustainable children’s ministry (e.g., keeping the trains running on time)

II. Implementing the strategic, long-term recommendations of this report (e.g., building a new railway system)

5. Partner with Ministry Architects to take responsibility for

I. Managing the renovation process, working with the staff and volunteers to ensure the achievement of the outcomes outlined in this report’s timeline

II. To chair the renovation team as it works to build a sustainable ministry and build momentum holding the team accountable to the tasks outline in this report.

III. Assisting the children’s ministry in overcoming the obstacles that are certain to arise in the process of renovating the children’s ministry.

6. Address the current pressure points facing the children’s ministry:

Pressure Point #1: Develop a Strategic Plan for Children’s Ministry Spaces – Building on the need for having space that is designed for children’s ministry programming outline and implement a plan that 1) outlines the best use for the current shared spaces and 2) engages in a long term plan for building a new children’s ministry facility.

Develop a best-case-scenario plan for each shared space that includes furniture needs, decorations, supplies, and technology that would best support the current children’s ministry programming that would provide an irresistible space for children.

Present this plan to the chair of trustees, requesting their support, feasibility, and endorsement of those needs.

Together a representative from trustees, meet with the appropriate parties at from the pre-school and Mt. Bethel Christian Academy to present the plan and agree upon next steps.

Set a time to develop a dream list of the larger physical space needs for the children’s ministry with the senior pastor and trustees including:

o A single entry and exit point o Providing for all children’s ministry spaces in one building

o Appropriate spaces for large group gatherings

o Space for small group opportunities and activities

o Centralized welcome point for check-in and checkout o Storage for supplies, materials, and equipment o Other items necessary to achieve the vision for children

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Pressure Point #2: Developing Hospitality – Set hospitality as a primary goal for the children’s ministry in each children’s ministry program assuring the following elements are intentionally being implemented:

First-time visitors and members joyfully greeted outside by the curb by a welcoming team assuring that each and every person is verbally welcomed to the children’s ministry. This team can be made up of youth and adults.

First-time visitors are escorted by a member of the welcoming team to the right building and room following check-in.

First time visitors are being introduce by name to the teachers in that class.

Checkout procedures are explained and a FAQ handout is provided.

Each parent and child are greeted by name when they arrive at the appropriate room.

Upon pickup, a brief story or highlight from that class is shared with every parent who comes to pick up their child.

Pressure Point #3: Establishing Clear Volunteer Processes – Develop a clear process for volunteer recruitment and an ongoing plan for volunteer training that includes an invitation to support the ministry’s vision and 3-year revolving goals, opportunities to provide the right tools for the teacher’s tool box, space to share best practices with other volunteers, and a thank you event.

Review the current volunteer job descriptions and update as necessary to provide an accurate reflection of the tasks, qualifications for those roles, and training that will be provided to those who say “Yes.”

Develop job descriptions for each volunteer job in the children’s ministry assuring that each weekly, behind the scenes, and event opportunity has a job description available.

Create a volunteer needs list, highlighting all the various opportunities for volunteer to serve.

Develop a volunteer fishing pond that includes 160 names of potential volunteers and where they are best suited to serve

Write a detailed recruitment plan that begins in January and February of each year

Evaluate the current volunteer training plan, assuring that each piece necessary for volunteering is provided for.

Implement the above plan beginning with a fun and exciting volunteer training event in the new year.

Pressure Point #4: Children In Worship – With the desire for children to worship with their parents, develop a game plan that will help the church achieve this goal.

Form a team that will work with the senior pastor to identify three to five good options for children and parents to worship together.

Together, select the option that will best meet the need for children involvement in worship

With the best option selected, set a start date to implement the plan

Using all communications available, communicate this opportunity to all families with children encouraging them to attend

7. Build the long-term infrastructure required for a long-term, sustainable children’s ministry.

o Host a “Quick Start” Summit: Invite the Renovation Team, key volunteers, and children’s

staff to participate in a Quick Start Summit in which the renovation process is launched and

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the pressure points outlined in the Assessment Report are addressed. The Summit tackles the items that need to be done first, and builds momentum for the children's ministry renovation process.

● Identify any progress in implementing the recommendations of this report. ● Orient the Renovation Team to their specific responsibilities. ● Assign Renovation Team members responsibility for implementing the

recommendations of the report. ● Calendar the dates involving Renovation Team. ● Create a plan for communication between the Renovation Team and staff to ensure

that all parties feel they’re “in the know.” ● Draft the following documents, finalizing them within no more than two weeks after the

Summit:

o There are results-based, written job descriptions for all paid and volunteer positions in the children’s ministry. The job descriptions cover all current positions and also include additional, non-threatening opportunities for adult involvement in both visible and behind-the-scenes opportunities.

o A clear and complete list of volunteer needs in the children’s ministry, including relational and behind-the-scenes, weekly events, and special event leaders.

o A broad “fishing pond” list of at least 40 possible volunteers to call about volunteer positions. The list includes people we are sure will say yes, and it includes people we think will never say yes (but we hope they will one day).

o Reasonable participation goals have been established for all children’s ministry events and weekly programs through August 2016 and clear lines of responsibility for filling those events have been established.

o Visioning: Invite parents and leaders to participate in a multi-session, on-campus process of visioning a new future for the children’s ministry with Ministry Architects, resulting in the following documents which will direct the ministry:

● A ministry mission statement ● A statement of values ● A set of three-year revolving goals

● An organizational structure for the ministry

o Christian Formation Summit: Gather a team for a Christian Formation Summit to discuss the learning objectives of each age level and how these might be accomplished utilizing curriculum, milestones and special programming.

● Evaluate the upcoming curriculum to ensure its effectiveness. ● Develop a long-range scope and sequence as well as a set of core competencies for

the children’s ministry programming. ● Develop a clear plan for milestones and special events to shape the faith formation

through the ages and stages. ● Determine how the curriculum selected will be communicated to volunteers. ● Decide what level of training will be required prior to full implementation.

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o Control Document Development: Ensure that the following control documents are up to date: an 18-month calendar, the major event notebooks to help event planners succeed, and, a preventative maintenance calendar that schedules behind-the-scenes activities for each month (like “September: nail down the date for next year’s VBS”)

o Compliance Documents: Ensure that copyright licensing for music and videos has been obtained, an application and screening process for every volunteer is in place, and all adults working with any children affirm a sexual abuse/child protection policy.

o Marketing: Establish clear internal marketing processes that allow parents, children, leaders, and the broader church to be exposed to the successes and good news surrounding the children’s ministry.

o Communication: Establish normative processes for effective and timely communication with parents, children, and leaders utilizing as many forms of communication as possible including updating the children’s page of the church’s website, Facebook, mass texting, mail, e-mail, etc.

o Children’s Ministry Manual: Ensure that the Children’s Ministry Manual, including the most recent children’s directory, an 18-Month calendar, all results-based job descriptions for staff and volunteers, compliance documents, budgets, game plans, a preventative maintenance calendar, and plans for each major children’s ministry event. Ensure that the manual available to all staff and volunteers in digital and hardcopy formats.

o Fall Kick-Off/Parent Orientation: Develop an intentional, family-based, incredibly fun Fall Kickoff event to launch the children’s ministry in the fall of 2017. Use that event to cast the vision, share information, and build enthusiasm about the year ahead.

o Enlist an Experienced, Professional Coach: Invite Ministry Architects to play the “coach” role during this renovation period. Ministry Architects would offer experienced direction for the building of an infrastructure for the children’s ministry and provide ongoing coaching for the children’s ministry staff members as well as the Renovation Teams.

DEVELOPING AND NURTURING STAFF AND SERVANTS o Committee Clarity: Clarify the role of the children’s ministry committee including the specific

role and tasks that they are responsible for in the ministry.

o Sustainable Pace: Help each children’s ministry staff member develop a “rhythmic week” including a Sabbath and “balcony” time (that is, time to look at the big picture and make strategic plans).

o Broaden Volunteer Definition and Opportunities: Create additional, non-threatening opportunities for adult involvement in the program. Encourage volunteer involvement in both visible and behind-the-scenes opportunities.

o Leadership Launch: Schedule and implement an inspiring leadership-training event for all volunteer children’s workers at the beginning of each school year.

o Fine-Tune the Director’s Job Description: Shift from the model of a mid-size church – where a full-time children’s director is the superhero who makes everything happen – to a large church model where the director of children’s ministry equips others for doing the ministry. The director becomes an architect and general contractor, nurturing the staff and the volunteers for ministry. That is, the director moves from being the “genius” to being the

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“genius maker.” Liz Wiseman’s book Multipliers, offers useful tips for making that shift. o Staff Organization: Evaluate the current organization chart for the children’s ministry for

effectiveness. Reorganize the org chart as necessary to assure that children’s ministry staff are fulfilling the contractor role in the ministry.

DEVELOPING CLEAR STRATEGIES AND NEW INITIATIVES

o Measurable Markers of Effectiveness: Determine reasonable participation goals for all children’s ministry events and weekly programs through December 2017 and take responsibility for filling those events.

o Personal Connection Plan: Develop a system for ensuring that every family in the current children’s directory is contacted personally at least once a year in order to make a connection, express support, and clarify if there are any parents requesting that their sons and/or daughters be removed from the church’s directory.

o Non-Parent Recruitment: Create a game plan to target specific demographics in the congregation when recruiting volunteers.

o Building Bridges: Develop a game plan for building bridges between the Academy, rec department, pre-school and the children’s ministry.

o Relational Strategy: Develop a plan for the staff and volunteers to foster a relational atmosphere and build incarnational relationships with children for deep & long-lasting impact in the ministry.

o Rites of Passage (or Milestones): Adopt the written plan for the processes, events, and privileges. Build upon the ones that are already established (Unlocking the Mysteries of the Bible and 5th Grade Crossover). Consider adding any additional ideas listed below or others that have already been created:

● First Steps Milestone o Purpose: introduces the congregation to a few of the youngest members and

makes both children and parents more comfortable with Sunday school. It reminds both children and their parents of the importance of attending Sunday school.

● Welcome to Worship o Purpose: intentionally extends the welcome mat to children and their parents. It

also introduces children, and the adults who care for them, to worship and worship space.

● Anniversary of Baptism o Purpose: Reminds those who have been baptized during the past year, their

families, and the congregation of the promises made to everyone at baptism. It is an opportunity to remind everyone that living our baptism is a lifelong journey—and one needs to be prepared to live and walk wet.

● Prayer Milestone o Purpose: To encourage the congregation to can keep its promise to equip and

support parents to pass on faith. Through this milestone, children learn they have a direct relationship with God and Jesus through prayer.

● Kindergarten children invited to Children’s Church o Purpose: To invite younger children into the special worship experience of

elementary age children.

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● Bibles to 3rd Grade: Unlocking the Mysteries of the Bible o Purpose: To invite children into the community’s practice of reading scripture

together.

● Acolyte Invitation to 4th graders o Purpose: To recognize leadership abilities of children in worship.

● 5th grader Crossover o Purpose: To welcome the rising 6th graders into the middle school ministry.

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The Ministry Architects Team Serving

Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church (Marietta, Georgia)

BRYANT JOHNSON – SENIOR CONSULTANT [email protected] 321.652.6947 Bryant began working in youth ministry in 1996. His ministry has been noted with building and

supporting volunteer teams. He has been worship speaker for summer camps, taught seminars for

youth workers, and written curriculum for the Florida United Methodist Camping programs. He

currently blogs at thepostlu.de.

BECKI MANNI – STAFF CONSULTANT [email protected] 970.232.5756 Becki Manni is the Director of Children’s Ministries at Hendersonville First United Methodist

church in the Nashville, TN area. She has been working with children for the past 30 years as a

volunteer, school teacher, church staff and curriculum writer.

JEFF DUNN-RANKIN – VICE PRESIDENT OF CONSULTING [email protected] 941.416.6618 Jeff Dunn-Rankin is the Director of Family Ministry at Christ United Methodist Church in Venice,

Florida, where he also served as the Youth Director for 16 years. He has consulted with large and

small youth and children’s ministries from California to Florida and is a frequent speaker at events

from the Group/Simply Convention to KidMin.

Jeff is a regular columnist for Group Magazine, and has co-written three books with Mark DeVries: Before You Hire a Youth Pastor, The Indispensable Youth Pastor, and Training on the Go (volume 2) (Group Publishing).

