#3 Things to do in January that Help your Ministry for the New Year!
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Get out that new calendar and as a staff block in your important Children's Ministry events! I am all for being led by the Holy Spirit in ministry and planning needs based on the people present, but a few staples in Children's ministry always need to be pre-planned in a staff meeting during a "overlook" of the year planning meeting. Vacation Bible School is the big one that jumps out. It needs to not overlap with a Senior High Youth trip, and it needs to also be on busy parents' calendars before they fill that week with something else. Get that Vacation Bible school date secured and then tell staff it is not negotiable to reschedule due to families blocking out a week to participate. For those who use your digital calendar on your desktop, you can click on the button below to upload all the important plan ahead reminders for Children's Ministry. Those of you that are coming to Beyond in a couple of weeks will get a color-printed check of reminder list.
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Look over your budget. What areas are skewed due to pandemic conditions? What areas need dropping, and what needs to be added? Are there things we always do but don't yield much in discipleship? Can we talk it over with your ministry team? It is often a "use it or lose it" for budgets. Look to see if there is something you can purchase ahead of the close of your budget for the upcoming year.
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Review and update your Safe Sanctuary handbook and general policies. Did you know that we have examples of policies and manuals on the ARUMC.org website? Check it out by clicking on the button below this article. Safe Sanctuary was a big topic this week in my Children's Ministry Covenant group, and this was some great insight from Reverand Kathy Pittenger.
Reverend Kathy Pittenger from the UMC Michigan Conference recommends:
"The leaders I work with include the photo/video release in their yearly registration. Some are posting signs to inform people that there will be video/photo during the service/event. ~Rev.
This topic came up a few months ago in my Facebook group. The Sanctuary has been a new conundrum for many because they haven't live-streamed worship before, so it was never an issue. Here are a few of the responses:
- Kids staying in their seats during children's moment (not a bad idea right now in Covid conditions.)
- Photo/video statement on doors
- Specific areas of the Sanctuary that will not be on camera
- Slides during times when children/youth/vulnerable adults would be on camera so people can hear but not see.
