Being a youth pastor is a dream job. The kids and the church I serve are amazing. It’s fun to watch where we’ve been and where we are going but I am no fool, it could end tomorrow. Cue dramatic music: Dun Dun Dun!
One thing I have learned over the years is that no job, no matter how perfect or awful lasts forever. There comes a time where we move on to what God has next. I am not there yet, but that does not mean I am not preparing for it.
Today I am attending a blogging and communications conference called Killer Tribes. I am a bit nervous because I have the feeling I will be the brown shoes on the black tux. I have only been blogging for three years and committed to blogging every weekday since January. As much as I am committed to being the best youth pastor I can be, I am committed to being the best person I can be and that involves expanding my horizons in multiple areas of my life. Here are a few ways I am doing this and maybe you can too.
1. Go to conferences that feed your passion to be a better _____________. Your boss probably won’t pay for your trip to Knit A Con, but that does not mean you should not go if that is your passion and you see a future in it.
2. Read books and blogs that have nothing to do with your primary job. I read business books, political books, fiction, and of course books on and about youth ministry. Being well rounded is more important to me than being an expert.
3. Learn new skills. Through working on our youth room, I have learned carpentry skills that I was once afraid of trying for fear of screwing up the project. Not any more. Fearless is my new motto. Take that computer class, dance class, or writing class. It will only benefit you in the future.
4. Start your own blog or and be brave about it. I used to post my blog only to Twitter because I thought I would get more engagement and I did not know how my FB friends would respond to my internal monologue now public. Now, it goes out everywhere because fear is no longer in my vocabulary.
I don’t know what God has for me in the future, but whatever it is, I plan on being as ready as I can be.
What are you doing to expand your horizons in your job or ministry?
If you dare, answer this question….
I am a _____________________ but secretly I want to be a ____________________