Well, it finally happened. It was 6:45 P.M., and still no youth had come. I should have known it would inevitably happen; attendance had been so low lately. But it was still terrible to have absolutely no one show up. Looking at the empty room, I gathered the games, Bibles, and assorted things and trudged to my car, locking the doors behind me. The hollowness of the door slamming shut is most piercing when no one has been there at all.
How did this happen? What did I do? What did I not do? Maybe it is me. Am I too committed? Not committed enough? Maybe I misread God’s will. Arrgh! Now what? What am I going to say to the pastor tomorrow? Maybe I’ll just go and resign tonight! I drove away, hoping none of the congregation would pass the empty church.
Everyone in ministry has had things go belly up. But when you work in a small church, the chances of this happening are even greater. However, this does not mean there is no hope for meaningful ministry in small churches. In fact, smaller groups have a greater chance of making a significant impact on lives.
The strength in small
I recently went to a workshop designed for youth leaders in Southern California. I imagined myself to be unique because I had a small group. You can understand my surprise when, in a room of seventy-five leaders of youth groups, only about six had groups with twenty or more regularly attending.
Perhaps we feel that being small is a sign of failure. Yet Christ spent the majority of his time with twelve regulars. In many instances, there were only three!
In you define success in terms of changing lives, of youth finding purpose in life and in having a relationship with God in Christ, then you have a marvelous chance for success in a small youth group. After many months of my seemingly ineffective work, one teenager showed up at my door to talk. She wanted to know if God really forgave people of everything. That was the beginning of a new life for her in Christ.
The youth who call at dinner time are really saying, “I trust you, I like you, and you are approachable.” If they want to play basketball or tell about the latest love of their life or hang around and make a nuisance of themselves, these are tangible signs of success. These things are not found in statistics.
The snag in small
The pitfalls of a small group are usually in two categories—ones you can do something about and ones you cannot.
Contrary to popular belief, several things cannot be changed—church location, weather, illness, vacations, and school activities.
However, some snags you can deal with. The biggest is negative attitudes. How many times have you found yourself thinking, if only they would do this or that, or if only they would be more committed? The youth need more than anything else to know that it is okay for them to be a part of a small group and that they have not, in some terrible way, disappointed you, their leader.
When only three youth showed up for a meeting that needed at least six youth, my first thought was, Let’s just call it off tonight and try again next week. Instead (by the grace of God), we went to a nearby restaurant and had a good discussion about what was going on in their lives.
As I look back on groups I have served, I realize I’ve gotten to know all of the youth and have kept in communication with most. One has spent time in short-term mission work; one is happily married; one became a state wrestling champ and is still active in the church; one is now a youth sponsor. In small groups lives can be challenged and changed in Christ. After all is said and done, that is what ministry is all about.
Patricia Duckworth is an American Baptist pastor living in Great Falls, Montana.
1996 by Christianity Today/LEADERSHIP, journal.
