1. BE W IS E W I T H Y OUR T IME from Doug Fields
FOR STARTERS
What’s your strategy, if any, for
TRAINING on the GO
Your time as a volunteer is precious, so I encourage you to be wise with
managing your ministry time? each minute you spend doing youth ministry. Consider these actions:
What do you consider to be Think stewardship. Let’s face the reality of time. Everyone has the same
time wasters or distractions? amount (7 days, 24 hours, 60 minutes). We can’t make more time, so we’ve
got to manage the time God has given us. I’m not asking anyone to become
a time management guru in order to work with teenagers. But I am asking
volunteers to carefully consider their time. If you can give the youth group
IN T HE TRENCHE S only 60 worthwhile minutes a week, thank you and God bless you! Consider
your time a gift from God, and be a good steward of it.
Jennifer is a talker. She is a college-
age volunteer and definitely has the Debrief your time. One way to become a good steward of your time is
gift of gab. Each week she would to look back at each week and evaluate how you spent it. But don’t grade
stop me to give me updates on her
yourself a failure each week for wasting time. Instead, do an honest
ministry, her life, and her favorite
TV shows. I really do value and evaluation, and then debrief.
love Jennifer’s heart for students Tell yourself something like, “OK, next week I’m not going to spend 30
and for our ministry. But each week
when I saw her walk into the room, minutes with that needy adult who always traps me. As much as I’d like to
I began preparing myself for a help, I’ve got to use my time with students. I need to make sure someone is
long conversation. Unfortunately, caring for that needy adult, but it doesn’t have to be me every week.”
the conversations would happen
at the same time students were Each week, review how you spent your time, figure out what you can learn
arriving. I knew Jennifer’s heart is from it, and make some notes about what you’ll do the next week.
in the right place, but I also knew
that I was losing a lot of valuable Don’t be afraid to guard your time. Years ago I learned a valuable lesson:
time for students. If I don’t protect my time, no one will. I realized that others don’t care about
I finally realized it wasn’t Jennifer’s my time as much as I do. They don’t care that I’m late to my son’s game, miss
fault that she was wasting my time; dinner, or can’t meet a deadline.
it was mine. I was expecting some-
Because of that reality, I’ve learned to take more control of my time and be
thing from her that I never actually
explained to her. So I had a much- more direct with people. Now I might say something like, “I’d love to stand
needed conversation with Jennifer, and talk more, but I’m here only 60 minutes a week. I’m in charge of the
telling her simply that I enjoy seeing freshman boys, and I need to get in the room and begin talking with them.
her each week but can’t always take I’m sorry I don’t have more time right now. Maybe we can set up a time to
my attention away from students to
listen to her. I asked if she would
connect at another time outside of youth group.”
consider stopping by my office once It’s amazing how understanding people are when you directly communicate
a month or sending me a weekly
your good intentions. They don’t want to keep you from doing ministry;
e-mail update on what’s happening.
I told her I want to cheer on her min- they just can’t read your mind. They’re going to keep talking because they
istry, but I also want (and need) to think you have nothing better to do. I understand if you’re a little afraid to
talk to teenagers. be direct; I once was, too. Learn the lesson now. Be a focused steward of
That honest and direct conversation your time so that your ministry effectiveness soars.
was valuable for both of us; Jennifer
is still able to follow through on
her good intentions, and I’m able
to protect my time with students.
Who are the Jennifers in your life?
What steps can you take to protect
your time with students?
YOUTH LEADER TRAINING ON THE GO

2. B E W I S E W I T H Y OUR T IME
CONNECT to God’s Word T O T HE POINT
• Even good intentions can
“So be careful to do what the Lord your God has
waste time.
commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or
to the left. Walk in all the way that the Lord your • Review your use of youth
God has commanded you, so that you may live and ministry time.
prosper and prolong your days in the land that • Be wise about how you spend
you will possess.” —Deuteronomy 5:32-33 your time.
• Be direct in letting others
• What distractions “to the right or to the left” tend know that you have a goal—
to grab most of your time? and limited time.
• How can you cut time wasters from your life? What
will be the impact on your ministry with students?
TRY I T
Put a stopwatch on your desk,
Write a response and prayer to God here… in your car, or another place you
spend a lot of time. You might
even carry it with you. Begin
timing your distractions; for a
few days, push “start” and then
“stop” when you’re absorbed in
something you’d consider a time-
wasting distraction. At the end
of this experiment, debrief this
time, thinking through the regular
and irregular distractions. What
were they? Can you remove any
of them? Do you need to have
a conversation with any of your
regular “distractions”? Then take
the next step: Make room for your
priorities, and work to remove the
things that don’t matter as much.
MA K E IT PER SONAL
Permission to photocopy this handout granted for local church use. Copyright © Doug Fields. Published in Youth Leader Training on the Go
by Group Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 481, Loveland, CO 80539. www.youthministry.com and www.simplyyouthministry.com