3 Things You Need To Know Before Saying, “YES!”

(part 2 of 3)

Knowing what you’re getting into is a key part of the interview process. While church leadership focuses on you, you should be focusing on the church leadership to gain an understanding of who they are and who they hope to become.

There are usually three layers of discovery:

• The general/public statements an organization posts on its website
• The personal/job description, organizational chart and budgeted line items handed to a potential employee
• The unwritten/sometimes non-negotiable expectations that are usually unearthed during day-to-day operations

Take time to review the general/public statements to ensure that you are in total agreement with the overall beliefs of the church.

Ask tons of questions about your job description, the organizational chart and budgeted line items for which you will be responsible. These items will eventually measure your effectiveness in the organization and become your top priorities. Make sure your task list matches your areas of passion and giftedness.

Four specific areas of focus for Children’s Ministry should be:

1. The overall goal of Children’s Ministry – Is it childcare or ministry or a combination of the two?
2. The level of support given from top leadership when needing to recruit volunteers
3. Sufficient funds to cover ministry essentials, i.e.: background checks, curriculum and supplies
4. Designated space that will allow you to create a program of excellence

Listen carefully for unwritten expectations and non-negotiables.
Every organization has them and they are often revealed only through casual conversation. They fall into the “common knowledge” category of those who have been with the organization for an extended period of time and are recognizable only when you bump into them and realize they are not up for discussion.

Here are some examples:

As the Family Life Pastor, proving childcare for little ones and programming for elementary students on Wednesday nights may be a mutually-agreed upon responsibility listed on your job description. However, it may be unwritten, but commonly understood that you will also provide childcare for all adult ministries whenever they host an event on campus. This information does not only require additional recruiting and organization on your part, but it may also add to your meeting schedule and pull extra funds from your budget.

You hear that a long-time, trusted member of the church who has been organizing a live-nativity scene with children every Christmas Eve for twenty years has found that she no longer can keep up with the responsibility. You are sad to hear the news, but don’t realize that because the event includes children, the staff is assuming you will take over management. Although you liked the idea, the program seems outdated to you and may be well-beyond your area of gifting, passion and expertise. You find yourself in over-your-head with a responsibility you do not feel capable of executing with excellence.

Working through each unwritten expectation or non-negotiable will require you to discover the reason, emotion and situation that created it. You will also need to pinpoint the “presumed” power holder that keeps it in place. Expectations may only be the perception of another and easily up for negotiation. You must be bold enough to open up the conversation and ask questions. The result may bring you quick agreement, an upgraded solution or a new understanding of the culture on your part.

Dating, investigation and discovery take time. Be patient and willing to work the process until you are satisfied.

At a minimum, be sure that the goals and beliefs of the organization and the job description align with the gifts God has given you and the passions He has placed upon your heart.