Advisory group for community youth work

Goals

• Supervision of the children's, youth group, teen and youth work staff
• Deepening the connection to the church and among the leaders of the individual levels

1. Composition of the advisory board

The advisor is a born-again Christian with a great understanding of youth work. He has a pastoral streak, is spiritually mature and ready to help. He has a relationship of trust with the leaders. The counselors are requested and appointed by the church leadership and the leaders of the group(s). We think of a circle of about 4-5 people. For example, a younger couple (with experience in youth work or in an educational profession), the person responsible for a department from the church leadership, former leaders, parents (with children who attend one or more groups) would be suitable candidates.

2. Main tasks of the advisory group

Spiritual and pastoral care, exchange and discussion opportunities for leaders. The regular meetings serve above all to provide spiritual guidance:

• Encourage and maintain personal contacts through telephones, conversations, dinners with individual leaders, follow-up questions, open house, pastoral care, etc.
• Prayer, concrete and regular for each leader and all problems
• Promote the gifts of the individual (encourage training, promote creativity
• developing a "feel" for "buttons" and needs
• Mediate and help with crises in the leadership team
• Assistance and advice in the search for new leaders

1. Advice, encouragement and correction of the leadership teams in practical and spiritual matters:
   
   Many of our employees, the majority of whom are young, urgently need advice and encouragement if they are not to break down in their work. The emphasis here is on advice and encouragement, not correction, even if this is necessary from time to time. The spiritual life of the group should become a personal concern (follow-up work, spiritual growth of the individual and the group, community in the group, binding life of the individuals, relationship between leader and group and vice versa)
   1. Leaders should be helped to recognize the overall view of Jesus' church from the often too narrow horizon of their own work
   2. Evaluate the last programs (experiences, mistakes, positive aspects, etc.). Let the leaders tell their stories
   3. New programs should be discussed together before they are published in order to coordinate with the overall church youth work
   4. Future: further planning and long-term goals, coordination with other church areas, promotion of young talent, what "reputation" the group has in the church and the world
   5. Special events such as evangelistic campaigns, training courses, advertising campaigns, family services, camps, weekends, films, contact with parents, festivals, etc.
   6. Discussing any problems that arise
   7. New ideas and impulses
      
2. Contributing and bringing youth concerns into the community:
   1. Orientation of the church leadership and the pastor/preacher
   2. Representing the concerns of youth work (1-25 years) in the church leadership
   3. Orientation in the congregation (if not done by the leader)
   4. Enforce church concerns in children's, youth group and youth work
   5. Clarify and monitor finances
   6. Procurement of materials and premises
   7. Promoting leader training and further education through the congregation
   8. Recommending leaders to the church leadership

3. Meeting of the advisory group

If possible, the advisory group meets at least quarterly with the leaders of the group(s). Depending on the circumstances, location and issues at hand, the meeting may be held with all group leaders together or with the team of leaders of the individual groups. A mixed form would probably make the most sense, so that the advisory group meets once with everyone together and the other time with each team of leaders individually. However, some of the above-mentioned concerns cannot be sufficiently addressed in the quarterly meetings. Corresponding individual contacts are therefore necessary and complementary.

4. Concretization

• Personal review and let it go through heart and head
• Work through separately in the church leadership and in the individual leadership teams of the different age groups
• Develop a joint proposal from the leadership teams and forward it to the church leadership for review
• The church leadership decides on further steps

References:

Contents: Annual focus 1993 "Community", Peter Blaser, Siegfried Nüesch, Martin Bihr, Hansruedi Tanner, Ueli Obrist, Johannes Wallmeroth, Peter Schulthess

Copyright: www.besj.ch

Cover picture: Clipart courtesy of the publisher buch+musik ejw-service gmbh, Stuttgart - www.ejw-buch.de