What if it’s more about your offline conversations?
Over the past few weeks we’ve exprienced a myriad of changes few of us ever anticipated.
Adjusting to working from home. Homeschooling kids. Shopping from sparse grocery shelves. Restaraunts with curbside service only. Netflix and baking binges that make a personal trainer blush.
There is no question. This pandemic has turned our worlds upside down.
Reading through social media, we see a common theme building within the Kids and Student ministry space. We’re asking the same question. Is providing online content enough? How do we know it’s helping? Do clicks, likes and comments give us a clear picture of how we are helping kids, students and parents?
I think we’re asking the right questions. And I think the answers are within reach. But I believe it lies beyond the online experiences we create. Beyond the Facebook groups we launch. Beyond the thought-provoking devotionals we provide.
I believe it lies in a space off-line. In personal phone calls. Periodic facetime chats. Regular text messages. Interactions that give us insight into specific needs a family is experiencing verses general needs we assume they encounter.
Now, don’t hear what I’m not saying. What I’m not saying is that what we are currently doing is bad. No… it’s actually really good. But if we’re honest just for a moment, there’s a question hovering in the back of our mind wondering…
- What are my single parents with limited income navigating today?
- What are my parents with special needs kids facing this week?
- Who’s dealing with furlough or job loss?
- Who’s leading their student through the loss of a family member? The loss of their school year?
[bctt tweet=”Some of our families will engage in the online platforms we use. But not all. In fact, most won’t. And suddenly disconnection becomes our greatest enemy.” username=”gina_mcclain”]
How do we create connection in a season when disconnection is the gravitational pull?
But here’s the rub.
As a ministry leader, the volume of calls I need to make in order to know the specific needs of families in my church is simply overwhelming. Even if I devoted ALL of my shelter-at-home time to these conversations, I wouldn’t get through that list.
And that would be a single conversation.
In a season where many of our family’s realities are changing one week to the next, a single phone call from the church staff simply isn’t enough. It doesn’t scale.
You need help.
And the great new is… you can get it. In fact, you can build a team of people that can…
…create listening posts so you KNOW what your families are facing.
…help a parent feel seen, known and supported by your church.
…connect families to each other and help them meet each others needs.
It all comes down to creating a scalable, sustainable system to reach and connect your families. The Leader’s Guide to a Connected Ministry is a 5-step process to help you connect with the kids, students and parents in your ministry.
[bctt tweet=”Stop wondering if your online game-plan is working. Start building a framework that turns the tide on disconnection in your church.” username=”gina_mcclain”]
